Fibertek, a fiber optic product supplier, has provided NASA with a laser technology that was integrated into the Low-Cost Optical Terminal at Goddard Space Flight Center to support the transmission of high-resolution images and video of the lunar region to the ground station.
The Basestation Optical Laser Terminal was developed by Fibertek under a small business collaboration with NASA called the Space Communications and Navigation — or SCaN — program, the space agency said Wednesday.
Fibertek’s four-channel laser unit is designed to enable the Orion spacecraft to transmit high-power communications during the Artemis II demonstration.
“Laser communications, focusing on direct-to-Earth links, is a maturing technology that is essential for NASA to meet its future communications capacity and navigation needs,” said Jason Mitchell, director of SCaN’s Advanced Communications and Navigation Technologies Division at NASA. “As we mature any technology, establishing and supporting a healthy domestic supply chain is vital. American small businesses play a key role in that chain.”
NASA uses America’s Seed Fund to grant early-stage federal funding to small businesses looking to innovate space technologies in support of advancing agency missions.
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