Frequency diversity in millimeter wave satellite communications

Dual-band frequency diversity seems to be an effective fade countermeasure to rain-induced attenuation in satellite communications above 20 GHz. This method, particularly suited for satellites operating in two frequency bands, typically K_a band and C or K_u band, achieves very low levels of outage probability especially where the rain fades are severe. A theoretical analysis of a frequency diversity system is performed to evaluate the amount of reserve capacity needed to counteract fading in a satellite network. The problems that arise in implementing adaptive fade countermeasures because of the dynamic characteristics of fading are discussed, and the results of the simulations performed using the attenuation time series at 11.6 GHz, measured with the Sirio satellite throughout four years, are presented     

Experiments on aeronautical satellite communications using ETS-Vsatellite

The world's first aeronautical satellite communication experiments, conducted at L-band frequencies using a commercial aircraft, are described. An airborne antenna with electronically steerable beam and communication equipment was installed in a B-747F freighter flying over transoceanic flight routes. The satellite used in these experiments is the Engineering Test Satellite-Five (ETS-V). During the test period, various experiments, such as antenna pattern measurements, transmission performances, and voice quality evaluation were conducted. As the airborne antenna is the key component for the aeronautical satellite communication system, emphasis has been placed on antenna characteristics. Its performance is found to be closely related to the fading characteristics in low-elevation areas and to transmission error performance     

Cross-layer design of LT codes and LDPC codes for satellite multimedia broadcast/multicast services

According to large coverage of satellites, there are various channel states in a satellite broadcasting network. In order to introduce an efficient rateless transmission method to satellite multimedia broadcasting/multicast services with finite-length packets, a cross-layer packet transmission method is proposed with Luby transform （LT） codes for efficiency in the network layer and low density parity check （LDPC） codes for reliability in the physical layer jointly. The codewords generated from an LT encoder are divided into finite-length packets, which are encoded by an LDPC encoder subsequently. Based on noise and fading effects of satellite channels, the LT packets received from an LDPC decoder either have no error or are marked as erased, which can be mod- eled as a binary erasure channels （BECs）. By theoretical analysis on LT parameters and LDPC parameters, the relationships between LDPC code rates in the physical layer and LT codes word lengths in the network layer are investigated. With tradeoffs between the LT codes word lengths and the LDPC code rates, optimized cross-layer solutions are achieved with a binary search algorithm. Verified by simulations, the proposed solution for cross-layer parameters design can provide the best transmission mode according to satellite states, so as to improve throughput performance for satellite multimedia transmission.     

基于可靠性安全系数的折叠展开机构可靠性分析

太阳翼系统是卫星的重要组成部分,其故障可能导致卫星无法正常运行,保证卫星太阳翼机构的可靠性具有重要意义。为了实现折叠展开机构的可靠性优化设计,首先,介绍卫星太阳翼机构的重要性及其可靠性的研究现状,提出基于可靠性安全系数的卫星太阳翼展开可靠性分析方法;其次,研究基于可靠性安全系数的概念,并推导其表达式;最后,以某型卫星太阳翼机构参数为例进行展开运动分析计算,验证所提方法的合理性和可行性。该方法可为卫星太阳翼机构及其他类似机构的可靠性设计提供有益参考。     

Adaptive robust cubature Kalman filtering for satellite attitude estimation

This paper is concerned with the adaptive robust cubature Kalman filtering problem for the case that the dynamics model error and the measurement model error exist simultaneously in the satellite attitude estimation system. By using Hubel-based robust filtering methodology to correct the measurement covariance formulation of cubature Kalman filter, the proposed filtering algorithm could effectively suppress the measurement model error. To further enhance this effect and reduce the impact of the dynamics model error, two different adaptively robust filtering algorithms, one with the optimal adaptive factor based on the estimated covariance matrix of the predicted residuals and the other with multiple fading factors based on strong tracking algorithm, are developed and applied for the satellite attitude estimation. The quaternion is employed to represent the global attitude parameter, and three-dimensional generalized Rodrigues parameters are introduced to define the local attitude error. A multiplicative quaternion error is derived from the local attitude error to maintain quaternion normalization constraint in the filter. Simulation results indicate that the proposed novel algorithm could exhibit higher accuracy and faster convergence compared with the multiplicative extended Kalman filter, the unscented quaternion estimator, and the adaptive robust unscented Kalman filter.     

