Modeling the effects of ionospheric scintillations on LEO Satellite communications

The fading statistics of the received signal caused by ionospheric scintillations for a given Earth station in low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication network are studied using the recently available scintillation model. The path distribution from the Earth station to the satellite and the fading statistics of each path are considered. This time-varying channel model allows engineers to understand the effects of ionospheric scintillations on a given Earth station and then determine margins necessary for communication systems in times of severe scintillations.