The Evolution of the Telecommunication Infrastructure with the Planet Mars

The evolution of theThe evolution of the
Telecommunication InfrastructureTelecommunication Infrastructure
with the planet Marswith the planet Mars
Stephan GerardStephan Gerard
@stiopa@stiopa
EMC19 - 18EMC19 - 18thth
European Mars ConferenceEuropean Mars Conference
Institute of Physics (IOP)Institute of Physics (IOP)
4 November 2019 - London4 November 2019 - London
Image Credit: IPNSIG

The evolution of the telecommunication infrastructure with the planet Mars
S. Gerard - EMC19 / IoP London - 4 Nov 2019
2
1) Introduction
2) Communication infrastructure
2.1) CCSDS
2.2) Deep Space Ground Stations
2.3) Fleet of Mars missions (present & future)
3) Future communication technologies
3.1) IPN / DTN
3.2) Deep Space Optical Network
4) Conclusion
5) Questions
SummarySummary

3
1) Introduction1) Introduction
Mars communication challengesMars communication challenges
●
Large transmission delays
– RTT between Earth and Mars varies between:
●
7min and 46min
●
Great distance => between 55.7 and 401.3 million km
●
Limited bandwidth available
●
Disrupted links (orbital visibility), the orbiter is
occulted by Mars during 1/3 of the time
●
Error rates

4
Mars communication challengesMars communication challenges
●
Limited time frame
●
Interrupted visibility between communication nodes
●
Unreliable and noisy communication links
●
Power available on lander or rover
●
Buffer capacity

5
Communication systemsCommunication systems
2 types of communications:
➢
“Long Haul” between Mars and Earth
➢
“Short Haul” or “Proximity” between the orbiter
and Mars surface
Antennas
●
Low gain antenna is omni-directionnal used as a
backup to high gain antenna
●
Medium gain antenna is directionnal
●
High gain antenna is directionnal

6
Communication systemsCommunication systems
Communications performance decreases as the square
of the distance.
The connection between Earth and deep space is limited
by power or something relatated to power.
Data rates from deep space missions are expected to
increase by 10 every decade for the 50 years.

7
2) Current communication infrastructure2) Current communication infrastructure
CCSDSCCSDS
●
CCSDS = Consultative Commitee for Space Data
Systems
●
Multi-national forum since 1982.
●
Develop standards for space data communications.
●
Founded by 11 space agencies.

8
slide Credit: NASA / ScaN
SCaN Network Architecture Definition Document(ADD) Vol 1 Executive Summary Rev 4

9
2.2) Deep Space Ground Stations2.2) Deep Space Ground Stations
DSN - Deep Space NetworkDSN - Deep Space Network
NASA / JPLNASA / JPL
●
DSN large antennas:
- 70 meter
- 34 meter HEF (High Efficiency)
- 34 meter BWG (Beam WaveGuide)

10
DSN antennas:
- 70 meters:
1 x in Canberra, 1 x in Goldstone, 1 x Madrid
- 34 meters:
2 x in Canberra, 3 x in Goldstone, 3x in Madrid
ONLY 1 per site is HEF
The larger the antenna, the stronger the signal and
greater the amount of information the antenna can
send and receive.
NASA Deep Space Ground StationsNASA Deep Space Ground Stations

11
ESTRACKESTRACK
ESA Tracking Station NetworkESA Tracking Station Network
●
Only New Norcia, Cebreros and Malargüe have Deep-
Space Antennas (DSA):
– DSA 1 – New Norcia – Australia
– DSA 2 – Cebreros – Spain
– DSA 3 – Malargüe - Argentina

12
ESTRACKESTRACK
●
35m Deep Space Antenna stations primarily use the
X-band
●
S-band (2025-2300 Mhz), Ka (18.1-32.3 GHz) and
X-Band (7145-8500 Mhz)
●
Data rates vary depending on the mission but
typically range from 256 Kbit/s to 8 Mbit/s
●
Built between 2002 and 2012
●
The 3 sites are located at longitudes of about 120
degrees apart

13
ESTRACKESTRACK
●
Operates Mars Express (MEX) and ExoMars (EXOM)
●
For a total of 7 missions
●
A recent upgrade has enabled the 35m diameter
antennas to perform like 40m class dishes.

