Psyche transmitted a cat video from deep space to Earth - the signal travelled 31 million kilometres

NASA has announced the first ever transmission of high resolution video from deep space to Earth. The video with the cat has travelled 31 million km, which is 80 times the distance between our planet and the Moon.

Here's What We Know

The Psyche probe was used to transmit the video. It was launched a few weeks ago to study an asteroid of the same name between Jupiter and Mars. The video was transmitted from space to Earth via laser beam.

The signal travelled the distance to our planet in 1 minute 41 seconds. The maximum data transfer rate was 267 Mbps, and the minimum was 62.5 Mbps. Scientists received the signal with the help of a telescope in California, which was equipped with a special installation. What is interesting, the transmission of the clip to the NASA centre took longer than the signal travelled in space.

In the early 1990s, NASA managed to transmit 1.2 Tbits of data over several years as part of the Magellan mission, which made the first detailed and full-scale radar mapping of Venus from its own orbit. The Psyche probe transmitted 0.1 Tbits more information as part of the test.

Source: NASA