525.789.8VL - Advanced Satellite Communications

Expanded Course Description

Synchronous means that the students are online at the same time as the instructor. In contrast, discussion forum posts are asynchronous; the instructor and students are not online simultaneously.

Course materials are augmented by in-class demonstrations, including component level designs to real-time and observation of GPS and geostationary satellites using a portable satcom antenna.

Prerequisites: 525.616 Communication Systems Engineering and 525.640 Satellite Communications Systems. Students should have knowledge of undergraduate material covered in 525.201 Circuits, Devices, and Fields and 525.202 Signals and Systems.  We will review prerequisite materials as needed during classWe have a grader who sessions.

Course Structure

The course is now designated as 8VL, a virtual live format, which means that there is no in-classroom component. Everything is online and synchronous, but also recorded for students who cannot participate in real-time, as stated above. From a student’s perspective, this isn’t much different from a completely asynchronous, pre-recorded class. During synchronous lectures, students can ask questions real-time. This has the advantage of the instructor being able to answer and/or clarify questions on the spot. But, it is also the plan to respond to any questions posted to the discussion forums, and to also have short, when requested, real-time office hours sessions, as these are quite easy to schedule and implement. The individual project is intended to give students exposure to real-world activities, such as learning how to view the space station, and interacting with satellite professionals.  The project is meant to be fun, easy, and different from a term paper.  Examples will be provided.

The course materials are divided loosely into modules of one to two weeks which can be accessed by clicking Course Modules on the left menu. A module will have several sections including the overview, content, readings, discussions, and assignments, but will lack the detail associated with complete online, asynchronous courses that you may already be familiar with. Schedules and release dates may be modified to suit the details of the course that are unique to the Virtual Live format.

Course Topics

• Circuits and systems
• Electricity and magnetism
• Gravity
• Vectors
• Vector calculus
• Differential equations
• Convolution
• Newtonian mechanics
• Quantum mecahnics
• Electromagnetics
• Propagation
• Link budgets
• Coding and error correction
• Modulation and demodulation
• Access schemes and protocols
• Orbitology
• Acquisition and tracking
• Payload design
• Deep space missions
• Antenna theory
• Cost, schedule, and mission lifetime versus revenue

Course Goals

To learn how satcom systems work and to understand the complex considerations that influence their design.

To understand and be able to address, define, design, and analyze modern satellite systems, including the space, ground, and user segments.

Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs)

• To learn how to compute link budgets for digital satcom systems.
• To understand how to choose orbits and design satellite constellations.
• To learn how to link orbital parameters to pointing angles and tracking requirements.
• To understand how to choose frequencies, modulation techniques, and coding and access schemes appropriate to the mission of the satcom system.
• Solve sophisticated link budget problems.
• Derive the Keplerian orbital parameters and equations from the basic physics of force and momentum and compute the locations versus time, in spherical and Cartesian coordinate systems, of satellite systems in order to properly compute link budgets, antenna pointing angles (from ground stations, on-board satellites, etc.).
• Understand and be able to analyze the performance of various antennas and antenna arrays.
• Understand the basics of “space weather” and propagation of radio waves in different frequency bands.

Textbooks

Textbook information for this course is not available online through the MBS Direct Virtual Bookstore, although related references sources can be found there. Textbooks from a prerequisite course will typically be adequate, and supplemental materials will be provided free of charge. 

Supplemental Textbook

Maral, et al., sixth edition, with Jordan and Balmain

This textbook is an optional supplemental text (the affordable foreign edition). 

Electromagnetic and Radiating Systems, by Jordan and Balmain

ISBN 10: 9332551774
ISBN 13: 9789332551770

This textbook is not always available from Amazon, but can sometimes be ordered from Amazon at low cost (~$30) or AbeBooks.com, among other sources.

Other Materials & Online Resources

www.ITU.int (the International Telecommunications Union, has a wealth of freely accessible reports, Recommendations, and Resolution.  This will be discussed in class.

Required Software

Excel, MATLAB, or any other standard computational package will be needed for several of the assignments.  Choose any software that you like.  Excel is nice because it permits ease of reverse engineering, and is ubiquitous on office computers.

The MATLAB Total Academic Headcount (TAH) license is now in effect. This license is provided at no cost to you. Send an email to software@jhu.edu to request your license file/code. Please indicate that you need a standalone file/code. You will need to provide your first and last name, as well as your Hopkins email address. You will receive an email from Mathworks with instructions to create a Mathworks account. The MATLAB software will be available for download from the Mathworkssite.

Student Coursework Requirements

It is expected that each set of lectures/“modules” will take approximately 7-10 hours per week to complete.

This course will consist of three basic student requirements:

Preparation and Participation (15% of Final Grade Calculation)

Virtual Live Discussions and, when appropriate, the occasional office hour attendance and participation.

Reviewing and participating in module discussions is important. However, gratuitous submissions are never needed.There will be plenty to discuss without inventing work or tabulating submissions.

