Some Key Design Issues for Satellite Ground Station Application

As the satellite ground station, a phased array antenna should have the hemispherical coverage from the horizon to the zenith. In each pass, once the satellite comes above the horizon, the ground station sets a link with the satellite, and follows its trajectory until it moves below the horizon. The hemispherical coverage can be defined as the angular interval \(\left\{ {\left( {\theta ,\phi } \right) |\theta \in [{\theta _1},{\pi {/} 2}],\phi \in [0,2\pi ]} \right\} \) , where \(\theta _1\) is the minimum working elevation angle of the ground station, and \({\theta _1}\) = 0 for the horizontal coverage. Only a few array geometries have the potential to realize the hemispherical coverage, including pyramidal frustum, sphere, geodesic dome, and geodesic dome with cylinder base.