Doppler effect‐based low‐Earth orbit satellite constellation parameters

Abstract

AbstractThe present study focuses on the manifestation of the Doppler effect in low‐Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations with laser inter‐satellite links (LISLs). In this letter, the LEO satellite constellation parameters that influence the variation of the Doppler effect in LISLs are presented. The LEO satellite constellation configurations that perform LISLs with less possible Doppler effect could be designed based on the tendency of the Doppler wavelength shift (DWS) as a function of the LEO satellite constellation's parameters. The paper presents the main LEO satellite constellation parameters that involve the variation of the Doppler effect, such as the altitude of the satellites, the orbital plane number within the constellation, and the inclination angle of the orbital plane. In addition to the operating laser wavelength that is employed as a data carrier. These parameters could be helpful to control the Doppler effect in LISL before building an LEO constellation.