Software Defined Radio: A key technology for flexibility and reconfigurability in space applications

The paper offers an overview of recent applications of the Software Defined Radio (SDR) technology in satellite applications from a system perspective. A critical discussion of advanced payload and transponder architectures based on the exploitation of SDR is presented. Software Defined Payloads are envisioned as the next evolution step in the progress of satellite systems. Some representative applications of SDR to user ground terminals are also described.