Capacity Statistics Evaluation for Next Generation Broadband MEO Satellite Systems

In this paper, the performance of a reference medium earth orbit (MEO) satellite constellation system operating at Ka-band and employing single links to ground is compared with next generation advanced systems in higher RF or optical bands employing multiple diversity links. The fill rate of existing MEO constellations offering broadband and trunking services in Ka-band is growing fast, rendering the search for additional spectrum of vital importance. Therefore, this paper reports on the results of a system study investigating the option of using Q/V-band, or even optical wavelengths, instead of Ka-band, to deliver substantially higher system capacity. The system study takes a holistic approach covering from atmospheric channel impairments to waveform optimization and system analysis for realistic assumptions. After proposing a sophisticated channel model to generate spatio-temporal time series of atmospheric attenuation, an optimization of the performance at physical layer is performed to derive the inputs necessary to the system analysis. Five different advanced high frequency RF and optical systems are compared in terms of outage capacity and availability for various locations of single ground stations, multiple ground stations (site diversity) and from multiple satellites (orbital diversity). For maximizing the realism of the comparison, similar on board satellite resources (mass, power) are assumed for all scenarios.