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Graphs of monostatic and bistatic radar reflectivity tests for gravity-gradient stabilized lenticular passive communications satellite
Orbit position control based on solar pressure on plane sail structure and hollow thin-skinned lenticular shape of passive communications satellites
Orbit position control based on solar pressure on plane sail structure and hollow thin-skinned lenticular shape of passive communications satellites
Five proof of concept receivers are tested. The receivers operate in the 27.5 to 30 GHz uplink band for communications satellites and produce an output at C band. Receiver requirements and test results are given. Test methods are discussed and results are compared with the contractor's test results.
A reference concept and implementation relevant to the application of Code Phase Division Multiple Access (CPDMA) to a high capacity satellite communication system providing 16 Kbps single hop channels between Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSAT's) is described. The description includes a potential implementation of an onboard CPDMA bulk demodulator/converter utilizing programmable charge coupled device (CCD) technology projected to be available in the early 1990's. A high level description of the system architecture and operations, identification of key functional and performance requirements of the system elements, and analysis results of end-to-end system performance relative to key figures of merit such as spectral efficiency are also provided.
This paper describes a 5-kilobit/s spread spectrum modem with a 1.275 mega-Hz chip rate for mobile satellite communications. We used a Viterbi decoder with a coding gain of 7.8 dB at a BER of 10(exp -5) to decrease the required receiver power. This reduces the cost of communication services. The spread spectrum technique makes the modem immune to terrestrial radio signals and keeps it from causing interference in terrestrial radio systems. A class C power amplifier reduces the modem's power consumption. To avoid nonlinear distortion caused by the amplifier, the envelope of the input signal is kept constant by adding quadrature channel signal to the BPSK signal. To simulate the worst case, we measured the modem's output spectrum using a limiting amplifier instead of the class C amplifier, and found that 99 percent of the spectral power was confined to the specified 2.55 mega-Hz bandwidth.
Multiple beam phased arrays are shown to enhance the performance of several anticipated geostationary communications satellite programs because of the greater efficiency and flexibility of the phased array. It is shown that the efficiency of arrays can be significantly greater than corresponding multiple feed dishes and that the problems of crossover loss and performance degradation with parts failures are thereby avoided. On an open loop basis, it is shown that a multiple beam array can provide higher EIRP over a coverage area. On a closed loop basis, it is shown that an adaptive array can provide nulling of unwanted signals while simultaneously providing gain in the direction of a desired signal.
A model of the microwave and millimeter wave link in the presence of atmospheric turbulence is presented with emphasis on satellite communications systems. The analysis is based on standard methods of statistical theory. The results are directly usable by the design engineer.
Trends in launch schedules, weights, power, and space segment costs per transponder year for Intelsats and North American domsats (domestic communications satellites) are discussed. The Intelsat system currently services 25,000 point to point telephone links at any one moment, and a $3 billion order has been placed for Intelsat VIs, which feature 36,000 telephone circuits each. The Intelsat VI spacecraft will weigh 1670 kg in orbit, a continuance of the trend to heavier satellites, while the domsats will stay at 650 kg due to launch vehicle limitations. Direct television broadcast satellites are being designed for receive only (R/O) earth stations, with each satellite capable of servicing 50,000 individual ground stations. Competition is growing for C and Ku band satellite transponders for DBS, with costs $350,000 each. No standardized design has yet emerged.
A circuit switching architecture is described for a 30/20 GHz frequency division, multiple access uplink/time division multiplexed downlink (FDMA/TDM) geostationary satellite communications network. Critical subsystems and problem areas are identified and addressed. Work was concentrated primarily on the space segment; however, the ground segment was considered concurrently to ensure cost efficiency and realistic operational constraints.
A circuit-switching architecture is described for a 30/20-GHz frequency-division, multiple-access uplink/time-division-multiplexed downlink (FDMA/TDM) geostationary satellite communications network. Critical subsystems and problem areas are identified and addressed. Work was concentrated primarily on the space segment; however, the ground segment was considered concurrently to ensure cost efficiency and realistic operational constraints.
