Questions tagged [radio-communication]
Using radio wavelengths to communicate between multiple spacecraft or between a spacecraft and the Earth.
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Have solid dish antennas on deep space spacecraft (as opposed to meshes) ever provided any other helpful function? As meteor shields perhaps?
This answer to Which deep space spacecraft had main dish antennas that were perforated or made from mesh? tells the tale:
Galileo's troubled high gain antenna was made from "a gold-plated ...
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89 views
Does the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars have a radio call sign?
This Deep Space Network page lists some of the call signs of various robotic spacecraft. For example, Curiosity is MSL, and Perseverance is ...
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How do the small radio receivers on space probes catch enough of a signal to communicate with us?
From Scientific American, March 2021:
Optics. Traveling Photons. Joanna Thompson.
Much of today's space communication relies on radio signals. But these diffract and broaden as they travel, as ...
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158 views
What does it take to upgrade a radio antenna to receive from the surface of Mars?
All the discussion about receiving transmissions from Mars rovers got me thinking, what determines the capability of a radio antenna, and what goes into adding the capability of listening to a Mars ...
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Even small countries have a few ~30 m diameter parabolic antennas but nobody reported signals coming from the landers on Mars. How is it possible? [duplicate]
The parabolic antennas with diameters of ~30 meters are all over the world. Even small countries have them. However, nobody, except DSN or other entities controlled by the US government, has ever ...
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Can anything at Mars speak 900 MHz ZigBee besides Ingenuity helicopter and Perseverance rover?
Interest is piqued by What could be strong arguments against Ingenuity following Perseverance at a safe distance when the flight test program has been a success?
Question: Can anything at Mars ...
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What's the most intense beam ever sent from Earth?
By a freak coincidence sensors on a passing alien ship a hundred light years away had picked up a faint artificial blip from Earth, thereby discovering our inhabited planet. But which blip was it?
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Why are minimum three artificial satellites required for radio-communication all around the Earth?
Artificial satellites orbiting the Earth have important applications for radio-communication around it.
To avoid the blockage of radio-communication around the Earth, multiple satellites can be ...
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How long did the plasma blackouts of Perseverance's signals to MRO and direct-to-Earth last during its seven minutes of terror?
Congratulations to NASA JPL and the Perseverance Team and everyone else who participated and contributed in some way!
Watching the live feed of the EDL seven minutes of terror I heard there was a ...
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Does SPICE function gftfov account for occultations?
I need to determine when an antenna on a spacecraft can see a ground station on Earth at particular epochs. I have generated all the necessary SPICE kernels necessary as well as using the NASA ...
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151 views
Does the Juno spacecraft have an “open signal, by design”?
The click-bate title'd Space News article China quietly used NASA’s Jupiter probe to test its deep space network contains the quoted material below.
Everybody listens to everybody else's spacecraft's ...
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What is a Beam Waveguide dish and why does the Deep Space Network use them?
NASA Spaceflight.com's Deep Space Network upgrades and new antennas increase vital communication capabilities says:
NASA’s Deep Space Network, commonly referred to as the DSN, has welcomed a new dish,...
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129 views
First Ham Radio contact from space; what frequency, what kind of antenna, and how did they route the coax out the window?
From Phys.org's Earthlings and astronauts chat away, via ham radio:
NASA astronaut Doug Wheelock was just a few weeks into his six-month mission at the space station when feelings of isolation began ...
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122 views
When our Moon is hiding Mars, is it possible to create a radio communication between Earth and Mars?
According to this link
Mars is hiding behind the Moon ... It’s a twice-a-year occultation; like the eclipse
When such situations happen, can we communicate with the Mars rovers, and in the future - ...
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How did Argentina, Namibia, and Pakistan help China monitor and communicate with Chang'e 5?
At the end of The Hill's article Chinese official unveils future moon mission plans including possible lunar base it says:
The most recent Chang'e 5 probe was assisted by the European Space Agency, ...
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How will the closure of the Arecibo dish impact deep space communications?
Earlier today, the U.S. National Science Foundation announced that it is decommissioning the Arecibo radio telescope. The 305 meter dish is famous for the 1974 message for extra-terrestrial ...
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What is the bandwidth (in hertz) of the Voyager 2 radio receiver?