Bandwidth maximization for satellite laser communication

Free space optical communication between satellites networked together can make possible high speed communication between different places on Earth. The basic free space optical communication network includes at least two satellites. In order to communicate between them, the transmitter satellite must track the beacon of the receiver satellite and point the information optical beam in its direction. The pointing systems for laser satellite communication suffer during tracking from vibration due to electronic noise, background radiation from interstellar objects such as Sun, Moon, Earth, and Stars in the tracking field of view, and mechanical impact from satellite internal and external sources. Due to vibrations the receiver receives less power. This effect limits the system bandwidth for given bit error rate (BER). In this research we derive an algorithm to maximize the communication system bandwidth using the transmitter telescope gain as a free variable based on the vibration statistics model and the system parameters. Our model makes it possible to adapt the bandwidth and transmitter gain to change of vibration amplitude. We also present an example of a practical satellite network which includes a direct detection receiver with an optical amplifier. A bandwidth improvement of three orders of magnitude is achieved in this example for certain conditions, as compared with an unoptimized system     

Predicting and adapting satellite channels with weather-induced impairments

Efficiency improvements using predictive and adaptive methods over satellite channels with weather-induced impairments are presented. Scintillation and rain attenuation are the two dominant factors for signal fading over satellite-Earth paths at operating frequencies over 10 GHz. We develop statistical and spectral analyses of these processes, and obtain simple linear predictors for received signal attenuation using autoregressive (AR) models. For adaptation, we propose changing signal transmission power, modulation symbol size, and/or code rate as the state of the channel changes. In particular, we introduce a continuous power control and discrete rate control strategy. Quantitative analyses of power consumption and channel capacity indicate that there can be a substantial gain in performance with such adaptive schemes.     

卫星微振动及控制技术进展

高分辨率是卫星发展的重要方向,而制约卫星有效载荷分辨率提高的重要因素之一就是卫星微振动。因此,近年来卫星微振动及其控制问题越来越受到关注。本文从微振动的来源和特点出发,按照微振动传递路径上的控制方式,对国内外微振动领域的研究成果进行了总结。在此基础上,重点介绍了微振动控制技术在卫星微振动领域的应用,并按照微振动控制的方式,介绍了微振动被动控制、微振动主动控制以及大挠性部件微振动控制方法。结合工程实际应用,对微振动控制设计中需要注意的刚度、阻尼及多自由度耦合性问题进行了说明。同时,简单介绍了工程上常用的其他微振动控制方法。最后,对微振动控制的发展作了简短评述和展望。     

基于非合作低轨卫星的测向交叉定位技术

根据非合作低轨卫星的特点，可以被动测量多颗卫星信号的来向，通过测向交叉的方式进行定位。但是通过星历解算出的卫星位置位于地心地固坐标系，用户测量的方位角和俯仰角基于站心坐标系。针对非合作低轨卫星测向交叉定位时目标用户角度信息与卫星位置基于不同坐标系的问题，提出了一种迭代最小二乘定位算法，通过迭代的方式不断收敛定位结果，能够在目标用户角度信息与卫星位置基于不同坐标系的情况下，解决非合作低轨卫星的测向交叉定位问题。仿真结果表明，基于迭代最小二乘定位算法能够实现非合作低轨卫星仅利用角度定位，并分析了测角精度、卫星轨道高度、参与定位卫星数与定位误差之间的关系。针对迭代的计算方法，分析了迭代过程中不同收敛条件下迭代次数与定位误差之间的关系。在保证定位精度的情况下，将迭代收敛范围设置为8~30 km，可以降低2~3次迭代次数。     

The MITA satellite

Carlo Gavazzi Space, with its 20 years experience in space market, has been involved in the small satellites activities for the last 10 years. Initially working on R&D in the MICROSAT project, it has gained experience in real satellite building in the SAFIR-2 programme, becoming finally responsible of the ASI satellite programme, MITA (Small Italian Advanced Technology satellite). The first launch is planned in July 2000, while the second launch, with the AGILE payload, is currently planned for the year 2002.     

An autonomous celestial navigation method for LEO satellite based on unscented Kalman filter and information fusion

A reliable and secure navigation system and assured autonomous capability of satellite are in high demand in case of emergencies in space. Celestial navigation is a fully autonomous navigation method for satellite. To near earth satellite, the earth direction is the most important measurement and the horizon sensing accuracy is the most important factor which effects celestial navigation accuracy. According to the mode of acquiring horizon measurement, satellite celestial navigation methods can be broadly classified into two approaches: directly sensing horizon using earth sensor and indirectly sensing horizon by observation of starlight atmospheric refraction. For these two methods are complementary to each other, a new Unscented Kalman Filter (UKF) based information fusion method is proposed here for hybriding them. Compared to the traditional celestial navigation method, this method can provide better navigation performance and higher reliability. The hardware-in-loop test results demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of this method, in most cases the accuracy is sufficient for near earth civilian satellite and moreover it can be used as a backup system to provide redundancy.     

