The design, simulation, and implementation of the communications downlink for the Ionospheric Measurement Nanosatellite-Formation (ION-F)

The link budget is a tool to account for the losses between the satellite and the receiver. Each component in the path is included with actual hardware characteristics or reasonable estimations. A step-by-step approach yields a thorough analysis of where the losses occur so they can be reduced or eliminated. The link budget is calculated for both the bit energy to noise ratio, and the received signal intensity.; Antenna structure modeling is used to predict the performance of antenna systems. Three types of models are used to evaluate the performance of a 9-element helical array antenna. Theoretical calculations of the electric field based on the antenna structure are compared to one model based on the Numerical Electromagnetics Code (NEC) and another model using Rao-Wilton-Glisson approach to characterize the antenna using triangle-shaped surfaces. The results of these three models are compared with the test result of a helical antenna array.