Space communication system for education

This article describes EnduroSat’s Space Educational modules which are used to physically simulate radio wave communication in space applications for small satellite missions. The educational modules generate physical ultra high frequency radio waves and recreate the conditions of the environment. They can also simulate the effects of S-band and X-band frequencies by changing the losses accordingly while the physical simulation remains at ultra high frequencies. They are intended for practical hands-on exercises of students in the space communications sector. The modules utilize the same equipment currently used in space and are used to experimentally analyze the link budget, noises and error rate of signal. Simulating a given configuration of a satellite and ground station’s parameters with them exposes the system’s vulnerabilities and its reliability when transmitting signals. The system consists of two identical transceiver modules that can emit and receive information in the form of radio waves, and a free space propagation simulator module. Each of the modules connects via Universal Serial Bus to a host computer with the simulation software. In this paper we present the modules and some of their uses for education