14
ESA new antennaESA new antenna
●
A 35m diameter antenna in western Australia is
proposed as part of Space19+ campaign to increase
ESATRACK capacity
●
ESA has public and private cooperation.
●
An exemple of cooperation for Deep Space
communications is with Goonhilly Earth Station in
Cornwall.

15
GoonhillyGoonhilly
●
A 32m diameter antenna to be upgraded for deep
space usage (GHY-6 - Goonhilly 6 antenna)
●
Qualifying tests will be done by ESA
●
ExoMars (EXM) is one of the potential mission for
the tests
●
S and X-band support
●
ESTRACK cross-link support
●
To complement ESA own ground stations
●
To be used by others agencies and private companies

16
GHY-6GHY-6
Image credit: Goonhilly Earth Station

17
Deep space antennas:
- 70 m:
1 x in Yevpatoria (Crimea), 1 x Ussuriisk
- 64 m:
1 x Bear lakes - Kalyazin (near Moscow)
RoscosmosRoscosmos
Deep Space Ground StationsDeep Space Ground Stations

18
ISRO Deep Space Ground StationISRO Deep Space Ground Station
IDSNIDSN Indian Deep Space NetworkIndian Deep Space Network
ISRO has 1 x 32m antennas in Byalalu
And has cooperation from NASA DSN for coverage

19
Deep Space antennas:
- 66 m:
1 x in Jia Musi (S & X-band)
- 35 m:
1 x in Kashi (S , X and Ka-band)
1 x in Argentina (S , X and Ka-band)
Chinese Deep Space Ground StationsChinese Deep Space Ground Stations

20
3 x new 35m DSN antennas will be added to the
existing one in Kashi to form a Deep Space Antenna
Array in 2020
- 4 x 35m in Kashi = 1 x 66m in Jia Musi
- will support China 1st Mars mission in 2020
Chinese Deep Space Ground StationsChinese Deep Space Ground Stations

21
DSN antennas at Usuda Deep Space Center (Nagano):
- 64 meter:
1 x in Saku city (S & X-band)
- 54 meter (to replace the 64m in 2020)
1 x in Saku city (X-band, Ka-band)
JAXA Deep Ground Ground StationJAXA Deep Ground Ground Station

22
Commercial Deep Space CommunicationCommercial Deep Space Communication
DSN NASA has launched a RFI in Sep 2018
https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-seeks-industry-partnerships-for-next-gen-space-communications

23
The 30 m antenna at DLR site in Weilhem near
Munchen is tested for its ability to support ESA deep
space missions like Mars Express.
Deep Space Network Aperture Enhancement Project
(DAEP)
4 x 34 m antennas = 1 x 70 m antenna
the same signal power as one 70 m antenna but also
the same landmass area.
Ground station evolution

24
Maximize the usage of Multiple Spacecraft Per
Aperture (MSPA)which permit to be in contact with
4 spacecrafts at once for downlink
For NASA, maximize the use of non-DSN
large antennas:
ESA, JAXA, ISRO,...
Modifing the maintenance schedule to maximize DSN
availability during critical period.
Ground station evolution

25
Mars missions are not the only mission using
interplanetary communications infrastructure.
Communication time frame windows must be shared
with the other missions.
At this time 30 spacecraft missions from NASA, ESA,
JAXA and ISRO use DSN
Hight Communications traffic

26
Hight Communications traffic
“It's worked so well for so many years that people do
take it for granted.
Are proper investments being made so we can continue
to?”
Clive Neal, lunar scientist at the University of Notre Dame

27
3) Mars missions fleet (present & future)3) Mars missions fleet (present & future)
Current missionsCurrent missions
Image credit: ESA

28
OrbitersOrbiters
Mars Odyssey – M01O (2001 – USA)Mars Odyssey – M01O (2001 – USA)
Mars Express - MEX (2003 – EU)Mars Express - MEX (2003 – EU)
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter - MRO (2006 – USA)Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter - MRO (2006 – USA)
Mars Orbiter Mission/Mangalyaan - MOM (2014 - India)Mars Orbiter Mission/Mangalyaan - MOM (2014 - India)
MAVEN – MVN (2014 – USA)MAVEN – MVN (2014 – USA)
ExoMars/TGO - TGO (2016 – EU / Russia)ExoMars/TGO - TGO (2016 – EU / Russia)
* Active Mars missions – year = arriving in orbit /* Active Mars missions – year = arriving in orbit / landinglanding
2.3) Fleet of Mars orbiters2.3) Fleet of Mars orbiters
Current missions *Current missions *

