Introduction¶

Nowadays, a huge need for LEO is rising. With the spreading of the Internet of Things (IoT) we need more and more Machine To Machine (M2M) communications. However this is not conceivable with GEO satellites because the Time Round Trip is far too high. In this context, the aim of this project is to implement an orbit and link budget calculator for a ground station of a LEO satellite. The program is written with LabView as it is compatible with the antenna’s processor owned by the Telecom Bretagne Lab in ISAE campus.

This report explain how it is possible to calculate the satellite’s position and how to perform the link budget if the satellite is in sight. Thus, the state of art of orbit propagators will be presented followed by a complete description of the Two-Lines Element (TLE) and then the calculation of the link budget will be explained.

State of Art of the Orbit Propagators
The Two-Lines Element
Distance Elevation and Azimuth Calculation
Link Budget
User Guide