CACI Sets Another Distance Record for Optical Communications

Estimated reading time: 1 minute

Using CACI International Inc’s optical communications technology, NASA successfully sent data from its Psyche spacecraft to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, a distance of more than 200 million kilometers, as part of the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) experiment. Additionally, NASA will continue to leverage CACI’s optical technology for DSOC as the range is extended.

“With this latest accomplishment, we have achieved another ‘first for mankind’ milestone with our technology,” said John Mengucci, CACI President and Chief Executive Officer. “Our proven optical technology continues to attain historic milestones in the Optical Communications Terminal (OCT) realm. With more than 25 OCTs currently in low-earth orbit (LEO) for the U.S. government, we have demonstrated space-to-space and space-to-ground optical communications for proliferated LEO applications proving that a U.S.-based company can effectively design and manufacture this technology here at home.”

Recognized as the lowest-risk and most capable U.S. provider and manufacturer of OCTs across a broad spectrum of government customers and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) satellite providers, CACI has demonstrated exceptional performance in mission data transfer, including LEO and other classified implementations that support resilient, high-speed, secure, optical communications as an alternative to traditional radio frequency (RF) links. These innovations further demonstrate the company’s commitment to investing ahead of need in relevant, enduring, and enabling technologies that seamlessly integrate into OEM platforms.