One of the aims of the SatNEx (Satellite Network of Excellence) European project is to provide the scientific community that operates on satellite communications with simulation/emulation tools and real measurement campaigns, in order to support various research activities that investigate problems in satellite communications at different levels of the OSI stack. In particular, one among the various joint activities (JAs) in SatNEx is devoted to "Research tools, trials and testbeds", and, within this, one group of activities concentrates on "Access, network, and transport layer trials" (JA 2410). This paper addresses the results obtained just within this joint activity, thus presenting both the real experiments carried out on a satellite platform, and describing the specific testbeds developed for this aim. The high number of authors of this paper is an indication of the strong collaborative work sustained, the large measurement campaigns, and the complexity in setting up some tests. In the SatNEx project we envisaged a quite complex reference scenario, where particular research aspects needed to be sustained by measurements and adequate tools of investigation. The research activity developed in SatNEx addresses the most relevant aspects of satellite communications, such as access schemes, advanced networking, end-to-end quality of service, transport performance, and deployment of new applications. In this view, specific integration issues among heterogeneous networks, encompassing satellite and wireless segments, were taken into account. The testbeds developed allowed the study of interplanetary environments, as well. In this specific case, attention was put in the communication and networking challenges arising in the design of a telecommunication infrastructure suitable to convey data derived from remote stations, located on planets, and addressed to Earth data gathering centres.
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