29
Orbiters as data relay with EarthOrbiters as data relay with Earth
●
Mars Odyssey was used a data relay for MER
●
Mars Odyssey has transmitted to Earth 90% of the
data from MER
●
TGO currently relays to Earth around 60% of NASA’s
Mars data surface

30
Orbiters as data relay with EarthOrbiters as data relay with Earth
●
MRO is also used as data relay for others missions
on Mars
●
MRO is able to send data back to Earth more than
10 times faster than previous missions.
●
As of 1st
of Nov, MRO has returned 368 Tb of data
(46 TB)
●
Currently, ODY, MEX and MRO and ExoMars are used
as data relay for Mars missions

31
Mars Odyssey – ODYMars Odyssey – ODY ==>==> 18 years18 years
Mars Express - MEXMars Express - MEX ==>==> 16 years16 years
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter ==>Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter ==> 13 years13 years
Mars Orbiter Mission/Mangalyaan - MOM ==>Mars Orbiter Mission/Mangalyaan - MOM ==> 5 years5 years
MAVEN ==>MAVEN ==> 5 years5 years
ExoMars ==>ExoMars ==> 3 years3 years
Current orbiter fleet ageCurrent orbiter fleet age

32

33
Evolution of theEvolution of the orbiter fleetorbiter fleet
The lack of a new orbiter in development means that
the Mars telecommunications infrastructure is not
being renewed, and is subject to aging and potential
failure.
Mars Telecom Orbiter (MTO) was planned to be
launched in 2009 but was cancelled in 2005.

34
OrbitersOrbiters
Mars 2020 (2020 - USA)Mars 2020 (2020 - USA)
HX-1 orbiter (2020 – China)HX-1 orbiter (2020 – China)
Hope (2020 – UAE)Hope (2020 – UAE)
Rovers / LandersRovers / Landers
ExoMars (2020 – EU/Russia)ExoMars (2020 – EU/Russia)
HX-1 rover (2020 – China)HX-1 rover (2020 – China)
Mars Orbiter Mission/Mangalyaan2 - MOM2 (2024 -Mars Orbiter Mission/Mangalyaan2 - MOM2 (2024 -
India)India)
HX-2 (Martian Sample Return) (2026 – China)HX-2 (Martian Sample Return) (2026 – China)
Mars Sample Return – MSR (TBD – USA) *Mars Sample Return – MSR (TBD – USA) *
* proposed* proposed
Future and proposed missionsFuture and proposed missions

35
MarCO data relay
Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech

36
Data ratesData rates
MRO (1/2)
●
A 3 meter long high-gain antenna and 100-watt.
●
160 gigabits of solid-state memory
●
Data rate at a maximum of around 3 to 4 mbit/s
when the distance between Earth and Mars is
minimum (55.7 million km)

37
MRO (2/2)
●
Data rate at a minimum of 0.5 Mb/s when the
distance between Earth and Mars is maximum (401.3
million km)
●
Time of transmission during science phase: 8h /
day
●
Use mainly 2 x 34m antennas and time to time a
70m antenna

38
MEX
●
MEX transmits data from its instruments via the New
Norcia ground station at a rate up to 230kbps.
●
Between 1 and 5 Gbps of data from science
intruments are are transmitted to Earth.

39
2.3) Mars mission fleet2.3) Mars mission fleet
A rover communicate with an orbiter during 8min/sol
For comparison, in 8min, 60Mb could be transmitted
during a sol.
The same 60Mb would take between 1.5h and 5h to
transmitted direct to Earth.
InSight mission is planned to send more than 29Gb in 1
martian year (approx. 3.6 GB per martian year).

