A Software Defined Radio AIS for the ZA-002 Satellite

ZA-002 is the second South African satellite, and is scheduled to be launched in December 2006. A software defined radio (SDR) automatic identification system (AIS) receiver is proposed as a possible experimental payload for this satellite. The AIS receiver can be used to track and store movement of ships at sea, and then forward this information to the ground station upon request. This paper demonstrates the design of a SDR AIS receiver for a satellite. The design of a GMSK/FM modem as used in AIS is presented, followed by simulation results