ARLA/CLUSTER: Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Frequencies

[João Costa > CT1FBF]

 437 MHz - Curiosity - Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Frequencies

The Mar Rover Curiosity transmits around 401 MHz but the transponder
on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has a CCSDS Forward Frequency
in the 437 MHz Amateur-Satellite Service band.

435-438 MHz is shared with the Military and 432-438 MHz is also a
Space SAR Band. General Space usage extends beyond that.

This paper describes the operation of the MRO (see page 34 onwards)
http://descanso.jpl.nasa.gov/DPSummary/MRO_092106.pdf

The MRO has a UHF transponder “MELACOM” (401 to 437 MHz) and 2 patch
antennas to communicate with any landed asset on Mars surface
supporting the CCSDS Proximity-1 protocol.

Read the paper Mars Express and the NASA landers and rovers on Mars -
Sustaining a backup relay in an interplanetary network
http://www.spaceops2012.org/proceedings/documents/id1295328-Paper-003.pdf