The Future of CubeSat Communications: Transitioning Away from Amateur Radio Frequencies for High-speed Downlinks

摘要

This paper explores the evolution of CubeSat communications, starting with the first Cube-Sat launch in 2003 and ending with the latest ELaNa-6 launch from Vandenberg AFB on 13September 2012. The communication systems for the first few CubeSats were based on COTSamateur radio gear, which worked extremely well but had very limited data rates. With thematuration of CubeSats from beep-sats to high-performance satellites with science or militarymissions, cheap, high-bandwidth communication systems are being developed. This paper aimsto document these new high-bandwidth systems.