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    • NASA
      NASA, Australia Team Up for Artemis II Lunar Laser Communications Test
      By NASA
      An artist’s concept of NASA’s Orion spacecraft orbiting the Moon while using laser communications technology through the Orion Artemis II Optical Communications System.Credit: NASA/Dave Ryan As NASA prepares for its Artemis II mission, researchers at the agency’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland are collaborating with The Australian National University (ANU) to prove inventive, cost-saving laser communications technologies in the lunar environment.
      Communicating in space usually relies on radio waves, but NASA is exploring laser, or optical, communications, which can send data 10 to 100 times faster to the ground. Instead of radio signals, these systems use infrared light to transmit high-definition video, picture, voice, and science data across vast distances in less time. NASA has proven laser communications during previous technology demonstrations, but Artemis II will be the first crewed mission to attempt using lasers to transmit data from deep space.
      To support this effort, researchers working on the agency’s Real Time Optical Receiver (RealTOR) project have developed a cost-effective laser transceiver using commercial-off-the-shelf parts. Earlier this year, NASA Glenn engineers built and tested a replica of the system at the center’s Aerospace Communications Facility, and they are now working with ANU to build a system with the same hardware models to prepare for the university’s Artemis II laser communications demo.
      “Australia’s upcoming lunar experiment could showcase the capability, affordability, and reproducibility of the deep space receiver engineered by Glenn,” said Jennifer Downey, co-principal investigator for the RealTOR project at NASA Glenn. “It’s an important step in proving the feasibility of using commercial parts to develop accessible technologies for sustainable exploration beyond Earth.”

      During Artemis II, which is scheduled for early 2026, NASA will fly an optical communications system aboard the Orion spacecraft, which will test using lasers to send data across the cosmos. During the mission, NASA will attempt to transmit recorded 4K ultra-high-definition video, flight procedures, pictures, science data, and voice communications from the Moon to Earth.
      An artist’s concept of the optical communications ground station at Mount Stromlo Observatory in Canberra, Australia, using laser communications technology.Credit: The Australian National University Nearly 10,000 miles from Cleveland, ANU researchers working at the Mount Stromlo Observatory ground station hope to receive data during Orion’s journey around the Moon using the Glenn-developed transceiver model. This ground station will serve as a test location for the new transceiver design and will not be one of the mission’s primary ground stations. If the test is successful, it will prove that commercial parts can be used to build affordable, scalable space communication systems for future missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
      “Engaging with The Australian National University to expand commercial laser communications offerings across the world will further demonstrate how this advanced satellite communications capability is ready to support the agency’s networks and missions as we set our sights on deep space exploration,” said Marie Piasecki, technology portfolio manager for NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) Program.
      As NASA continues to investigate the feasibility of using commercial parts to engineer ground stations, Glenn researchers will continue to provide critical support in preparation for Australia’s demonstration.

      Strong global partnerships advance technology breakthroughs and are instrumental as NASA expands humanity’s reach from the Moon to Mars, while fueling innovations that improve life on Earth. Through Artemis, NASA will send astronauts to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and build the foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.
      The Real Time Optical Receiver (RealTOR) team poses for a group photo in the Aerospace Communications Facility at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland on Friday, Dec. 13, 2024. From left to right: Peter Simon, Sarah Tedder, John Clapham, Elisa Jager, Yousef Chahine, Michael Marsden, Brian Vyhnalek, and Nathan Wilson.Credit: NASA The RealTOR project is one aspect of the optical communications portfolio within NASA’s SCaN Program, which includes demonstrations and in-space experiment platforms to test the viability of infrared light for sending data to and from space. These include the LCOT (Low-Cost Optical Terminal) project, the Laser Communications Relay Demonstration, and more. NASA Glenn manages the project under the direction of agency’s SCaN Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
      The Australian National University’s demonstration is supported by the Australian Space Agency Moon to Mars Demonstrator Mission Grant program, which has facilitated operational capability for the Australian Deep Space Optical Ground Station Network.
      To learn how space communications and navigation capabilities support every agency mission, visit:
      https://www.nasa.gov/communicating-with-missions


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    • NASA
      NASA to Gather In-Flight Imagery of Commercial Test Capsule Re-Entry
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      4 Min Read NASA to Gather In-Flight Imagery of Commercial Test Capsule Re-Entry
      During the September 2023 daytime reentry of the OSIRIS-REx sample return capsule, the SCIFLI team captured visual data similar to what they're aiming to capture during Mission Possible. Credits: NASA/SCIFLI A NASA team specializing in collecting imagery-based engineering datasets from spacecraft during launch and reentry is supporting a European aerospace company’s upcoming mission to return a subscale demonstration capsule from space.
