Generalized MIMO channel model and its capacity analysis in formation flying satellite communication systems

Formation flying satellite communication systems are composed of several satellites which are very close to each other. According to the mission requirements, we select the appropriate configuration of the formation, forming a “virtual satellite”. Each satellite is deployed a transmitting antenna, and all the satellites transmit data simultaneously through the Satellite-to-Ground link. Multiple receiving antennas are deployed in the ground station. All the formation flying satellites and the Earth station constitute a generalized MIMO system. In this paper, based on 3GPP TR25.996 specification and methods of deterministic channel model, considering the actual space propagation environment, we propose a distributed MIMO channel model for formation flying satellite systems. Some factors affecting the channel capacity are analyzed, such as the number of antennas, SNR, the formation configuration. We perform simulations based on our channel model with MATLAB. The simulation results and theoretical analysis are fitting well.