Lightweight, Reprogrammable Two Way Communications Avionics

Interceptor communication avionics are challenging to build due to a number of factors, including surviving the MDA-STD-001 radiation environment, small size, multiple frequency bands and an operational fading channel environment due to potential perturbations by nuclear weapons. Communication links are required to be available between the Ballistic Missile Defense System Fire Control (the ground), interceptors and satellite links. Interceptors can also be comprised of Carrier Vehicles (CV) and Kill Vehicles (KV), creating multiple links in the system. Further complicating the scenario is the desire to use multiple frequency bands, such as C-, X-, and Ka-bands. Space Micro has developed unique and critically important technologies that solve all of these issues simultaneously, when combined with other industry standard interceptor/satellite design practices can provide a reprogrammable, radiation hardened, interceptor grade communications transponder. This platform, which we call the μSDRT (software defined radio transponder), can be used as a multi-band, multi-waveform transponder that is capable of receiving DoD communications waveforms from all points in the interceptors communication scenario simultaneously, such as receiving ground communications on a C-Band link at the CV and transmitting Ka-Band communications from the CV to the KV.