I will monitor module discussions and will respond with comments to each thread, although not necessarily to each posting within a thread.

Assignments (60% of Final Grade Calculation)

Several of the homework assignments will require detailed mathematical derivations and computations.

The Research Project (25% of Final Grade Calculation)

The research project will require an interview, trip, or visit to a site important in satcom, or other appropriate activity. The fundamental requirement is that students identify and use a primary, rather than secondary, source of information.

Some students will find individual assignments to be more difficult than students whose background or level of experience is different. When needed, extra time will generally be provided, and students need not fret if it takes multiple attempts and extended deadlines to succeed at some of the more complex assignments. But, end of term submissions of assignments that are well past their deadline will be penalized.

Grading Policy

Assignments are due according to the dates posted on the Canvas course site. The course grader or I will post grades by one week after assignment due dates. If you disagree with the grader’s assessment, please let me know by email or telephone. There is never a need to fret over these things. The course is supposed to be fun. Enjoy it.

I generally do not directly grade spelling and grammar. However, egregious violations of the rules of the English language will be noted, sometimes with detailed comments. Consistently poor performance in either spelling or grammar may detract from your grade.

Grading of participation (15% of the final grade)

Online attendance and at-least-occasional participation in discussion forum typically result if full credit for this grading element.

Grading of Assignments (60% of the final grade)

Assignments are evaluated by the following grading elements:

1. The problem being addressed should be re-stated succinctly, and each part of the assignment must be addressed in appropriate detail.
2. Getting the correct answer is important, but understanding the approach is often more important. Explain your approach. If you are unable to solve the problem, comment on what difficulties you encountered.
3. Provide enough details such that a person knowledgeable in the field can repeat the work is essential. Explain key equations. Don’t just submit equations and calculations without exposition of what you are doing and why.
4. Acknowledge assistance provided to or from others. Avail yourself of help when needed. The rationale for believing the answer to a problem is correct should be provided.
5. Perform and explain a back of the envelope “sanity check” to identify any glaring errors in the primary analysis. This can typically be done in a phrase or sentence.
6. Cite outside references are included when appropriate. The absence of needed citations is usually obvious to the grader(s).
7. Plagiarism is never tolerated. Instead, point the reader of your assignment to the appropriate reference source. Cutting and pasting of internet material is the typical issue at hand, and is often obvious to the reader.
8. Submit assignments as a single .doc, .docx, or .pdf file unless other permitted (e.g., when a spread sheet can be submitted). Cut and paste results from other files into the word or pdf file. Include your last name and the assignment number in the file name.
9. Under no circumstances submit large lists of numbers produced by MatLab or Excel. Submit tables, graphs, and graphics that have been properly edited instead. All graphs must have meaningful axes labels, and all tables, graphs, and graphics must have first-rate captions.
10. Handwritten submissions scanned into pdf files are always acceptable, as is the use of cursive. This is not a typing course.

Numerical grades are generated as follows:

9 – 10: High A, meaning that the work exceeds expectations. This means that all 10 grading elements have been addressed for each problem in the assignment.

8: A, meaning that the work is acceptable and no resubmission is needed. This means that all but one or two of the grading elements have been addressed.

6 – 7: B, meaning that only one or two of the grading elements are missing, but the remaining elements are addressed in a superficial and/or incomplete fashion. The work can be improved and can be resubmitted by correcting these omissions and shortcomings.

5: Incomplete, meaning that work was submitted, but was missing more than two elements or the completion of elements was superficial and/or incomplete. The five is used as a placeholder in Canvas, and will be turned to a 0 at the end of the term.

2: If grading elements 8 and 9 are not satisfied, the work will be assigned a placeholder grade of two and must be resubmitted before it will be graded. The grade will be turned to a 0 at the end of the term.

1: Plagiarism, which will result in follow-up discussions with the instructor, is never tolerated, and the entire assignment will receive a grade of one as a placeholder and submitted to the department head for consideration of academic sanctions.

0: No work was submitted.

Grading of the Project (25% of the Final Grade Calculation)

The research project will be assigned several weeks into the course. Students will be encouraged to share their experiences during on-line office hour sessions. Students get to choose their own project topic.

The research project is evaluated by the following grading elements:

1. It includes an element of exploration and uncertainty.
2. It explores at least one significant primary source.
3. It is relevant to the course material.
4. The final report, using pdf, Word, or PowerPoint, explains the motivation, details, and results of theproject in a succinct but understandable, and hopefully compelling way.
5. There must be no downloads from the internet that aren’t edited to meet the needs of the report and that are not properly cited. In general, downloads from the internet are neither needed nor appropriate. Provide URLs, with explanation of the significance of the material at the URL, instead.

Note that original videos are always welcome.

There is no need to ask the instructor how many pages it should be. Simply describe what you did, how youdid it, what you learned, and what you would do differently next time. Keep it short.

