International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 30-November 02, 1995 / Riviera Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada / Phillips Laboratory's Space Experiments Directorate (PL/SX) is operating and upgrading the laboratory's premier transportable satellite tracking station, the Mobile Ground Tracking Station (MGTS) program. MGTS supports orbital, suborbital, and aircraft missions as a range system capable of processing and recording multiple data streams. MGTS receives, processes, displays, and records satellite state-of-health data, infrared images in a variety of wavelengths, video data, and state vector solutions based on IR returns from the Miniature Sensor Technology Integration (MSTI) satellite program. The program has began in 1990 under BMDO sponsorship, with the intent to supplement existing test ranges with more flexibility in range operations. Wyle Laboratories and Systems Engineering and Management Company (SEMCO) provided the technical expertise necessary to create the first MGTS system. Autonomy and off-road capability were critical design factors, since some of the operations envisioned require deployment to remote or hostile field locations. Since inception, MGTS has supported the Lightweight Exo-Atmospheric Projectile (LEAP) sub-orbital missions, the MSTI satellite program, and Air Force wargame demonstrations. In pursuit of these missions, MGTS has deployed to White Sands Missile Range (WSMR), NM; Air Force Flight Test Center (AFFTC), Edwards AFB, CA; Vandenberg AFB, CA; Falcon AFB, CO; and NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility, VA, to receive critical mission telemetry data conforming to both IRIG and SGLS standards. This paper will describe the evolution of the MGTS program, current hardware configurations and past and future mission scenarios for the MGTS team.

International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 26-29, 1998 / Town & Country Resort Hotel and Convention Center, San Diego, California / This paper discusses the design, configuration, and operation of a satellite station built for the Center for Space Telemetering and Telecommunications Laboratory in the Klipsch School of Electrical and Computer Engineering Engineering at New Mexico State University (NMSU). This satellite station consists of a computer-controlled antenna tracking system, 2m/70cm transceiver, satellite tracking software, and a demodulator. The satellite station receives satellite telemetry, allows for voice communications, and will be used in future classes. Currently this satellite station is receiving telemetry from an amateur radio satellite, UoSAT-OSCAR-11. Amateur radio satellites are referred to as Orbiting Satellites Carrying Amateur Radio (OSCAR) satellites.

International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 25-28, 1993 / Riviera Hotel and Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada / In support of the various programs that the Phillips Laboratory's Space Experiments Directorate is conducting for the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO), the Range Operations Division is developing a mobile telemetry processing system as part of the Mobile Ground Telemetry Station (MGTS) program. The MGTS program's goals are to develop a mission-dedicated telemetry system to supplement current test range capabilities by receiving, processing and recording multiple data streams, sometimes exceeding 10 Mbps. The system will support airborne and suborbital vehicles as well as customized satellite downlinks designed for spacecraft bus State-of-Health monitoring and sensor payload observations. Autonomy and off-road capabilities are also important factors since some of the operations envisioned require deployment to remote field locations where no telemetry processing capabilities currently exist to support the unique data handling requirements. The Phillips Laboratory has completed, with support from Wyle Laboratories and Systems Engineering and Management Company (SEMCO), a "proof-of-concept" mobile telemetry processing system referred to as MGTS #2. Demonstration of the system has been accomplished with the successful deployment and operational support provided to both BMDO's Lightweight Exo-Atmospheric Projectile (LEAP) sub-orbital missions and Miniature Sensor Technology Integration (MSTI) satellite program. MGTS #2 has deployed and is scheduled for further deployment to various operating sites including: White Sands Missile Range (WSMR), NM; Air Force Flight Test Center (AFFTC), Edwards AFB, CA; Vandenberg AFB, CA; and NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility, VA. While deployed MGTS #2 processes, records and rapidly distributes the critical mission telemetry data conforming to both IRIG and SGLS standards. This paper will describe the evolution of the MGTS program, current hardware configurations and the various mission scenarios that have been supported by the MGTS team.

International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 25-28, 1999 / Riviera Hotel and Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada / In 1998, AlliedSignal Technical Services (ATSC) installed three fully autonomous 13-meter satellite tracking systems for the Integrated Program Office of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) at the Command and Data Acquisition Station near Fairbanks, Alaska. These systems track and command NOAA Polar Orbiting Weather Satellites and Defense Meteorological Satellites. Each tracking system operates for extended periods of time with little intervention other than periodic scheduling contacts. Schedule execution initiates equipment configuration, including establishing the RF communications link to the satellite. Station autonomy is achieved through use of a robust scheduler that permits remote users and the System Administrator to request pass activities for any of the supported missions. Spacecraft in the mission set are scheduled for normal operations according to the priority they have been assigned. Once the scheduler resolves conflicts, it builds a human-readable control script that executes all required support activities. Pass adds or deletes generate new schedule scripts and can be performed in seconds. The systems can be configured to support CCSDS and TDM telemetry processing, but the units installed at Fairbanks required only telemetry and command through-put capabilities. Received telemetry data is buffered on disk-storage for immediate, post-pass playback, and also on tape for long-term archiving purposes. The system can autonomously support up to 20 spacecraft with 5 different configuration setups each. L-Band, S-Band and X-Band frequencies are supported.