The mechanism is an exterior payload on Orion that uses invisible infrared light to send more data in a single downlink than traditional radio-frequency systems. It transmitted video, procedures, photos, engineering and science data, and crew voice when the spacecraft had line of sight with ground terminals; it could also send data back to Orion. [S1]
NASA’s Near Space Network and Deep Space Network remained Artemis II’s primary communications support. At lunar distance, NASA reported their current processing structure was limited to single-digit megabits per second, while the optical system established multiple 260-megabit-per-second downlinks when in use. The two systems therefore served different roles in the mission rather than the laser link replacing the radio backbone. [S1]
That added capacity supported time-sensitive science work: the Artemis II lunar science lead said high-resolution imagery and other data enabled faster insights and a more productive crew science conference the morning after the flyby. NASA also reported that a ground station at Mount Stromlo in Canberra, built with the Australian National University and using commercially developed parts, maintained dual-stream video with Orion for more than 15.5 hours and reached the terminal’s 260-megabit-per-second maximum downlink rate. [S1]
Source documents
- NASA Laser Terminal Enhances Views During Artemis II Missionhttps://www.nasa.gov/missions/artemis/artemis-2/nasa-laser-terminal-enhances-views-during-artemis-ii-mission/