Paper Category: university CubeSat project
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ALIGN Mission: Radio Intersatellite Link Feasibility Demonstration for Hybrid Free-Space Optical Communications
The ALIGN (Autonomous Laser-based Intersatellite Gigabit Network) mission comprises a pair of 6U CubeSats equipped with FOCUS (Free-space Optical Communications Unit for Space), an experimental payload demonstrating high-data-rate optical intersatellite links in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and advanced hybrid optical/radio intersatellite communications. Each satellite implements a dual RF-link architecture: the Radio Ground-to-Satellite Link (RGSL) for…