An Optimized Snapshot Division Strategy for Satellite Network in GNSS

Finite-state automaton is a common method of dynamic network research. It considers the satellite network topology as a periodically repeating series of topology snapshots. Few studies have looked at the issue of how to divide the dynamic network topology into a series of snapshots. The most common method is to divide the satellite network period into equal-length snapshots. Global navigation satellite system (GNSS) constellations, with their already available inter-satellite links (ISLs), are the application of interest in this letter. ISLs in GNSS are established not only for inter-satellite ranging but also for inter-satellite communication. In this letter, we analyze the impact of domestic (GNSS) satellites on the communication performance. The snapshot division should give attention to both system performance and limited satellite storage space. In addition, an optimized snapshot division strategy for satellite network is proposed. It further illustrates a tradeoff between the satellite storage and the system performance. Simulation results show that the proposed strategy is efficient and can be preferred in a practical system.