Communications demonstrations for optical ground stations
Karpathakis, S. (2024). Communications demonstrations for optical ground stations. [Doctoral Thesis, The University of Western Australia].
Abstract
Demand for space communications bandwidth is increasing, with improvements to sensors and increasingly crowded orbits. The research project was motivated by this growing demand. Space communication currently relies on free-space radio-frequency (RF) signals. However, RF bandwidth cannot meet the increasing demands for space communications bandwidth. Also, RF signal beams diverge significantly on space-ground scales, causing interference. Free-space optical (FSO) communications promises more bandwidth and reduced divergence, virtually eliminating interference and bandwidth bottlenecks. Optical ground stations (OGS) will provide gateways for FSO-capable spacecraft. The thesis comprises descriptions of demonstrations of OGS hardware, with novel commissioning methods involving retroreflected links and pseudo-satellites.