NASA Probe Blasts 461 Gigabytes of Moon Data Daily

coondoggie writes "On its current space scouting mission, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is using a pumped up communications device to deliver 461 gigabytes of data and images per day, at a rate of up to 100 Mbps. As the first high data rate K-band transmitter to fly on a NASA spacecraft, the 13-inch-long tube, called a Traveling Wave Tube Amplifier, is making it possible for NASA scientists to receive massive amounts of images and data about the moon's surface and environment. The amplifier was built by L-3 Communications Electron Technologies in conjunction with NASA's Glenn Research Center. The device uses electrodes in a vacuum tube to amplify microwave signals to high power. It's ideal for sending large amounts of data over a long distance because it provides more power and more efficiency than its alternative, the transistor amplifier, NASA stated." It kills me that the moon has better bandwidth than my house.

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[quatin]

Does torrent work on it?

Bandwidth isn't everything.

[Ihlosi]

It kills me that the moon has better bandwidth than my house.

Oh, but the latency sucks. Try playing WoW with over a second of lag.

What the hell?

[mc1138]

You mean to tell me the Internet really is a series of tubes?!