NASA s Laser Communications Terminal Technologies for 2017 and Beyond. David Israel, LCRD Principal Investigator NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Transcription

1 NASA s Laser Communications Terminal Technologies for 2017 and Beyond David Israel, LCRD Principal Investigator NASA Goddard Space Flight Center 1

2 2 2013: NASA s First, Historic Lasercom Mission The Lunar Laser Communication Demonstration (LLCD) MIT Lincoln Laboratory, NASA GSFC, NASA Ames, NASA JPL, and ESA 2014 Popular Mechanics Breakthrough Award for Leadership and Innovation for LADEE 2014 R&D 100 Winning Technology in Communications category Nominated for the National Aeronautic Association's Robert J. Collier Trophy Winner of the National Space Club s Nelson P. Jackson Award for 2015

3 LLCD: NASA s First High-Data-Rate, Two- Way Space Lasercomm Demonstration LLCD was flown to the Moon on the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) in 2013 IMMEDIATE acquisition and tracking on every pass attempt Set records for download and upload speeds to the Moon LLCD returned data by laser to Earth at a record 622 Megabits per second (Mbps) = streaming 30+ HDTV channels simultaneously! Approved for Public Release

4 LLCD Space Terminal Laser Latch to protect and hold telescope during launch Flight aperture size reduced by an order of magnitude (4 Laser Window) Innovative stabilization design enabled a leap forward in fine pointing accuracy Approved for Public Release Built by MIT/Lincoln Laboratory

5 Space Terminal Internal Modules Uplink functions Selectable 10, 20 Mbps Command, data, and test pattern demux Downlink functions Selectable Mbps Mux terminal telemetry, loopedback uplink, spacecraft data, test patterns Enables time-of-flight Controller Electronics Module Modem Module Controller functions Spacecraft controls interface Space terminal configuration Digital controls for PAT

6 LLCD Fully Integrated on LADEE

7 Laser Communications: Higher Performance AND Increased Efficiency A Giant Leap in Data Rate Performance for Less Mass and Power 700 Lasercomm "Broadband" Data Rate (Mbps) LLCD used: Half the mass 25% less power While sending 6x more data than Ka-band on LRO LRO "Wireless" Power (W) LADEE "Dial up" Mass (kg) 7

8 NASA s Next Step Beyond LLLCD: The Deep-Space Optical Communications Project Frontier Radio Dedicated Comm Relays Extend the Internet to Mars and enable public engagement IRIS future versions Human and robotic users??? 100x todays data rates from Mars up to 1 Gbps Dedicated 12m Stations NASA + International partnerships Hybrid RF/Optical Antenna Potential reuse of existing infrastructure, in development today z High Performance Optical Terminal: Will be demonstrated on next NASA Discovery mission 8

9 Laser Communication Relay Demonstration (LCRD) on STPSat-6 for April 2019 Launch Joint SCaN/NASA Space Tech Mission Commercial spacecraft host Two to five years of mission operations Flight Payload Two LLCD-heritage Optical Modules and Controller Electronics Modules Two software-defined DPSK Modems with 2.88 Gbps data rate New High Speed Switching Unit to interconnect the two terminals RFI for Guest Investigators revealed significant commercial interest Key for Next-Gen TDRS (or equivalent) in 2025 timeframe 9 9

10 NASA s Complete Plan for Infusing Optical Comm into NASA Missions Compliance with Policy (FAA, LCH); Interoperability With other Agencies (ESA, ect.) Non-Ph.D Operators, Integrators; Documentation CFLOS Analysis; Countering Weather with Multiple Ground Stations; Providing Fiber Connectivity While Minimizing Service Costs; Training and Support Ground Network Standards and Procedures Generic Product Additional Software Commercialization Disruption-Tolerant Networking (DTN), Integrated Operations And Provisioning SW Additional Hardware System Integration Leveraging Telecom Industry COTS Components While Building a Vendor Base for Custom HW; DRIVING COSTS DOWN Low Cost and SWaP User Terminal Buffer and Burst Edge Electronics; Dealing with Multiple Spacecraft C&DH Interfaces (SpW, MIL-STD-1553, ect) Calibration and Certification Test Facilities at NASA

