Federated Communications Relays Deep Space Exploration

Federated Communications Relays for Deep Space Exploration

Organization: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Reference Code: 0328-NPP-MAR
26-JPL-Tech Dev

How To Apply: All applications must be submitted in Zintellect. Please visit the NASA Postdoctoral Program website for application instructions and requirements:

How to Apply

| NASA Postdoctoral Program https://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)./postdoc

Final date to receive applications: 3/1/2026 6:00:59 PM Eastern Time Zone

Swarms of cooperative small satellites can serve as a relay for critical flight operations, as was proven with the MarCO technology demonstration. By routing planetary communications traffic through a set of cooperating communications relays, the burden on DSN scheduling can be significantly reduced. The use of frequency division (OMSPA) enables all probes communicating through the relay to be received by one DSN antenna, enabling DSN resources to be extended across a greater number of missions.

In contrast to a monolithic relay, swarms enable a greater degree of granularity in supporting multiple probes simultaneously. Swarms also provide the usual benefits of multi‑element array reception, namely robustness to single point failures and transmit/receive diversity.

The downside of swarms is the additional complexity in coordinating the multiple elements. Recent advancements in swarm and constellation optimization have made the concept more tractable, and ripe for exploration as a future architecture for the human exploration of Mars. Long round‑trip light times make centralized coordination of swarms difficult, so distributed coordination becomes more critical. Study of these architectures through simulation (e.g. ns‑3) and hardware test platforms (e.g. Software Defined Radio) will enable critical information for architecture selection of future planetary missions.

Technology Development

• U.S. Citizens
• U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR)
• Foreign Nationals eligible for an Exchange Visitor J‑1 visa status
• Applicants for LPR, asylees, or refugees in the U.S. at the time of application with
  1) a valid EAD card and
  2) I‑485 or I‑589 forms in pending status

• Degree:
  Doctoral Degree.

• Developing space‑based swarm/constellation optimization algorithms
• Extensive communications protocol design
• Solid understanding of physical/link layer communications, including synchronization, beamforming, and autonomous rate adaptation

Ryan Rogalin
Ryan.

Rogalina.gov

Applications with citizens from Designated Countries will not be accepted at this time, unless they are Legal Permanent Residents of the United States. A complete list of Designated Countries can be found at: https://.