A geopause satellite system concept

The forthcoming 10 cm range tracking accuracy capability holds much promise in connection with a number of Earth and ocean dynamics investigations. These include a set of earthquake-related studies of fault motions and the Earth's tidal, polar and rotational motions, as well as studies of the gravity field and the sea surface topography which should furnish basic information about mass and heat flow in the oceans. The state of the orbit analysis art is presently at about the 10 m level, or about two orders of magnitude away from the 10 cm range accuracy capability expected in the next couple of years or so. The realization of a 10 cm orbit analysis capability awaits the solution of four kinds of problems, namely, those involving orbit determination and the lack of sufficient knowledge of tracking system biases, the gravity field, and tracking station locations. The Geopause satellite system concept offers promising approaches in connection with all of these areas. A typical Geopause satellite orbit has a 14 hour period, a mean height of about 4.6 Earth radii, and is nearly circular, polar, and normal to the ecliptic. At this height only a relatively few gravity terms have uncertainties corresponding to orbital perturbations above the decimeter level. The orbit s, in this sense, at the geopotential boundary, i.e., the geopause. The few remaining environmental quantities which may be significant can be determined by means of orbit analyses and accelerometers. The Geopause satellite system also provides the tracking geometery and coverage needed for determining the orbit, the tracking system biases and the station locations. Studies indicate that the Geopause satellite, tracked with a 2 cm ranging system from nine NASA affiliated sites, can yield decimeter station location accuracies. Five or more fundamental stations well distributed in longitude can view Geopause over the North Pole. This means not only that redundant data are available for determining tracking system biases, but also that both components of the polar motion can be observed frequently. When tracking Geopause, the NASA sites become a two-hemisphere configuration which is ideal for a number of Earth physics applications such as the observation of the polar motion with a time resolution of a fraction of a day. Geopause also provides the basic capability for satellite-to-satellite tracking of drag-free satellites for mapping the gravity field and altimeter satellites for surveying the sea surface topography. Geopause tracking a coplanar, drag-free satellite for two months to 0.03 mm per second accuracy can yield the geoid over the entire Earth to decimeter accuracy with 2.5° spatial resolution. Two Geopause satellites tracking a coplanar altimeter satellite can then yield ocean surface heights above the geoid with 7° spatial resolution every two weeks. These data will furnish basic boundary condition information about mass and heat flows in the oceans which are important in shaping weather and climate.     

Variability of GPS satellite differential group delay biases

An important issue in determining the accuracy of global positioning system (GPS) satellite ionospheric measurements is the instrumental delay biases between the L-band frequencies in both the satellites and the receivers. These differential L1-L2 biases must be measured and removed from the GPS measurements before an accurate estimate of the total electron content can be obtained. The results from the measurements indicate that the day-to-day variations of the satellite differential biases are quite well over a five-week time span, with a variation of less than 0.3-ns differential delay (one sigma). A follow-up experiment conducted two years later showed that the satellite biases had not changed significantly over this longer time span. When the prelaunch calibration values are compared with the experimental bias estimates, two of the four satellite pairs show excellent agreement and two differ significantly, indicating that prelaunch calibrations should be used with caution.<>     

Low cost satellite ground control facility design

A design approach common to the areas of satellite operations command and control, tracking, subsystem analysis, system planning and scheduling, orbit determination and maintenance, and data routing and control is discussed. Specific satellite mission applications and operations are isolated from the remainder of the design to allow application to a broad variety of satellite systems. Discussions of specific satellite missions are limited to the context of understanding the general magnitude and scope of what a ground control facility is required to support. By isolating the common satellite operational functions, a low cost generic approach that allows for phased implementation of system changes with minimal impact to on-orbit assets and mission performance is developed. The goals of this approach are to provide the capability for growth, maintainability, and operability of the satellite system. A brief discussion of satellite systems followed by the introduction of the general function of any satellite control facility sets the stage for the overall design approach. The factors that define the design along with the key design features are presented, with a discussion of each product available in each functional area     

A satellite interference location system using differential timeand phase measurement techniques

The design and development of a system for inferring the position of terrestrial satellite uplink stations using existing domestic satellites with minimal disruption to normal satellite operation are described. Two methods are presented by which a quantity measured at a terrestrial receiving site is mapped into a curve of possible uplink locations on the Earth's surface. One method involves measuring differential time delays of a single uplink signal observed through two adjacent spacecraft. The other uses a short baseline interferometer composed of the two cross-polarized and spatially separated antenna feeds aboard an affected satellite. A unique location is obtained by using an appropriate combination of the two methods. A system for measurement of the required differential delays and phases and experimental work performed to demonstrate the feasibility of the location methods are described     

