Communication Challenges for Solar System Exploration Missions

Abstract

Obtaining detailed information from solar system exploration missions requires the use of reliable, high-performance communications systems. Planetary landers and orbiters experience a wide variety of challenges, which complicate the design of communications architecture, and which affect the ability of the spacecraft to transmit significant quantities of data back to Earth. Aside from the large distances involved, the spacecraft environment dominates the design and capability of the communications system. As missions become more ambitious in the quantity of data to be generated and the types of environment to be explored, new technologies and techniques are required to meet these communication needs. This article reviews some of the major challenges facing the next generation of solar system missions, and outlines some of the solutions which have been proposed to address them.