1. The Electronic Systems Test Laboratory (ESTL) and Communication System Simulation Laboratory (CSSL) at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)/Johnson Space Center (JSC) were established to perform manned spacecraft communication system performance and compatibility tests and simulation analysis. The ESTL and CSSL have developed system design evaluation testing techniques as well as analytical and numerical simulation tools that model spacecraft communication systems to assure overall Communicationand Tracking(C&T) systemperformanceandRadioFrequencycompatibility tosupport manned spaceflightprograms. Thispaperincludesa selectiveoverview oftheCSSL operational supports to the Space Shuttle communication systems. Emphasis is placed on special innovative analytical techniques implemented to support the Space Shuttle program. The rigorous modeling techniques developed and used to analyze RF coverage and to verify the compliance of RF exposure/safety to the NASA standards for astronauts and electronic equipments are presented. The simulation techniques analyzing the RF interactions in Space Shuttle and Space Station environments required moderate computing time and resources. The accuracy of the simulation results is comparable to the experimental measurements. The CSSL modeling capabilities provide computer simulations to compliment the experimental tests for supporting the SSO pre- and post mission RF analysis. Section 1 introduces the NASA/JSC Space Shuttle C&T technical work. Section 2 introduces the Space Shuttle C&T system design challenges in 1970s. The system analysis supports to the design and development of the Space Shuttle Orbiter (SSO) Wireless Video System (WVS) is given in Section 3, and the RF coverage analysis supports to the SSO UHF system is discussed in Section 4. Section 5 presents the analytical techniques developed for the RF interference analysis. Simulation techniques for the SSO RF exposure and safety analysis are given in Section6.Section7concludesthepaper.
2. In this section, the technical work supporting the Space Shuttle communication and tracking system design and development and published bythe NASA/JSCengineers will be brieflyreviewed. Bastonand Moorehead introduced the space shuttle orbiter telecommunications system to the IEEE community in 1976 [1]. The Shuttle Program represents the first opportunity for real-time transmission of truly high-rate scientific data from a manned orbiting space vehicle. Cubleyand Ellispresented the antenna development for the Space Shuttle Orbiter vehicle in1978 [2]. The special problems associated with developing antennas for the Shuttle Orbiter have been discussed. In particular, it has been pointed out that this vehicle must function as both a spacecraft and as an aircraft and this feature imposes some rather severe design constraintson the Shuttle antennas. The variousstructural, operational, and environmental designrequirementsimpose additional technical challenges.