On the Performance of Integrated Satellite–Terrestrial Maritime Communications

In this article, we present an integrated terrestrial and satellite maritime communication system, where a shore-based terrestrial base station (TBS) and a low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite cooperatively provide wide-area communication services to maritime users. We conduct performance analysis for the integrated satellite-terrestrial maritime communication system. Specifically, we analyze the transmission rate and coverage probability of near-shore and off-shore users, respectively, according to the maritime communication environment. Besides, in order to better understand the impact of some key parameters, we also make asymptotic analysis in some special cases. Further, we design an optimization algorithm to maximize the coverage probability of near-shore users by adjusting the transmission power of TBS and the LEO satellite, while ensuring the both off-shore and near-shore users can meet the minimum communication rate requirements. Finally, extensive numerical analysis results verify the accuracy of the theoretical results and the effectiveness of the proposed optimization algorithm in the maritime communication system.