Satellite Communication and Antenna

Speaker: V Mahadevan

Abstract

Satellite communication is one of the major mode of communication as it has access to even the remote locations, otherwise very difficult to reach by normal terrestrial methods. The talk outlines a brief about the various satellite systems followed by detailed description of communication systems along with the Antenna System. The systems onboard the spacecraft needs a very special design as it has to withstand the severe conditions of temperature and pressure of the outerspace, the severe vibration and shock during launch, and adhere to various other constraints like size, weight, configuration etc. posed by the spacecraft apart from its flawless performance throughout the mission life of about 10-15 years. The various blocks involved in communication are briefly touched upon along with the link. The mainframe communication system is the Tracking Telemetry and Command and based on the mission a High Data rate Transmission system or communication transponders are used and all systems need to operate at specific frequency bands allotted for the purpose by the international body. The Antenna pattern required for various services vary from Omni-directional to Sharp Beam and again to some sort of shaped or contoured beam. Typical examples of various antenna systems along with insight into its design, qualification and application are included to get an idea about the tasks involved. A few antenna hardware developed for spacecraft as well as ground tracking are included to show the complexities involved which includes the Deep Space Network Antenna.

Bio

Shri. V. Mahadevan obtained his B.Tech (Hons) in Electronics & Communication from IIT Kharagpur and M.E. in Communication Engineering from IISc Bangalore. He joined ISRO Satellite Centre in the Communication Systems Group and contributed in the design and development of Antenna & Passive Systems flown in many spacecrafts. One of the major contribution is in the development of Active Phased Array Antennas which was successfully flown and is being adopted for many future spacecrafts. He was appointed as Associated Project Director for CATF (Compact Antenna Test Facility) and the same was established in ISRO Bangalore in a record time. He held a number of posts in various satellite projects and finally appointed to the post of Group Director, Communication Systems Group, ISRO Satellite Centre, Bangalore. He retired on superannuation in April 2010 and served for about a decade as Professor in the Dept. of Electronics and Communications/ Telecommunication at PES University, Bangalore. He is a Senior Member of IEEE, Life Member ASI (Astronautical Society of India), Life Fellow Member IETE, Distinguished Member ATMS(Antenna Test and Measurement Society) and has published a number of papers in international and national journals.