40
3) Future communication technologies3) Future communication technologies
Mars communications projectsMars communications projects
●
Mars Network
●
IPN / DTN
●
Optical space communication

41
Mars NetworkMars Network
●
The purpose of these new projects are:
- to reduce time latency between Earth
and the remote mission spacecraft
●
To improve reliability and reduce errors code
transmission

42
Mars NetworkMars Network
●
Others technologie will also be demonstrated and
used like:
Software Defined Radios (SDR)
Ka-band usage
Hybrid RF/Optical antenna

43
Current architecture using single relay communicationCurrent architecture using single relay communication
Image Credit: NASA

44
Solar System Internet (SSI) ConceptSolar System Internet (SSI) Concept
Image Credit: NASA

45
3.1) IPN / DTN3.1) IPN / DTN
Delay Tolerant Network (DTN)Delay Tolerant Network (DTN)
●
The InterPlanetary Network (IPN) is now included
in DTN project.
●
DTN is know under the name Delay Tolerant Network
and also Disruption Tolerant Network
●
1st
deep space communication aboard deep space /
EPOXY mission in 2010.
●
Demonstrators are currently running on ISS
●
Store and forward method
Factsheet - Disruption Tolerant Networking for Space Operations (DTN)
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/DTN.html

46
DTN Protocol SuiteDTN Protocol Suite
Image Credit: NASA/JPL

47
Interplanetary Overlay NetworkInterplanetary Overlay Network
(ION-DTN)(ION-DTN)
●
DTN implementation by NASA is open source under
the name ION-DTN (Interplanetary Overlay
Network)
●
Follow the RFC 4838 and to be used in embedded
environments including spacecraft filght computers.
●
The latest version is 3.7.0 (as of 1st
Nov 2019)
●
This distribution is available at
https://sourceforge.net/projects/ion-dtn/

48
Delay Tolerant Network (DTN)Delay Tolerant Network (DTN)
●
The DTN project at NASA is completed since last
September
Factsheet - Disruption Tolerant Networking for Space Operations (DTN)
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/research/experiments/DTN.html

49
DTN Protocol SuiteDTN Protocol Suite

50
3.2) Deep Space Optical Network3.2) Deep Space Optical Network
Deep Space Optical Communications
(DSOC)
Image Credit: JPL/CalTech

51
Deep Both radio and lasers travel at the speed of light,
but lasers travel in a higher frequency bandwidth to
allows to carry more information than radio waves.
As an example, MRO could send data at maximum
6Mbps but using laser comms with the a mass and
power usage cmparable to its RF system could be
250Mbps

52
Deep space optical communications
Image Credit: NASA

53
(DSOC)
Laser communication
- Data rates: 10 to 100 times better than current
radio-frequency (RF) communications systems
- laser communication systems requirements can be
much smaller than radio systems =>
Lower size
Lower weight
Lower power

54
Comparison of the Mars spacecraft communication subsystems at different data volumes
Source: TDA Progress Report 42-128 – table 1 p20

55
A demonstration of an optical space communication has
been made during the LADEE (Lunar Atmosphere and
Dust Environment Explorer) mission in 2013.
Data have been transmitted from the Moon to the
White Sands Complex (New Mexico) at a rate of 622
Mbps ( > 6x faster than traditional radio signals)

56
DSOC:
- is a game changing technology.
- use photons
- goal to increase performance and efficiency by 10 to
100 compared to the current radio based
communications
- without increasing the mass, power usage and volume

57
DSOC advantages:
- Faster: Higher data rates
- Secure: improve security by drastically reducing the
geographic area where a communications link can be
intercepted/received
- Lighter: Optical communications flight terminals are
smaller, lighter and require less power than traditional
RF communications equipment.
Advantages also known under the name SWAP (Size,
Weight, and Power)

58
Free Space Optical Communication
(FSOC)
NASA and international space agencies are collaborating
to develop FSOC standards throught the Consultative
Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS)

59
Deep space communications capacity
“The amount of science data flowing in from ESA’s current missions,
not to mention from future missions with improved instruments,
is growing strongly,”
“By the middle of the next decade, ESA’s deep-space communication
needs for supporting today’s missions, like ExoMars, and upcoming
spacecraft, like Juice, is expected to exceed our present capacity by
around half.
“We are considering urgently how to bridge this gap.”
Pier Bargellini,responsible for network operations at ESA *
* https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Operations/Estrack/Goonhilly_goes_deep_space

60
Deep space communications capacity
“The stations were built between 2002 and 2012, and their capacity in
transmitting and receiving data will soon be reached, given the
ambitious missions like BepiColombo, ExoMars and Juice now being
implemented – and the fact that these newer spacecraft can all
download tremendous amounts of science data,”
Pier Bargellini,responsible for network operations at ESA *
*
https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Operations/ESA_and_DLR_in_joint_study_to_support_deep_space_
missions

