Distributed satellite communications system design : first-order interactions between system and network architectures

Humanity now exists in the midst of the fast-moving Information Age, a period of history characterized by fast travel and even faster information transfer. As data becomes seemingly more valuable than physical possessions, the introduction of exciting applications for communications services becomes ever more critical for the success - and in some cases, survival - of businesses and even nations. While the majority of these innovations have occurred over cable and fiber, a number of the most socially significant have occurred due to the introduction of satellites. Terrestrial fiber and cable systems have a number of advantages, but the extent of their reach and the cost of installation - in terms of both capital and time - favor industrialized nations over more remote and underdeveloped communities. Even as satellites offer the only real chance for ultimate communications ubiquity and true global unity, there remains a significant cost-benefit barrier. Few commercial satellite systems have succeeded economically without first falling victim to bankruptcy. The upfront capital required to implement a satellite communications system is staggering, and historically satellite companies have failed to adequately match capacity and service options to the current and actual future demand. The design process itself is an inherent limiting factor to the achievable cost and performance of a system.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2005

Author dc:creator

• Underwood, Jennifer E. (Jennifer Elizabeth)

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Dorothy Poppe and Olivier de Weck.

• Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/32455

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/32455