Communications and propagation experiments for the OLYMPUS and ACTS satellites

The ESA satellite OLYMPUS and the NASA satellite ACTS (Advanced Communications Technology Satellite) both provide opportunities for 12, 20, and 30 GHz propagation and communications experiments. OLYMPUS is scheduled for launch in 1989 and ACTS in 1992. Measurements are particularly needed on short-term signal behavior and on real-time frequency scaling of attenuation to support uplink power control and adaptive forward error correction techniques. OLYMPUS experiments are planned that will include attenuation and fade slope measurements, uplink power control modeling, rain scatter interference measurements, and small-scale site-diversity operation. These are intended to serve as prototypes for later ACTS experiments.<
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