Ground Segment¶
Next table (Table 8) summarizes the ground system design process and references discussions pertaining to each step. This process is iterative because the steps interrelate and we must strike a balance in complexity between the spacecraft and the ground system. Each iteration must address:
- Ground station locations, based on spacecraft coverage and data user needs, balanced against cost, accessibility, and available communications. You will need new sites for a dedicated ground system, and suitable existing stations when using established ground systems.
- Link data rates, which establish the required gain-to-noise temperature ratios (G/T), and effective isotropic radiated powers (EIRPs). For dedicated ground stations, defer details of antenna and RF systems until you have establisbed these two parameters. For an existing system, determine whether RF links are adequate and ajust data rates if necessary.
- Requirements for data handling, so you can determine where it will occur. Once you know the location, you can meet almost any need with avaliable hardware and software, and at reasonable cost. A decision to perform data handling at a central facility instead of the ground station influences the location of the control centers.
- Appropriate communications between ground system elements and data users, for a dedicated system. When using an existing ground system, where most decisions are already made, confirm that data handling and bandwidth are adecuate.
| Steps | Description | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Establish number and locations of ground stations | Ground segment |
| 2 | Establish space-to-ground data rates | Payload and Communication subsystem |
| 3 | Determine required G/T and EIRP | Communication subsystem |
| 4 | Determine required data handling | C&DH |
| 5 | Establish data handling location | C&DH |
| 6 | Decide location of spacecraft operation control center, payload operations control centers and mission control center | Ground segment |
| 7 | Determine and select communications links | Communication subsystem |
Major Earth stations and Earth terminal complexes are sumarized in Table 9:
| Ground station | Location |
|---|---|
| Bukit Timah Satellite Earth Station | Singapore |
| Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex | Australia |
| Esrange Satellite Station | Sweden |
| Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex | California, US |
| Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station | UK |
| Honeysuckle Creek Tracking Station | Australia |
| Madley Communications Centre | UK |
| Madrid Deep Space Communication Complex | Spain |
| Makarios Earth Station | Cyprus |
| Suparco Satellite Center | Pakistan |
| Svalbard Satellite Station | Norway |
| Kaena Point Satellite Tracking Station | Hawaii, US |
| The New Norcia station | Australia |
| Cebreros | Spain |
| Malargüe | Argentina |
| Kiruna station | Sweden |
| Kourou station | French Guiana |
| Redu station | Belgium |
| Santa Maria Island station | Azores, Portugal |
| Maspalomas Station | Gran Canaria, Spain |