Exploitation of W-BAND for Space Communications

In this paper, the main trends of the latest space missions will be outlined, dealing with the advantages of using W-band in space communication systems. In the first part, an overview of the current projects involved in the study of W-band is shown, highlighting the reasons of its future widespread. Nowadays, the study of W-band is aimed at future applications in three fields: radar applications, space communications to/from Earth, space communications to/from Moon (and beyond). The paper will be focused on W-band applications for space communications systems to/from Moon. Specifically, some simulation related to the use of special modulation techniques over W-band link in order to reach a Gigabit connectivity will be reported. Moreover, a scenario simulations will be carried out dealing with performance analysis of a space communication system working in the W-band.