The service features of the OmniTRACS system developed by Omninet Communications Services of Los Angeles, California are described. This system is the first operational mobile Ku-band satellite communications system that provides two-way messaging and position determination and reporting services to mobile users on a nationwide basis. The system uses existing Ku-band satellites under a secondary international allocation for mobile satellite services.
An examination of a multiplicity of interconnected parameters ranging from specific technology details to total system economic costs for satellite communication systems at the 18/30 GHz transmission bands are presented. It was determined that K sub A band systems can incur a small communications outage during very heavy rainfall periods and that reducing the outage to zero would lead to prohibitive system costs. On the other hand, the economics of scale, ie, one spacecraft accommodating 2.5 GHz of bandwidth coupled with multiple beam frequency reuse, leads to very low costs for those users who can tolerate the 5 to 50 hours per year of downtime. A multiple frequency band satellite network can provide the ultimate optimized match to the consumer performance/economics demands.
As commercial companies continue to develop communication services and infrastructure in near-Earth orbit, NASA is actively pursuing commercially-led satellite communications for future missions. Many of these commercial services are offered in the K/Ka-band, ranging from 17 to 31 GHz, covering spectrum allocated to commercial networks, military, and civilian government space operations, and can be tailored to support orbiting spacecraft. A key enabling technology needed for this vision is a multi-frequency (wideband), multi-waveform user terminal which can operate over multiple services. This presentation discusses the work undertaken at NASA’s Glenn Research Center to develop a RF user spacecraft terminal. Specifications and design considerations that support interoperability will be discussed as well as off the shelf technology gaps. Furthermore, simulation and benchtop testing results will be discussed as well as details of the initial successful over-the-air demonstrations using NASA, Inmarsat, and SES services.
Processing equipment modifications and product development of glass fibers for passive communication satellite
The cited articles from the international literature concern all aspects of communication satellite technology. Included are articles on satellite networks, data transmission efficiency, time division multiple access, data links, and phase shift keying. This bibliography contains 239 citations.
It is noted that NASA is currently proceeding with a revitalized R&D program aimed at the development and demonstration of advanced communication satellite system concepts and the related enabling technologies. The paper reviews the important elements of this program thrust, the approach NASA is taking to assure proper involvement of both the system supplier industry and the service supplier industry and the specific technology focus in the near term. Finally, highlights of the current NASA and industry activities related to opening up the 30/20 GHz frequency band for both commercial and military use are presented.
An analysis embodied in a PC computer program is presented which quantitatively demonstrates how the availability of radiation hard solar cells can minimize the cost of a global satellite communication system. The chief distinction between the currently proposed systems, such as Iridium Odyssey and Ellipsat, is the number of satellites employed and their operating altitudes. Analysis of the major costs associated with implementing these systems shows that operation within the earth's radiation belts can reduce the total system cost by as much as a factor of two, so long as radiation hard components including solar cells, can be used. A detailed evaluation of several types of planar solar cells is given, including commercially available Si and GaAs/Ge cells, and InP/Si cells which are under development. The computer program calculates the end of life (EOL) power density of solar arrays taking into account the cell geometry, coverglass thickness, support frame, electrical interconnects, etc. The EOL power density can be determined for any altitude from low earth orbit (LEO) to geosynchronous (GEO) and for equatorial to polar planes of inclination. The mission duration can be varied over the entire range planned for the proposed satellite systems. An algorithm is included in the program for determining the degradation of cell efficiency for different cell technologies due to proton and electron irradiation. The program can be used to determine the optimum configuration for any cell technology for a particular orbit and for a specified mission life. Several examples of applying the program are presented, in which it is shown that the EOL power density of different technologies can vary by an order of magnitude for certain missions. Therefore, although a relatively radiation soft technology can be made to provide the required EOL power by simply increasing the size of the array, the impact on the total system budget could be unacceptable, due to increased launch and hardware costs. In aggregate these factors can account for more than a 10% increase in the total system cost. Since the estimated total costs of proposed global coverage systems range from $1 Billion to $9 Billion, the availability of radiation hard solar cells could make a decisive difference in the selection of a particular constellation architecture.