Data Budget

Compute data collection rates, downlink capacity, and storage usage over time — inputs, models, outputs, and limitations.

The Data tab answers: how much data can my satellite collect, downlink, and store given my payload data rates, ground station access windows, and onboard storage?

Full documentation coming soon.

Overview

A data budget run computes, at every timestep:

  1. Data collection — how much data each payload generates, based on its collection rate and activation schedule.
  2. Data download — how much data is downlinked during access windows, based on the download rate.
  3. Storage usage — the cumulative data stored onboard, accounting for collection minus downloads and the storage capacity limit.

Inputs

  • Satellite & timeline — select satellite and set the Data Budget Simulation Interval.
  • Data payloads — name, collection rate (Mbps), compression ratio, and activation schedule (illumination, access, or deactivated).
  • Data downloads — tied to specific access windows, each with a download rate (Mbps).
  • Storage capacity — onboard storage in GB.

Next steps

  • Access — access windows drive download opportunities
  • Link Budget — RF link margin for your downlinks
  • Power — power budget for your data payloads