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From Earth to Space: A First Deployment of 5G Core Network on Satellite

Ruolin Xing, Xiao Ma, Ao Zhou, Schahram Dustdar, Shangguang Wang

TL;DR

This work investigates the first deployment of a lightweight 5G core network on an actual satellite to enable satellite-terrestrial 5G integration. By implementing AMF, SMF, and UPF onboard, and coordinating with a terrestrial 5G private network, the study demonstrates feasibility through registration and session establishment procedures, with onboard resource usage modest (≈16% CPU, ≈20 KB memory) and end-to-end signaling latency around 200 ms over satellite links. The experiments on TY20 validate core functionality and onboard signaling, while a QUIC-based test on TY22 shows favorable connection establishment times (~4.93 ms) compared to offline HTTP/2 results. The work highlights the potential of onboard core networks for orbital edge computing, resilient emergency communications, and flexible satellite-ground convergence, and it outlines architectural and validation directions toward B5G/6G satellite networks.

Abstract

Recent developments in the aerospace industry have led to a dramatic reduction in the manufacturing and launch costs of low Earth orbit satellites. The new trend enables the paradigm shift of satellite-terrestrial integrated networks with global coverage. In particular, the integration of 5G communication systems and satellites has the potential to restructure next-generation mobile networks. By leveraging the network function virtualization and network slicing, the orbital 5G core networks will facilitate the coordination and management of network functions in satellite-terrestrial integrated networks. We are the first to deploy a lightweight 5G core network on a real-world satellite to investigate its feasibility. We conducted experiments to validate the onboard 5G core network functions. The validated procedures include registration and session setup procedures. The results show that the 5G core network can function normally and generate correct signaling.

From Earth to Space: A First Deployment of 5G Core Network on Satellite

TL;DR

This work investigates the first deployment of a lightweight 5G core network on an actual satellite to enable satellite-terrestrial 5G integration. By implementing AMF, SMF, and UPF onboard, and coordinating with a terrestrial 5G private network, the study demonstrates feasibility through registration and session establishment procedures, with onboard resource usage modest (≈16% CPU, ≈20 KB memory) and end-to-end signaling latency around 200 ms over satellite links. The experiments on TY20 validate core functionality and onboard signaling, while a QUIC-based test on TY22 shows favorable connection establishment times (~4.93 ms) compared to offline HTTP/2 results. The work highlights the potential of onboard core networks for orbital edge computing, resilient emergency communications, and flexible satellite-ground convergence, and it outlines architectural and validation directions toward B5G/6G satellite networks.

Abstract

Recent developments in the aerospace industry have led to a dramatic reduction in the manufacturing and launch costs of low Earth orbit satellites. The new trend enables the paradigm shift of satellite-terrestrial integrated networks with global coverage. In particular, the integration of 5G communication systems and satellites has the potential to restructure next-generation mobile networks. By leveraging the network function virtualization and network slicing, the orbital 5G core networks will facilitate the coordination and management of network functions in satellite-terrestrial integrated networks. We are the first to deploy a lightweight 5G core network on a real-world satellite to investigate its feasibility. We conducted experiments to validate the onboard 5G core network functions. The validated procedures include registration and session setup procedures. The results show that the 5G core network can function normally and generate correct signaling.
Paper Structure (17 sections, 11 figures, 1 table)

This paper contains 17 sections, 11 figures, 1 table.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Motivations
  3. Main Aspects
  4. Demand Perspective
  5. Performance Perspective
  6. Functional Perspective
  7. Use Cases
  8. Orbital Edge Computing
  9. Emergency Communication
  10. Overview of the onboard 5G core network
  11. Satellite Platform
  12. Virtualization
  13. Basic 5G Core Network Functions
  14. Extended 5G Core Network Functions
  15. SYSTEM DESIGN
  16. ...and 2 more sections

Figures (11)

  • Figure 1: The capability structure of satellites with orbital 5G core networks.
  • Figure 2: The architecture of 5G core networks deployed on both satellites and terrestrial data centers.
  • Figure 3: The protocol stacks of the onboard 5G core network in both the control plane and user plane.
  • Figure 4: The deployment of the lightweight 5G core network on TY20.
  • Figure 5: The CPU usage change over time.
  • ...and 6 more figures