      NASA’s Scientifically Calibrated In-Flight Imagery (SCIFLI) team supports a broad range of mission needs across the agency, including Artemis, science missions like OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security – Regolith Explorer), and NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. The SCIFLI team also supports other commercial space efforts, helping to develop and strengthen public-private partnerships as NASA works to advance exploration, further cooperation, and open space to more science, people, and opportunities.

      Later this month, SCIFLI intends to gather data on The Exploration Company’s Mission Possible capsule as it returns to Earth following the launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. One of the key instruments SCIFLI will employ is a spectrometer detects light radiating from the capsule’s surface, which researchers can use to determine the surface temperature of the spacecraft. Traditionally, much of this data comes from advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics modeling of what happens when objects of various sizes, shapes, and materials enter different atmospheres, such as those on Earth, Mars, or Venus.
      “While very powerful, there is still some uncertainty in these Computational Fluid Dynamics models. Real-world measurements made by the SCIFLI team help NASA researchers refine their models, meaning better performance for sustained flight, higher safety margins for crew returning from the Moon or Mars, or landing more mass safely while exploring other planets,” said Carey Scott, SCIFLI capability lead at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.
      A rendering of a space capsule from The Exploration Company re-entering Earth’s atmosphere.
      Image courtesy of The Exploration CompanyThe Exploration Company The SCIFLI team will be staged in Hawaii and will fly aboard an agency Gulfstream III aircraft during the re-entry of Mission Possible over the Pacific Ocean.
      “The data will provide The Exploration Company with a little bit of redundancy and a different perspective — a decoupled data package, if you will — from their onboard sensors,” said Scott.
      From the Gulfstream, SCIFLI will have the spectrometer and an ultra-high-definition telescope trained on Mission Possible. The observation may be challenging since the team will be tracking the capsule against the bright daytime sky. Researchers expect to be able to acquire the capsule shortly after entry interface, the point at roughly 200,000 feet, where the atmosphere becomes thick enough to begin interacting with a capsule, producing compressive effects such as heating, a shock layer, and the emission of photons, or light.
      Real-world measurements made by the SCIFLI team help NASA researchers refine their models, meaning better performance for sustained flight, higher safety margins for crew returning from the Moon or Mars, or landing more mass safely while exploring other planets.
      Carey Scott
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      In addition to spectrometer data on Mission Possible’s thermal protection system, SCIFLI will capture imagery of the parachute system opening. First, a small drogue chute deploys to slow the capsule from supersonic to subsonic, followed by the deployment of a main parachute. Lastly, cloud-cover permitting, the team plans to image splashdown in the Pacific, which will help a recovery vessel reach the capsule as quickly as possible.
      If flying over the ocean and capturing imagery of a small capsule as it zips through the atmosphere during the day sounds difficult, it is. But this mission, like all SCIFLI’s assignments, has been carefully modeled, choreographed, and rehearsed in the months and weeks leading up to the mission. There will even be a full-dress rehearsal in the days just before launch.
      Not that there aren’t always a few anxious moments right as the entry interface is imminent and the team is looking out for its target. According to Scott, once the target is acquired, the SCIFLI team has its procedures nailed down to a — pardon the pun — science.
      “We rehearse, and we rehearse, and we rehearse until it’s almost memorized,” he said.
      Ari Haven, left, asset coodinator for SCIFLI’s support of Mission Possible, and Carey Scott, principal engineer for the mission, in front of the G-III aircraft the team will fly on.
      Credit: NASA/Carey ScottNASA/Carey Scott The Exploration Company, headquartered in Munich, Germany, and Bordeaux,
      France, enlisted NASA’s support through a reimbursable Space Act Agreement and will use SCIFLI data to advance future capsule designs.
      “Working with NASA on this mission has been a real highlight for our team. It shows what’s possible when people from different parts of the world come together with a shared goal,” said Najwa Naimy, chief program officer at The Exploration Company. “What the SCIFLI team is doing to spot and track our capsule in broad daylight, over the open ocean, is incredibly impressive. We’re learning from each other, building trust, and making real progress together.”
