CCSDS SLE Services: Experience at the German Space Operations Center

Kurzfassung

Ground data system component re-usability and standardizing was on the agenda of the space agencies and operators for many decades. But as long as the proprietary systems were used and inter-agency support was not widely spread, the idea of a standard TM/TC ground transfer protocol never crossed to the operational implementation phase. Most of the protocols used during the 70s and 80s in the space industry didn't follow the TCP/IP domination in the networking standards. The incompatibility of the numerous 80s systems, the booming of the inter-agency supports and the pressures to reduce the ground data system costs, led the space agency community in late 90s, through CCSDS, to develop, back and implement the SLE transfer services as a standard for the TM/TC data exchange. GSOC as an active member in CCSDS took in 2002 the strategic decision to migrate its ground data system to an SLE backbone. This article describes the GSOC architecture before SLE transfer service implementation, the reasons behind the decision and the current GSOC ground data system architecture. The article addresses also the tools used for problem troubleshooting and performance analysis before discussing the planned service extension and upgrade.