Session
Technical Poster Session 4
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Abstract
A Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) constellation of high bandwidth optical and RF relay satellites is urgently needed to provide real-time continuous tasking uplink and data downlink from the growing constellations of commercial remote sensing satellites. Tactical military operators have a need to establish communications links to these commercial assets, from commercial CONUS ground stations or directly to deployed ground terminals, when and where they need it. This level of access adds significant risk mitigation against adversary threats to foreign ground stations and data processing nodes in combat and can make the concept of a hybrid architecture combining government satellites and commercial satellites a reality.
Today’s remote sensing satellites in LEO can only download data or upload tasking commands when over a ground station. Typically, this is limited to just six percent of a satellite’s time on orbit. Combined with limited data throughput and gaps of as much as eight hours between passes the real-time intelligence needed to make split second decisions is rarely available. This is coupled with limitations of location and where the ground station site can be established.
A constellation of relay satellites in MEO can transform the value of the data collected, providing continuous link availability. With optical inter-satellite communications between satellites and high bandwidth V/Q-band communications to the ground, gigabit per second throughput of real-time data is possible. SpaceLink has designed an innovative system architecture, implementing services that provide high security and 100 percent access time so that data is available in seconds when it matters the most.
The SpaceLink satellite relay constellation consists of four MEO Optical/RF relay satellites equally spaced in an equatorial orbit. Scheduled to launch in 2024, its key features include: 1) 100 percent line-of-sight access to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites, eliminating delays between the collection of commercial remote sensing data and the delivery of the data to the end user; 2) customer-driven real-time tasking and direct downlink of mission critical data; 3) an option for on-board processing to support real-time, same orbit tip-and-cue between multiple and diverse remote sensing satellites (e.g., RF to SAR to EO visible); and 4) an ability to augment proliferated LEO communications satellites providing a resilient ‘fail-over’ capability for government communications paths during periods of either pre-planned, or adversary-caused loss of communications.
This paper details the issues in getting remote sensing data to the tactical edge at the speed of relevance, and how the SpaceLink architecture meets long term need for a communications superhighway for the space economy with highly secure, continuous connectivity when seconds matter.
Real-Time Relay of Small Satellite Remote Sensing Data to Tactical Military Operators
Utah State University, Logan, UT
A Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) constellation of high bandwidth optical and RF relay satellites is urgently needed to provide real-time continuous tasking uplink and data downlink from the growing constellations of commercial remote sensing satellites. Tactical military operators have a need to establish communications links to these commercial assets, from commercial CONUS ground stations or directly to deployed ground terminals, when and where they need it. This level of access adds significant risk mitigation against adversary threats to foreign ground stations and data processing nodes in combat and can make the concept of a hybrid architecture combining government satellites and commercial satellites a reality.
Today’s remote sensing satellites in LEO can only download data or upload tasking commands when over a ground station. Typically, this is limited to just six percent of a satellite’s time on orbit. Combined with limited data throughput and gaps of as much as eight hours between passes the real-time intelligence needed to make split second decisions is rarely available. This is coupled with limitations of location and where the ground station site can be established.
A constellation of relay satellites in MEO can transform the value of the data collected, providing continuous link availability. With optical inter-satellite communications between satellites and high bandwidth V/Q-band communications to the ground, gigabit per second throughput of real-time data is possible. SpaceLink has designed an innovative system architecture, implementing services that provide high security and 100 percent access time so that data is available in seconds when it matters the most.
The SpaceLink satellite relay constellation consists of four MEO Optical/RF relay satellites equally spaced in an equatorial orbit. Scheduled to launch in 2024, its key features include: 1) 100 percent line-of-sight access to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites, eliminating delays between the collection of commercial remote sensing data and the delivery of the data to the end user; 2) customer-driven real-time tasking and direct downlink of mission critical data; 3) an option for on-board processing to support real-time, same orbit tip-and-cue between multiple and diverse remote sensing satellites (e.g., RF to SAR to EO visible); and 4) an ability to augment proliferated LEO communications satellites providing a resilient ‘fail-over’ capability for government communications paths during periods of either pre-planned, or adversary-caused loss of communications.
This paper details the issues in getting remote sensing data to the tactical edge at the speed of relevance, and how the SpaceLink architecture meets long term need for a communications superhighway for the space economy with highly secure, continuous connectivity when seconds matter.
