NASA’s Laser Communications Experiment Streamed From Deep Space

This 15-second ultra-high-definition video featuring a cat named Taters was streamed via laser from deep space by NASA on Dec. 11, 2023. The video was inspired by the first television test broadcast of Felix the Cat in 1928, and the influence that cat videos have had on popular culture. It was part of the technology demonstration known as Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC), which is attached to the Psyche spacecraft traveling to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Uploaded before launch, the short ultra-high definition video features an orange tabby cat named Taters, the pet of a JPL employee, chasing a laser pointer, with overlayed graphics. The graphics illustrate several features from the tech demo, such as Psyche’s orbital path, Palomar’s telescope dome, and technical information about the laser and its data bit rate. Tater’s heart rate, color, and breed are also on display.

See the following sources:

• https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/news/2024/1/29/the-nasa-cat-video-explained
• https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/deep-space-optical-communications-dsoc