5.625 Gbps bidirectional laser communications measurements between the NFIRE satellite and an optical ground station

Renny A. Fields; David A. Kozlowski; Harold T. Yura; Robert L. Wong; Josef M. Wicker; Carl T. Lunde; Mark Gregory; Bernhard K. Wandernoth; Frank F. Heine; Joseph J. Luna

doi:10.1117/12.894662

29 September 2011 5.625 Gbps bidirectional laser communications measurements between the NFIRE satellite and an optical ground station

Renny A. Fields, David A. Kozlowski, Harold T. Yura, Robert L. Wong, Josef M. Wicker, Carl T. Lunde, Mark Gregory, Bernhard K. Wandernoth, Frank F. Heine, Joseph J. Luna

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 8184, Unmanned/Unattended Sensors and Sensor Networks VIII; 81840D (2011) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.894662
Event: SPIE Security + Defence, 2011, Prague, Czech Republic

Abstract

5.625 Gbps bidirectional laser communication at 1064 nm has been demonstrated on a repeatable basis between a Tesat coherent laser communication terminal with a 6.5 cm diameter ground aperture mounted inside the European Space Agency Optical Ground Station dome at Izana, Tenerife and a similar space-based terminal (12.4 cm diameter aperture) on the Near-Field InfraRed Experiment (NFIRE) low-earth-orbiting spacecraft. Both night and day bidirectional links were demonstrated with the longest being 177 seconds in duration. Correlation with atmospheric models and preliminary atmospheric r₀ and scintillation measurements have been made for the conditions tested, suggesting that such coherent systems can be deployed successfully at still lower altitudes without resorting to the use of adaptive optics for compensation.

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Renny A. Fields, David A. Kozlowski, Harold T. Yura, Robert L. Wong, Josef M. Wicker, Carl T. Lunde, Mark Gregory, Bernhard K. Wandernoth, Frank F. Heine, and Joseph J. Luna "5.625 Gbps bidirectional laser communications measurements between the NFIRE satellite and an optical ground station", Proc. SPIE 8184, Unmanned/Unattended Sensors and Sensor Networks VIII, 81840D (29 September 2011); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.894662

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