Spacecraft communications

Module code: EG7217

In this module, basic communications concepts, such as modulation, signal to noise ratio and loss are covered briefly, before applying these ideas to satellites and interplanetary spacecraft. Your knowledge will be tested in interactive Q&A sessions, and you will use ready-made Matlab programmes to solve short problems, as well as choosing the inter-related parameters (distance, power, bandwidth, cost etc) in the design of a satellite system

Topics covered

• Electromagnetic radiation basics
• The link-budget and power margin
• Modulation and coding
• Antennas and amplifiers
• Reflection and refraction
• Orbits and visibility
• Earth’s atmosphere
• Signal diversity
• Satellite navigation systems
• Tracking and ranging
• Advances in communication and the future