Does anybody know the bandwidth of the Voyager 2 radio receiver's front-end?
I know that the current data rate of the receiver is of order tens of bits per second, and I have one estimate of 18 Hz. ...
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When, if ever, did deep space probes start using encryption?
What, if any, mechanisms prevent unauthorized commands? Asks what measures are taken for spacecraft, although the answer doesn't go much farther than pointing to the What would one need to do in order ...
asked Nov 3 '20 at 17:09
SE - stop firing the good guys
28.7k2 gold badges96 silver badges170 bronze badges
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Problems receiving Iridium messages during the middle of the 'day' in the far North
I have some scientific instruments using Iridium modems for communication active at around or higher than 82°N. At the time of writing this message, we are in middle of August, i.e. the polar day ...
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1answer
123 views
Is GNU Radio being used for any Deep Space Missions in development?
GNU Radio is an open source collection of code and tools to build various radio elements for a "Software Defined Radio" or a radio implemented with the help of an FPGA that is programmed to ...
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Are NASA (and ESA?) deep space spacecraft now generally able to store and forward messages between themselves?
There are discussions under the current answer to Will Curiosity and the Mars 2020 rover be able to communicate with each other via a Mars orbiter? about the feasibility of MRO receiving a message ...
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Interactions between rocket exhaust and radio communications?
Rocket exhaust is bright in visible light, we can still see through it but when there's hot, glowing soot it's so bright that we think it's opaque, but it's not. See answers to How does the camera ...
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Does Russian mission control still use the callsign “Zarya”, and how did that not conflict with the ISS module?
The Wikipedia page for the Salyut space station claims
Initially, the space stations were to be named Zarya, the Russian word for 'Dawn'. However, as the launch of the first station in the ...
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What does “clearing of C-band spectrum” mean and why will it cost Intelsat a billion dollars?
From "Intelsat files for bankruptcy"
One of the primary catalysts for restructuring the balance sheet now is Intelsat’s desire to participate in the accelerated clearing of C-band spectrum under ...
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Curiosity / MRO UHF connection and weak signal modulation
In the case of MRO and Curiosity communications via UHF, an active feedback system was implemented in which Curiosity monitored the quality/SNR of the connection and commanded Curiosity to increase / ...
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Encryption in radio system
We know that radio waves are used in communication with rockets, space crafts and satellites. Now, radio system basically consists of transmitter and receiver. If there is frequency match between ...
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4k views
Why did Moon missions state their number in radio context?
I'm not sure if this still happens, so the question may be broader, but in the Apollo transcripts the astronauts would begin a call with something like "Houston, 13". I get that they may have been on ...
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UHF transceiver for cubesats network
I already asked things related to this topic. But this time I will try to divide it by points to make it more understandable.
Features of my cubesats:
Would have 8 cubesats 3U in Earth's orbit
The ...
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1answer
93 views
Alternatives to the X-Band
is there any other band that can do something similar to what the x-band does? Any that require a smaller antenna and more electrical power?
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1answer
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Why was Canberra able to listen to Voyager 2 but not talk to it?
The New York Times's When Voyager 2 Calls Home, Earth Soon Won’t Be Able to Answer explains that because Voyager 2's trajectory has taken it way below the ecliptic, of the three 70 meter dishes in the ...
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387 views
Why did Sputnik-1 transmit on both 20 and 40 MHz?
Wikipedia's Sputnik 1 and this answer to Why did Sputnik 1 have four antennas? say that Sputnik transmitted at both 20 and 40 MHz.
Why two different frequencies? Why so far apart?
It's worth noting ...
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What did Sputnik-1 sound like? Did it use multiple tones?
Radio transmissions from Sputnik-1 could be heard on short wave radios around the world.
Questions:
A carrier signal only would not be particularly audible to an AM radio listener, was it modulated ...
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How does SpaceX transmit the video feed from the first and second stage cameras back to Earth?
There appear to be at least 1 reasonably high-res (500+ px vertical res) live video stream being transmitted from both the SpaceX F9 first and upper stages all the way up into LEO throughout their ...
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388 views
What was the transmitting power of the Apollo astronauts' PLSS VHF radio transmitters?
