An Adrian company’s tech helping NASA missions

ADRIAN, Michigan (WTVG) – PlaneWave Instruments’ RC700 was installed at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland in November of 2021.

The system will be used to demonstrate laser communication technology for future spaceflight missions.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled that the RC700 will be used in NASA’s laser communication project,” said Matt Dieterich, PlaneWave’s Technical Services Manager. “The opportunity to be a part of a ground-breaking project with NASA is the reason we strive to create the highest performing telescopes and gimbals.”

The RC700 began to develop when PlaneWave’s team realized that the industry needed more out of laser communication. This is the first telescope engineered to meet exact needs of the consumer with features within the software, design, assembly and testing.

PlaneWave’s RC700 was developed to fulfill the needs of demanding research, commercial and defense applications. RC700 is an ideal platform for laser communication and satellite laser ranging.

“All we had to do was listen,” said Eric Blackhurst, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at PlaneWave Instruments. “The industry had gaps in technology, and we knew we could fill those gaps.” With PlaneWave’s technology, optics, and tracking, customers who need to perform high-precision satellite tracking can now do so faster and more accurately than ever before.

PlaneWave’s software accomplishments are like no other, with an impressive engineering staff. “We build products that are lacking in the industry or aren’t in the market yet,” said Richard Hedrick, President and CEO of PlaneWave Instruments. “Everything that we do stems from our mission to build the perfect telescope, and the RC700 took us one step closer to that goal.”

PlaneWave Instruments’ mission to build the perfect telescope is further demonstrated by their recent partnership with Hart Scientific Consulting International to start the world’s first commercially pre-integrated adaptive optics solution.

“We are doing what no one else has done as a commercial off-the-shelf telescope manufacturer, but with commercial off-the-shelf adaptive optics units we hope to advance the laser communications market even further,” said Dieterich.

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