COMMUNICATIONS DURATION WITH LOW EARTH ORBITINGSATELLITES

摘要

Communication via satellite begins when the satelliteis positioned in the desired orbital position. The satellite'scoverage area on the Earth depends on orbital parameters.Ground stations can communicate with LEO (Low EarthOrbiting) satellites only when the satellite is in theirvisibility region. The duration of the visibility and so thecommunication duration varies for each satellite pass atthe ground station. For low cost LEO satellite groundstations in urban environment it will be a big challenge toensure communication down to the horizon. Thecommunication at low elevation angles can be hinderedthrough natural barriers or will be interfered by man madenoise. This paper discusses the variations of thecommunication duration between the ground station andLEO satellites and investigates if it is useful to supportlow elevation passes. For this paper data recorded at theVienna satellite ground station within the Canadian spaceobservation project "MOST" (Micro variability andOscillations of Stars) are applied.