      NASA Langley is known for its expertise in engineering, characterizing, and developing spacecraft systems for entry, descent, and landing. The Gulfstream III aircraft is operated by the Flight Operations Directorate at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California.
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      Last Updated Jun 18, 2025 EditorJoe AtkinsonContactJoe Atkinsonjoseph.s.atkinson@nasa.govLocationNASA Langley Research Center Related Terms
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      DIP is hosting an online session to provide detailed information on the CDDR service, scope of the collaborative opportunity, partner responsibilities and ACO response submission instructions. The intent is to share information for interested parties to make an informed decision to collaborate and successfully respond to the ACO. (For the details of the collaboration, please read the full Announcement on sam.gov website (ID: 80ARC022JAI-DIP)).
      The ACO is the first step to collaborate with NASA on this project. Flight Operators selected from the ACO process will contribute and benefit from the Sustainable Aviation (SA) demonstration to test and validate a cloud-based departure reroute service called Collaborative Digital Departure Reroute (CDDR) during FY22-24. CDDR has been shown to reduce fuel burn and emissions through reduced surface departure delays, which benefits re-routed flights as well as all other related departures in the operational area.
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      Sustainable Aviation (SA) demonstrations overview​ DIP platform and digital services overview Expectations of partners ACO walkthrough and how to submit What to expect after an ACO is submitted Q/A Who Should Register?
      This information session is primarily designed to assist flight operators with the ACO process. While other aviation industry participants are not discouraged from attending this session, the focus will be on the flight operator portion of our audience. An additional ACO for service providers will be announced on a future date.
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    • NASA
      NASA Tech to Measure Heat, Strain in Hypersonic Flight
      By NASA
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      Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
      NASA/Jacob Shaw A NASA system designed to measure temperature and strain on high-speed vehicles is set to make its first flights at hypersonic speeds – greater than Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound – when mounted to two research rockets launching this summer.
      Technicians in the Environmental Laboratory at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, used machines called shakers to perform vibration tests on the technology, known as a Fiber Optic Sensing System (FOSS), on March 26. The tests confirmed the FOSS could operate while withstanding the shaking forces of a rocket launch. Initial laboratory and flight tests in 2024 went well, leading to the recently tested system’s use on the U.S. Department of Defense coordinated research rockets to measure critical temperature safety data.
      Hypersonic sensing systems are crucial for advancing hypersonics, a potentially game-changing field in aeronautics. Capitalizing on decades of research, NASA is working to address critical challenges in hypersonic engine technology through its Advanced Air Vehicles Program.
      Using FOSS, NASA will gather data on the strain placed on vehicles during flight, as well as temperature information, which helps engineers understand the condition of a rocket or aircraft. The FOSS system collects data using a fiber about the thickness of a human hair that collects data along its length, replacing heavier and bulkier traditional wire harnesses and sensors.
      Jonathan Lopez and Allen Parker confer on the hypersonic Fiber Optic Sensor System at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, on February 13, 2025. The system measures strain and temperature, critical safety data for hypersonic vehicles that travel five time the speed of sound.NASA/Steve Freeman “There is no reliable technology with multiple sensors on a single fiber in the hypersonic environment,” said Patrick Chan, FOSS project manager at Armstrong. “The FOSS system is a paradigm shift for hypersonic research, because it can measure temperature and strain.”
      For decades, NASA Armstrong worked to develop and improve the system, leading to hypersonic FOSS, which originated in 2020. Craig Stephens, the Hypersonic Technology Project associate project manager at NASA Armstrong, anticipated a need for systems and sensors to measure temperature and strain on hypersonic vehicles.
      “I challenged the FOSS team to develop a durable data collection system that had reduced size, weight, and power requirements,” Stephens said. “If we obtain multiple readings from one FOSS fiber, that means we are reducing the number of wires in a vehicle, effectively saving weight and space.”
      The research work has continually made the system smaller and lighter. While a space-rated FOSS used in 2022 to collect temperature data during a NASA mission in low Earth orbit was roughly the size of a toaster, the hypersonic FOSS unit is about the size of two sticks of butter.
      Jonathan Lopez and Nathan Rick prepare the hypersonic Fiber Optic Sensing System for vibration tests in the Environmental Laboratory at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Testing on a machine called a shaker proved that the system could withstand the severe vibration it will endure in hypersonic flight, or travel at five times the speed of sound.NASA/Jim Ross Successful Partnerships
      To help advance hypersonic FOSS to test flights, NASA Armstrong Technology Transfer Office lead Ben Tomlinson orchestrated a partnership. NASA, the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School in Edwards, California, and the U.S. Air Force’s 586th Flight Test Squadron at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, agreed to a six-flight series in 2024.
