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by JumpCrisscross 1264 days ago
> not ready for prime time yet

Totally agree. But the frontier is advancing thanks to LiDAR. And in the meantime, the advantages of laser relay and downlink are vast enough to make mechanical actuation worth it. Particularly for unboosted birds in LEO.
1 comments
georgeg23 1264 days ago
Curious how LiDAR tech could be used for high speed communication?

At best that is time-multiplexing, not multiple parallel beams of information?

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JumpCrisscross 1264 days ago
> Curious how LiDAR tech could be used for high speed communication?

Lasers don’t care if they’re carrying data out or on return. The same optics being pursued for LiDAR have applications in communications. Solid-state waveguides and MEMS being examples.

link