AssetID: 53314905
Headline: RAW VIDEO: Taters The Space Cat Boldly Goes Where No Feline Has Gone Before After 19 Million Mile Laser Transmission
Caption: Taters the cat has become the first animal to be broadcast 19 million miles through space via laser. NASA's Deep Space Optical Communications experiment successfully transmitted Taters the staggering distance on 11 December 2023. It sets a new record for a transmission, equivalent to 31 million kilometers or approximately 80 times the distance between Earth and the Moon. The historic milestone is part of a broader NASA technology demonstration focused on streaming high-bandwidth video and other data from deep space, with the ultimate goal of supporting future human missions beyond Earth's orbit. NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy says: "Our commitment to advancing optical communications as a key element in meeting our future data transmission needs is underscored by this accomplishment," said Melroy. "Increasing our bandwidth is essential for achieving our future exploration and science goals, and we anticipate the ongoing progress of this technology, transforming how we communicate during future interplanetary missions." The 15-second test video was transmitted using a cutting-edge instrument known as a flight laser transceiver. The video signal, sent at the system's maximum bit rate of 267 megabits per second (Mbps), took 101 seconds to reach Earth. The instrument, capable of sending and receiving near-infrared signals, beamed an encoded near-infrared laser to the Hale Telescope at Caltech's Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, California, for download. Each frame of the looping video was then transmitted "live" to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, where it was played in real time. Launched with NASA's Psyche mission on 13 October, the laser communications demo aims to transmit data from deep space at rates 10 to 100 times greater than the current state-of-the-art radio frequency systems used in deep space missions. As Psyche journeys to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, the technology demonstration will send high-data-rate signals, paving the way for advanced communications capable of transmitting complex scientific information, high-definition imagery, and video to support future human missions to Mars. Bill Klipstein, the tech demo's project manager at JPL, adds: “One of the goals is to demonstrate the ability to transmit broadband video across millions of miles. Nothing on Psyche generates video data, so we usually send packets of randomly generated test data. “But to make this significant event more memorable, we decided to work with designers at JPL to create a fun video, which captures the essence of the demo as part of the Psyche mission.” As for Taters himself, he is the pet of a JPL employee and is seen chasing a laser pointer. Overlayed graphics illustrate several features from the tech demo, such as Psyche’s orbital path, Palomar’s telescope dome, and technical information about the laser and its data bit rate. Tater’s heart rate, colour, and breed are also on display. “Despite transmitting from millions of miles away, it was able to send the video faster than most broadband internet connections,” said Ryan Rogalin, the project’s receiver electronics lead at JPL. “In fact, after receiving the video at Palomar, it was sent to JPL over the internet, and that connection was slower than the signal coming from deep space. JPL’s DesignLab did an amazing job helping us showcase this technology – everyone loves Taters.” There’s also a historical reason why Taters was chosen to go where no cat has gone before. In 1928, a small statue of the popular cartoon character Felix the Cat was featured in television test broadcast transmissions.
Keywords: taters,space,cat,feature,video,photo,nasa,jpl,psyche
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