As part of the study, experts from the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Light in Erlangen (Germany) demonstrated ground-based measurements of quantum states sent by a laser on board a satellite from a height of 38 thousand. Kilometers above the Earth. This is the first time that quantum states have also been accurately measured from such a large distance.

A satellite-based quantum-based encryption network will provide an extremely reliable method for encrypting data sent over long distances. The development of such a system in just five years is a very short time, considering that the creation of the satellite takes about 10 years.

Currently, with banking transactions, the transmission of text messages and other important information, encryption is used based on mathematical algorithms. Now such an approach is very effective, however, according to the scientists' forecasts, in the next 10-20 years there will be powerful computers capable of hacking existing cryptographic algorithms. The imminent threat of security forces us to pay close attention to the introduction of more reliable encryption techniques, such as the distribution of quantum keys. This method uses the properties of light particles, known as quantum states, to encrypt and send the key needed to decrypt the encoded data.

Although quantum encryption methods have been developed for more than a decade, they do not work at long distances, since residual light losses in optical fibers used for telecommunication networks on earth degrade sensitive quantum signals.

Quantum signals also can not be regenerated without loss of their properties by means of optical amplifiers, as in the case with classical optical data. In this connection, there was an impetus to the development of satellite quantum communication networks for communication with terrestrial systems of quantum encryption.

As the results of the research show, although satellite quantum communication networks need not be developed from scratch, the conversion of terrestrial systems to quantum encryption systems for the transfer of quantum states from the footprint will take 5 to 10 years.