14 DAY TRIAL // For the past three years, experts at the NASA Glenn Research Center have been working on the Space Communications and Navigation Testbed (SCaN Testbed). If successfully tested, this instrument will innovate the way communications are carried out in space.
The device will be delivered to the International Space Station (ISS) later this year, aboard an H-II Transfer Vehicle (HTV-2). These spacecraft are operated by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and are used to restock the space lab on everything it needs.
According to developers, the SCaN Testbed will allow astronauts to develop Software Defined Radio technology in space, aboard the ISS. This will enable better communications, but also allow for studies of communication patterns between current and future equipment.
Demonstrating new networking and navigation techniques is also an important objective for the new project. “These systems will allow researchers to conduct a suite of experiments over the next five years, enabling the advancement of a new generation of space communications,” a JPL press release says.