I'm assuming many of you are familiar with Larry Baysinger. A radio amateur who independently detected and recorded the transmissions from the Apollo 11 EVA using a homemade antenna.
Larry Baysinger ...
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146 views
What “gap” could have caused the Starliner instructions to be delayed?
The Starliner launch didn't go as planned today
After being released by the rocket, Starliner was supposed to use its Orbital Maneuvering and Attitude Control engines to provide the thrust needed ...
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Possible interference in RF spectrum due to space-based internet
Multiple Commercial Operators plan to use satellite megaconstellations for providing internet coverage in near future.
Is there a possibility of interference between RF spectrum already in use for ...
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Satellite Megaconstellations RF Spectrum usage for free(?)
As per my understanding, for terrestrial usage RF spectrum is auctioned by the governments before telecom operators can avail it for commercial purpose. Seems like a logical way to utilise limited ...
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Satellite Launch Aprroval: what is the role of ITU, FCC, and other international standards / regulators?
Seeking confirmation for the following assumption:
Satellites used for non-communication applications (military surveillance, weather monitoring etc.) are launched without specific prior approval from ...
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1answer
137 views
Which radio communication protocol will Artemis voice communications likely use?
For want of a better term, is it possible crews will use 'non-digitally modulated' radio to communicate with earth?
Apollo missions had very effective communication, with a ~2.5 second 'round trip' ...
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China, UAE and US all sending missions to Mars in 2020 (Summer of L̶o̶v̶e Mars); how far apart are their frequencies?
Gizmodo's Second failure of ExoMars parachute test throws schedule in jeopardy says:
ExoMars 2020 is due to launch during a narrow window open between July 25th to August 13th 2020, during which ...
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What radio frequencies were used by the Soviet space program circa 1961? (“Lost Cosmonaut” recording)
The recent Joe Scott video The Mysterious "Lost Cosmonaut" Recording | Random Thursday describes radio recording said to have been made by the Judica Cordiglia brothers from Italy in the early 1960's.
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193 views
Impact of having two antennas on link budget calculations
I'm working on link budget of a cubesat mission that needs to have two dipole antennas that are perpendicular to each other. I want to know if having two antennas affect the link budget? losses, and ...
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How many total hours had Arecibo transmitted a signal?
Update: Sadly, parts of the dish have collapsed, several cables have snapped, and the Arecibo radio telescope is now decommissioned and demolition has been recommended because it is now too unsafe to ...
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What's the “thump” I hear listening to Apollo 11 playback?
I've been listening to live playback of the Apollo 11 mission at https://apolloinrealtime.org/11/
Besides the expected static and hums, from time-to-time I hear a "thump", sometimes one, sometimes ...
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How large of an antenna would you need to connect to the ISS's WiFi network from Earth?
Supposing I wanted to connect to the ISS's WiFi network from the ground, how large of an antenna would I need to do so, and what kind? Would they need to increase the power on their end or use a ...
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864 views
What Soviet signals (if any) attempted to scramble communication and sabotage Apollo missions?
The NPR.org news item and audio podcast JoAnn Morgan: The Only Woman In The Firing Room During Apollo 11 features an excellent interview with JoAnn Morgan and other KSC personal.
It's a short but ...
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What kind of transmitters and antennas do the Lightsail-2 ground stations use?
The cubesat Lightsail-2 has been deployed and has communicated with ground stations. See The Planetary Society's LightSail 2 Healthy as Mission Team Continues Spacecraft Checkouts, where it says:
...
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Was “I have the farts, again” broadcast from the Moon to the whole world?
The BBC News article Apollo in 50 numbers: Medicine and health says:
When Apollo 16 commander John Young walked on the Moon, he shared his feelings on the new diet with his companion Charlie Duke. ...
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1answer
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How does an onboard atomic clock help interplanetary navigation?
On 2019 June 22, JPL will launch and test the accuracy of an onboard atomic clock. Its FAQ says that it will improve interplanetary navigation because for the ship to determine its position, instead ...
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IRIS Transceiver for LEO Missions?
My professor really wants to know if the IRIS transceiver, which flew on MarCo, will be used in LEO. In fact so much that he doesn't accept "no" for an answer. I have searched for an example but found ...