61
LLCD / LADEE mission
(Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer)
The LLCD (Lunar Laser Communications Demonstration)
has used compared to a RF communication equipment:
- Half the mass
- 25% less power
- has sent 6 x more data

62
LCRD mission
( Laser Communications Relay Demonstration)
The LCRD (Laser Communications Relay Demonstration)
demonstration planned for 2019 will demonstrate:
- High bandwidth geosynchronous to ground optical link
- Uplink and Downlink: 1.244 Gigabits/sec
2 x ground terminals (White Sands / NASA, Table
Mountain / NASA), also used for LLCD demo mission

63
LCRD mission
( Laser Communications Relay Demonstration)
“We have been using RF since the beginning, 50 to
60 years, so we’ve learned a lot about how it works
in different weather conditions and all the little
things to allow us to make the most out of the
technology, but we don’t have that experience with
laser comm,”
Dave Israel, Exploration and Space Communications architect
at Goddard and principal investigator on LCRD.

64
NASA and deep space optical
communications
NASA plans to have a Deep Space Optical
infrastructure ready to support deep space missions
from 2026
Planned Psyche mission (2026) will be the demo
mission for optical space communication aboard a deep
space mission with 1st
generation terminals.
Note: Mars Telecom Orbiter (MTO) was planned to be a
mission demo for optical communication.

65
for Mars
The exemple with MRO by using optical communications:
MRO is colletcing 10 to 20 x more data than previous
missions
At max. Data rate: 6 Mbps =>
1.5h to send back to Earth a single image taken by
HiRISE camera
nearly 7.5h to empty its on-board recoder

66
for Mars
By using optical communications, the duration drops to:
5m to send back to Earth a single image taken by
HiRISE camera
26min to empty its on-board recoder

67
for Mars
MRO uses a 3 meter antenna to communicate with
Earth.
If it was using optical communications, it could use
a 20 centimeter aperture telescope instead.
The bandwidth from Mars using optical communication
is planned to be 255Mbps
https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/scan/engineering/technology/txt_opticalcomm_benefits.htm
l

68
for Mars
“To transmit a 1 foot resolution topography map of the
entire Martian surface back to the Earth, the best
radio frequency system would take 9 years to complete
the task.
The same task with laser communications can be done
in 9 weeks!”
https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/heo/scan/engineering/technology/txt_opticalcomm_benefits.htm
l

69
(DSOC)
The operational service for deep space optical
communication is planned for 2026 and will use 1st
generation terminals
“Laser technology is ideal for boosting downlink
communications from deep space”
said Abi Biswas, the supervisor of the Optical Communications
Systems group at NASA JPL

70
challenges
Some challenges are still present:
new technology in space environment
limited experience
need better precision pointing

71
slide Credit: NASA / SCaN

72
NASA/SCaN's Next Generation Mars telecommunication architecture to enable long-term human
exploration. Source: Reinhart et al. (2017).

73
Conclusion (1/4)Conclusion (1/4)
Since the 1st
missions to Mars, the amount of data
received has increased a lot.
Data communications are an important part of the
mission.
Data are used by the scientific communities
and also for public outreach.
Usage of CCSDS communication standards.

74
New technologies and standards are currently
tested to allow more and more data to be send
back to Earth with a minimum of disruption.
DSOC is “game changing” technology for the future
deep space and crewed missions.
Need to deploy ground stations that could receive
lasers in locations where skies are reliably clear.

75
Optical Communication could achieve:
50% in mass saving
65% in power saving
Up to 20% for data rate transfer
depending of the mission

76
Radio technology won’t be going away.
It works in rain or shine, and will continue to be
effective for low-data uses like providing
commands to spacecraft.
Communication will be a key element for future
human missions on Mars.

78
Stephan Gerard
@stiopa
stephan.gerard@protonmail.com

79
slide Credit: NASA / ScaN

80Image Credit: NASA SCaN

81
Image Credit: NASA SCaN

82
Image Credit: NASA SCaN

83Image Credit: NASA / JPL

84
Image Credit: NASA
Image Credit: NASA

85
Data Return (MBytes) for a 5-hr Tracking Pass
Source: TNASA’S DEEP SPACE TELECOMMUNICATIONS ROADMAP – table 1 p8

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