面向导航增强的低轨卫星钟差确定及预报方法研究

低轨导航增强是未来导航发展的重要趋势,而高精度低轨卫星钟差是实现低轨导航增强的必要条件。基于Sentinel-6A卫星,对低轨卫星钟差特性进行了分析,给出了钟差确定方法及影响因素,介绍了顾及钟差特性的低轨卫星钟差预报方法。实验表明,低轨卫星钟差含有多个周期项,给低轨卫星建模和预报带来了困难。与使用运动学定轨模型相比,基于简化动力学的定轨模型可显著提升低轨卫星钟差精度;当基于运动学模型确定低轨卫星钟差时,相较于使用GPS单系统数据,多GNSS观测数据可提升低轨卫星钟差精度。研究表明,基于GPS和Galileo观测的Sentinel-6A卫星钟差精度相较于GPS单系统钟差精度改善了36%,同时,所使用的GNSS产品精度与低轨卫星钟差精度密切相关。利用顾及卫星钟差特性的低轨卫星钟差预报方法,当预报时长小于1 min,低轨卫星钟差预报精度（预报与解算值之差的RMSE）在0.1 ns之内,当预报时长小于5 min,预报精度在0.3 ns之内,随着预报时长的增长,预报精度显著下降。     

一种空间有源太阳翼铰链机构设计与研究

针对某空间微纳卫星太阳翼铰链机构的任务需求,设计了一种采用空间步进电机、无刷旋变、减速机构、微动开关、可重复部署展收和锁定的适应空间应用环境的轻质小型化、高可靠太阳翼铰链机构,开展了整机模态参数分析,并完成了工程样机试验验证。试验结果表明,该机构具有较高的定位精度、较大的负载能力和较好的环境适应性,可为后续空间有源微纳卫星太阳翼铰链机构研制提供参考。     

Satellite mobile communication and radio positioning systemplanning aspects

System aspects of mobile communication and position determination by satellite are described. Topics of discussion are the choice of frequency, type of modulation/multiple access and system design, and considering the effects of active and passive intermodulation and multipath interference. Communication performance and position determination analyses are conducted with respect to small-scale domestic mobile communication systems, where the satellite mobile transponder constitutes only a fraction of the otherwise fixed services C-band or Ku-band payload, and where the orbit position of the spare satellite(s) is dictated by considerations other than purely radio positioning. The system tradeoffs and arguments presented lead to a particular modulation/multiple access system, which provides high channel capacity, good ranging accuracy, and high resistance to multipath fading     

Nonredundant error correction DQPSK for the aeronautical-satellitechannel

The performance of differentially encoded quadrature phase-shift keying (DQPSK) system employing nonredundant error correction (NEC) receivers with single- and double-error correction capability is analyzed and evaluated for the aeronautical satellite channel. The NEC is an attractive coding technique which employs differential detectors with more than one symbol delay elements and which does not introduce any redundancy as other coding schemes do. As typical for aeronautical satellite communications, a Rician fading channel with Gaussian power spectrum has been considered. Unlike the additive, uncorrelated from symbol to symbol interference such as additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) or static cochannel interference (CCI) which has been investigated in the past, analysis of the performance in a fading channel is much more difficult. The difficulty arises from the multiplicative and correlative nature of the fading interference. Bit error rate (BER) performance evaluation results have been obtained by means of computer simulation for various channel conditions, including different values of the K-factor and the fading B_DT. These results have indicated that considerable performance gains as compared with conventional differentially detected systems are achieved for high values of K and for very fast fading. Both of these conditions are encountered in typical aeronautical communication systems. Wherever possible, heuristic explanations of the trend of the obtained BER performance evaluation results are also given     

Advanced communications satellite technology

Technology drivers for commercial communications satellites are examined based on the efficient use of spacecraft mass which is to be accomplished by increasing the efficiency of the microwave power amplifiers and antenna feed systems used for communications satellites, such as the INTELSAT series. The history of the INTELSAT series of satellites, the late 1980s market and available technology, and future directions of development are considered. Emphasis is on multibeam solid-state antennas, microwave switch matrices, solid-state power amplifiers, and the use of several filter modes in one physical cavity. By using quasimonolithic solid state techniques in a class B amplification mode they have achieved 40-60% efficiencies, compared with 20% for the conventional travelling wavetube amplifiers. It is concluded that technology directed towards improving the economics of satellite communications will continue to be a major driver of future communications satellite payloads. Through their use and their extension, the authors foresee more than doubling the telephone channels per satellite from the current 80000 to perhaps 200000 by the turn of the century