The Research Project requires successful completion of items 1 – 5, and will be returned for revision if it doesn’t. Note that it is okay to “crash and burn”, as long as you gave the project the effort required to satisfy items 1 – 5, above.

The Final Grade

A final grade for the course of A indicates achievement of consistent quality and distinction throughout the course—that is, good work in all aspects of assignments and discussion in every week.

A final grade of B indicates work that meets all course requirements on a level acceptable for graduate academic work. These criteria apply to both undergraduates and graduate students taking the course.

An A+ is given when there is some very outstanding feature of the student’s work that stands out not just for effort, but for creativity, imagination, and perseverance.

Course Policies

Participation Expectations

All course policies are flexible to accommodate student work and family needs. In-class, online discussion is encouraged.

Don’t fret. If you need to turn an assignment in a day or a few days late, inform me. But, this is not an urgent matter. If you get stuck or frustrated with an assignment, give it a rest and try again a day or two.

However, procrastination until the end of term is not acceptable. Try to formulate your questions carefully, and phone or email me with them, and/or share your questions with others via the discussion modules. Significant back-channel discussions between and among students must be acknowledged, and the work submitted by a student must be his or her own work.

Academic Misconduct Policy

Collaborations and discussions between students are key ingredients to success in a graduate course. You are encouraged to discuss the course material with each other as you sort through concepts that may be difficult to comprehend or controversial. In this course, collaboration is not cheating provided that you acknowledge any assistance that you receive. If you include direct quotes from any source in your discussions, written assignments, the final exam, or any other submission, whether you will receive a grade or not, you must provide attribution.

Academic Policies

Deadlines for Adding, Dropping and Withdrawing from Courses

Students may add a course up to one week after the start of the term for that particular course. Students may drop courses according to the drop deadlines outlined in the EP academic calendar (https://ep.jhu.edu/student-services/academic-calendar/). Between the 6th week of the class and prior to the final withdrawal deadline, a student may withdraw from a course with a W on their academic record. A record of the course will remain on the academic record with a W appearing in the grade column to indicate that the student registered and withdrew from the course.

Academic Misconduct Policy

All students are required to read, know, and comply with the Johns Hopkins University Krieger School of Arts and Sciences (KSAS) / Whiting School of Engineering (WSE) Procedures for Handling Allegations of Misconduct by Full-Time and Part-Time Graduate Students.

This policy prohibits academic misconduct, including but not limited to the following: cheating or facilitating cheating; plagiarism; reuse of assignments; unauthorized collaboration; alteration of graded assignments; and unfair competition. Course materials (old assignments, texts, or examinations, etc.) should not be shared unless authorized by the course instructor. Any questions related to this policy should be directed to EP’s academic integrity officer at ep-academic-integrity@jhu.edu.

Students with Disabilities - Accommodations and Accessibility

Johns Hopkins University values diversity and inclusion. We are committed to providing welcoming, equitable, and accessible educational experiences for all students. Students with disabilities (including those with psychological conditions, medical conditions and temporary disabilities) can request accommodations for this course by providing an Accommodation Letter issued by Student Disability Services (SDS). Please request accommodations for this course as early as possible to provide time for effective communication and arrangements.

For further information or to start the process of requesting accommodations, please contact Student Disability Services at Engineering for Professionals, ep-disability-svcs@jhu.edu.

Student Conduct Code

The fundamental purpose of the JHU regulation of student conduct is to promote and to protect the health, safety, welfare, property, and rights of all members of the University community as well as to promote the orderly operation of the University and to safeguard its property and facilities. As members of the University community, students accept certain responsibilities which support the educational mission and create an environment in which all students are afforded the same opportunity to succeed academically. 

For a full description of the code please visit the following website: https://studentaffairs.jhu.edu/policies-guidelines/student-code/

Classroom Climate

JHU is committed to creating a classroom environment that values the diversity of experiences and perspectives that all students bring. Everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and respect. Fostering an inclusive climate is important. Research and experience show that students who interact with peers who are different from themselves learn new things and experience tangible educational outcomes. At no time in this learning process should someone be singled out or treated unequally on the basis of any seen or unseen part of their identity. 
 
If you have concerns in this course about harassment, discrimination, or any unequal treatment, or if you seek accommodations or resources, please reach out to the course instructor directly. Reporting will never impact your course grade. You may also share concerns with your program chair, the Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion, or the Office of Institutional Equity. In handling reports, people will protect your privacy as much as possible, but faculty and staff are required to officially report information for some cases (e.g. sexual harassment).

Course Auditing

When a student enrolls in an EP course with “audit” status, the student must reach an understanding with the instructor as to what is required to earn the “audit.” If the student does not meet those expectations, the instructor must notify the EP Registration Team [EP-Registration@exchange.johnshopkins.edu] in order for the student to be retroactively dropped or withdrawn from the course (depending on when the "audit" was requested and in accordance with EP registration deadlines). All lecture content will remain accessible to auditing students, but access to all other course material is left to the discretion of the instructor.