Adaptable Data Download Schedules for Agile Earth-Observing Satellites

Abstract

In this paper, it is shown how decision making on data download schedules can be shared between ground and onboard to face uncertainty about the volumes of data generated by observations: download schedules are produced on the ground together with commitments to high-priority data downloads; these schedules are then adapted onboard when exact volumes are known, while guaranteeing that ground commitments be satisfied. This setting arises in a space application in which Earth-observing satellites perform observations, which produce data to be recorded onboard and then downloaded to ground reception stations, but the volume of data generated by observations is uncertain, due to the execution of sophisticated compression algorithms between observation and data recording.