Optical link and atmospheric turbulence characterization with JPL's Laser Communication Relay Demonstration Optical Ground Station

Abstract

NASA’s first end-to-end optical relay system, Laser Communications Relay Demonstration (LCRD) uses the Optical Ground Station-1 (OGS1) at Table Mountain Facility, Wrightwood, CA, for high-rate optical communication with the flight terminals on a geo-synchronous satellite. The AO system at OGS1 has performed in weak to strong atmospheric turbulence with promising coupling efficiency of the downlink beam into the single mode fiber receiver. Here, we present an overview of the AO system performance under varying turbulence conditions over the course of long-term operations. Furthermore, we discuss the development of an alternate custom AO control software and interface system and its advantage over the legacy software design.