      The test pilot school selected an experiment comparing FOSS and traditional sensors, looking at the data the different systems produced.
      The hypersonic FOSS was integrated into a beam fixed onto one end of a pod. It had weight on the other end of the beam so that it could move as the aircraft maneuvered into position for the tests. The pod fit under a T-38 aircraft that collected strain data as the aircraft flew.
      “The successful T-38 flights increased the FOSS technology readiness,” Tomlinson said. “However, a test at hypersonic speed will make FOSS more attractive for a United States business to commercialize.”
      April Torres, from left, Cryss Punteney, and Karen Estes watch as data flows from the hypersonic Fiber Optic Sensing System at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Testing on a machine called a shaker proved that the system could withstand the severe vibration it will endure in hypersonic flight, or travel at five times the speed of sound.NASA/Jim Ross New Opportunities
      After the experiment with the Air Force, NASA’s hypersonic technology team looked for other opportunities to advance the miniaturized version of the system. That interest led to the upcoming research rocket tests in coordination with the Department of Defense.
      “We have high confidence in the system, and we look forward to flying it in hypersonic flight and at altitude,” Chan said.
      A hypersonic Fiber Optic Sensing System, developed at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, is ready for a test flight on a T-38 at the U.S. Air Force 586th Flight Test Squadron at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico. NASA Armstrong, the flight test squadron, and the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School in Edwards, California, partnered for the test. From left are Earl Adams, Chathu Kuruppu, Colby Ferrigno, Allen Parker, Patrick Chan, Anthony Peralta, Ben Tomlinson, Jonathan Lopez, David Brown, Lt. Col. Sean Siddiqui, Capt. Nathaniel Raquet, Master Sgt. Charles Shepard, and Greg Talbot.U.S. Air Force/Devin Lopez Share
      Details
      Last Updated Jun 18, 2025 EditorDede DiniusContactJay Levinejay.levine-1@nasa.govLocationArmstrong Flight Research Center Related Terms
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      Dr. Natasha Schatzman Receives Vertical Flight Society (VFS) Award
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      Dr. Natasha Schatzman Receives Vertical Flight Society (VFS) Award
      The Forum 81 award was presented to Natasha Schatzman (center), with the award given by the parents of Alex Stoll, Mark and Lyn Stoll, and flanked by VFS Chair of the Board Harry Nahatis (left) and VFS Executive Director Angelo Collins (right). Source: https://gallery.vtol.org/image/AloOB. Photo Credit: Warren Liebmann In May 2025, Dr. Natasha Schatzman, aerospace engineer in the Aeromechanics Office at NASA Ames Research Center, received the inaugural Alex M. Stoll Award from the Vertical Flight Society (VFS).  This award honors a professional in the field of vertical flight who “demonstrates an exceptional commitment to advancing not only the mission of their organization but makes extraordinary contributions to enhancing the well-being and happiness of their colleagues.”  Dr. Schatzman began her career at Ames in 2008 as a student intern while simultaneously completing her undergraduate studies at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech).  She stayed at Georgia Tech through graduate school and finished her Ph.D. dissertation in 2018 in the Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering Department.  Currently, Dr. Schatzman is focusing on assessments of rotorcraft performance and aeroacoustics through experimentation and modeling at Ames Research Center.  The Alex M. Stoll Award is the second time she has been honored by the VFS.  In 2023, Dr. Schatzman received the François-Xavier Bagnoud Vertical Flight Award which is given to a member “who is 35 years old or younger for their career-to-date outstanding contributions to vertical flight technology.”  More information on Dr. Schatzman’s 2025 award is at: https://vtol.org/awards-and-contests/vertical-flight-society-award-winners?awardID=28
      About the Author
      Osvaldo R. Sosa Valle
      Osvaldo Sosa is a dedicated and detail-oriented project coordinator at NASA Ames Research Center, where he supports operations for the Aeronautics Directorate. He is part of the Strategic Communications Team and serves as managing editor for the Aeronautics topic on the NASA website. With experience in event coordination, logistics, and stakeholder engagement, Osvaldo brings strong organizational and communication skills to every project. He is passionate about driving innovation, fostering strong leadership, and streamlining operations to enhance team collaboration and organizational impact.
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      Last Updated Jun 06, 2025 Related Terms
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