Event Background
In this webinar, we will use FreeFlyer 7.10's optical communication modeling capabilities to consider how off-the-shelf optical components might be used to complete a link between a lander on the Moon's surface and a station on Earth.
Optical communications enable low-power, secure, and high-data-rate connections between spacecraft and ground stations. But despite these advantages, optical communication can be more technically challenging than radio frequencies that are typically used. Atmospheric scattering and turbulence can contribute to signal losses, and there are significant tradeoffs between smaller beam divergences (higher gains) and pointing errors. Optical receiver modeling and modulation choice are also crucial for determining the ability to close a link.
We will explore these effects and show that a low-cost 300 milliwatt lunar link can support HD video rates.
