CACI Announces Operation of Laser Communications Transmitter Designed for NASA Deep Space Mission
26 January 2021 - 1:13AM
Business Wire
Laser communications transmitter to enable
NASA spacecraft to transmit data at accelerated speeds over a
distance of 200 million miles
CACI International Inc (NYSE:CACI) announced today the delivery
of a flight model laser communications transmitter to the NASA Jet
Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for use on-board the Psyche spacecraft,
whose mission is to study the origin of planetary cores in the
asteroid belt.
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The CACI laser transmitter, shown here,
will be used for the first laser communications demonstration in
deep space and will be the longest laser communication link ever
demonstrated. (Photo: Business Wire)
Laser communications, the next-generation space communications
technology, can transmit data over long distances at rates up to
100 times faster than traditional radio frequency systems. The
laser communications transmitter for the Psyche spacecraft is a key
component of the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) package
that is designed to transmit data in photon packets from the
asteroid belt back to earth, a distance of nearly 200 million
miles. The spacecraft will visit the Psyche asteroid, which
according to NASA, is unique because it appears to be the exposed
nickel-iron core of an early planet, one of the building blocks of
our solar system.
In November 2020, CACI delivered an engineering model of the
laser communication transmitter to JPL, having passed space
qualification testing. To pass space qualification testing, CACI
engineers demonstrated the transmitter could withstand both space
launch and flight.
The NASA Psyche mission aims to demonstrate the potential of
laser technology to enable deep space communications, such as
transmissions from the Earth to Mars or the moon. CACI is currently
designing laser communications systems for five space hardware
programs, including NASA’s Orion EM-2 Optical Communications (O2O)
project, which will enable broadband data communications to and
from the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle designed to take humans
into lunar orbit, and the NASA Integrated LCRD Low-Earth Orbit User
Modem and Amplifier Terminal (ILLUMA-T) program, which will deploy
laser communications technology on the International Space
Station.
John Mengucci, CACI President and Chief Executive Officer, said,
“The successful operation by NASA of a CACI-developed laser
communications transmitter demonstrates the advanced mission
technology this company designs for our country. CACI is excited to
support this NASA deep space mission with fast and reliable
communications, and is ready to deliver advanced laser-based
technologies to other space, aerial and terrestrial missions to
come.”
CACI’s approximately 23,000 talented employees are vigilant in
providing the unique expertise and distinctive technology that
address our customers’ greatest enterprise and mission challenges.
Our culture of good character, innovation, and excellence drives
our success and earns us recognition as a Fortune World's Most
Admired Company. As a member of the Fortune 1000 Largest Companies,
the Russell 1000 Index, and the S&P MidCap 400 Index, we
consistently deliver strong shareholder value. Visit us at
www.caci.com.
There are statements made herein which do not address historical
facts, and therefore could be interpreted to be forward-looking
statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements are subject to
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
anticipated results. The factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those anticipated include, but are not
limited to, the risk factors set forth in CACI’s Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, and other such
filings that CACI makes with the Securities and Exchange Commission
from time to time. Any forward-looking statements should not be
unduly relied upon and only speak as of the date hereof.
CACI-Company News
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210125005105/en/
Corporate Communications and Media: Jody Brown, Executive Vice
President, Public Relations (703) 841-7801, jbrown@caci.com
Investor Relations: Daniel Leckburg, Senior Vice President,
Investor Relations (703) 841-7666, dleckburg@caci.com
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