Open AccessDimensioning a Retro‐Directive Array for Communications via a Stratospheric Platform
Author(s) -
Thornton John
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
etri journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.295
H-Index - 46
eISSN - 2233-7326
pISSN - 1225-6463
DOI - 10.4218/etrij.02.0102.0202
Subject(s) - transponder (aeronautics) , telecommunications link , communications satellite , antenna (radio) , transmission (telecommunications) , computer science , telecommunications , engineering , electrical engineering , electronic engineering , satellite , aerospace engineering
High Altitude Platforms‐craft maintaining stations in the stratosphere at altitudes of around 20 km‐have been proposed as a means of supporting wireless telecommunications. They could exploit the best aspects of both terrestrial and satellite systems and support efficient frequency re‐use plans. For solar powered platforms the power available for the downlink amplifiers may be minimal, particularly at night and/or higher latitudes. This paper discusses a novel type of link based on a modulated retro‐directive transponder carried by the HAP. Relying chiefly on the ground station infrastructure, this would substantially reduce power consumption on the platform. We investigate the efficiency of the transponder aperture as a function of its area by developing general models for losses in the transmission lines which interconnect antenna pairs in the retro‐directive array.