11 LCRD Architecture: LCRD GEO Node with ILLUMA-T User Terminal for ISS Ka-band RF Downlink And Uplink 2019 LCRD with 2 Optical Heads in GEO on STPSat-6 High-Bandwidth Optical Downlink >80% Availability 2.23 Gbps Return Link 32 Mbps Forward Link 2021 New Start in FY17 ILLUMA-T User Terminal for LEO Mission with high data volumes: Total Return > ~50 Tb/day With Full Contact over CONUS LMOC JPL TMF Maui Two Optical Ground Stations with Adaptive Optics for DPSK Support

12 A Commercial, Low-Cost, Low-SWaP User Terminal : The ILLUMA-T on ISS in 2021 ILLUMA-T will leverage: Next-Gen Optical Module (NGT) ILLUMA modem based on integrated photonics 3 W High Power Optical Amplifier Target SWaP <30 kg for NGT and ILLUMA 100 W Open/Space VPX compliant Target Cost: $5M per terminal in volumes > 5 Artist s concept for ISS-to-LCRD Link ILLUMA-T Terminal on ISS JEM-EFU3 LEO Terminal in EFU3 Payload Position 12

13 ILLUMA-T Next Gen Optical Module: MIT-LL Design, Commercial Manufacture 2-axis gimbal with brushless torque motors Hemispherical field of regard o +/- 175 degrees Azimuth o +/- 120 degrees Elevation Slew rates of >10 degrees per second Off-axis telescope coupled to fixed small-optics bench via Coudé path Includes optional wide-angle beacon for acquisition and pseudo-star MIRU for inertial stabilization ~13 kg total mass for 10 cm model Developing 20 cm model for GEO terminals, including GEO crosslinks 10 cm Model for LEO Users 7

14 The Key to Reducing SWaP and Cost: Photonic Integrated Circuits US Industry has commercialized Integrated photonics to allow many electrooptical components, even glass fibers, to be squeezed down.. into the optical equivalent of a microelectronics integrated circuit For NASA, this means that optical systems for communications and sensors can be reduced in size, mass, and cost by >> 100x by leveraging this commercially-available technology (some customization may be required) 1 cm COTS Fiber Telecomm Modem..based on Integrated Photonics

15 Enter DoD s Integrated Photonics Institute for Manufacturing Innovation (IMI) $110M awarded on July 27, 2015 to SUNY s American Institute for Photonics with many partners SUNY lead the successful Sematech PPP for electronics Dr. Mike Krainak is NASA s rep to the IMI and the lead for the ILLUMA Modem

16 NASA s Ultra-High Data Volume Terminal for LEO Direct-to-Earth Links CubeSat-Scale Optical Terminal (1.8U volume) > 100 Gbps Downlink from LEO can deliver >50 Tb / day to single ground station Very high rate (> 100 Gbps) direct-to-earth downlink provides large volume downloads with short-duration links Extremely small space and ground terminals Ground site can be chosen to minimize costs PI) Requires development of low-swap transceiver technology and large volume, high-bandwidth buffer technology Currently working with MIT Lincoln Lab to develop compact 200 Gbps space terminal compatible with demonstration on CubeSat in 2018 Low-Cost Receiver 40 cm Telescope 50 Tb = 2x daily delivery possible with high-rate TDRS 50 Tb = 124 days of compressed 1080p HD 50 Tb = 2 days of high resolution radar data NASA/MIT LL Optical Comm- 16 BSR 04/04/16

17 NASA s Future Space and Near-Earth Network with High-Rate Optical Communication Services 2019 LCRD with 2 Optical Heads in GEO on STPSat Gbps Return Link 51 Mbps Forward Link 311 Mbps PPM Return 20 Mbps Forward Link 2021 Orion EM-2 At Cis-Lunar Orbit (2021) 2021 LMOC WSC High-Bandwidth Optical Downlink Option >95% Availability Mission Users in LEO with high data volumes: Total Return > 56 Tb/day 2018 >100 Gbps from LEO in 1.8U volume CONUS LVMR JPL TMF PI Site Hawaii Four Optical Ground Stations with PPM Support and A-O or Coherent Combining

18 Questions? Please feel free to contact Don Cornwell at: NASA Headquarters SCaN Program (cell)