Watch: NASA sends high-definition cat video from spaceship to Earth via laser, covering 31mn km

NASA on Monday (Nov 18) said that they made use of a state-of-the-art laser communication systemto send a high-definition cat video from a spaceship to the Earth, covering a distance of 31 million kilometres.

The 15-second video features an orange tabby named Taters. This is the video which has been streamed from deep space and this shows that it is possible to transmit the higher-data-rate communications which is required for supporting complex missions like sending humans to Mars.

The video was sent to Earth by using a laser transceiver which was available on the Psyche probe. The probe has been moving in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter to explore a mysterious metal-rich object.

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When the video was sent, the spaceship was 80 times the distance between the Moon and the Earth.

The Hale Telescope kept at Caltech's Palomar Observatory in San Diego County received the encoded near-infrared signal which was then sent to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California.

The tech demo's project manager at JPL Bill Klipstein said, "One of the goals is to demonstrate the ability to transmit broadband video across millions of miles. Nothing on Psyche generates video data, so we usually send packets of randomly generated test data."

"But to make this significant event more memorable, we decided to work with designers at JPL to create a fun video, which captures the essence of the demo as part of the Psyche mission," he added.

Traditionally, space missions have relied on radio waves for sending and receiving data, however, working with lasers is likely to increase the data rate by 10 to 100 times.

Video sent in 101 seconds

It took 101 seconds to send the ultra-HD video to Earth at the maximum bit rate of 267 megabits per second in the system, which is faster than home broadband connections.

Project's receiver electronics lead at JPL Ryan Rogalin said, "In fact, after receiving the video at Palomar, it was sent to JPL over the internet, and that connection was slower than the signal coming from deep space."

Watch:NASA uses laser technology to send the first-ever cat footage from deep space

Explaining why they streamed a cat video, JPL said that there is a historic connection. When the interest of Americans started growing in television in the 1920s, they broadcasted a statue of Felix the Cat as a test image.

Also, cats continue to dominate the number-one position in the world of viral internet videos and meme culture.

(With inputs from agencies)