Citation
Abstract
This article describes the design, analysis, build, and testing of the Wi-Fi telecommunications system for the ECOsystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS). The ECOSTRESS payload was successfully installed on the exterior of the space station’s Japanese Experimental ModuleExposed Facility (JEM-EF) on July 5, 2018. Due to data rate limitations of the wired connection to the JEM-EF, an IEEE 802.11n Wi-Fi radio was implemented on ECOSTRESS to download payload data via the external wireless network on the average of 27 GB per day. In order to predict the 5.2 GHz Wi-Fi link performance, detailed analysis of the multipath environment outside the International Space Station (ISS) was performed. The ECOSTRESS radio was adapted from a commercial outdoor 802.11n wireless access point that was prescreened and approved by NASA for use on the ISS, in order to ensure compatibility with the external space station Wi-Fi network and to reduce cost. A description of the environmental testing performed on the ECOSTRESS Wi-Fi radio in order to qualify it for operation in space is also provided.
Details
- Volume
- 42-220
- Published
- February 15, 2020
- Pages
- 1–36
- File Size
- 15.9 MB