Alphasat Q/V-band propagation campaign preparation in aveiro

We describe the developments of a propagation receiver for the Alphasat Q-band copolar beacon that is expected to be operational from April 2015. The receiver link budget and the expected attenuation dynamic range are presented. The RF hardware and a simplified approach to one axis only antenna pointing system solution are detailed. Solutions to acquire and detect the beacon signal are discussed. The already developed Python detector software, using a Ettus Research Card, is introduced with details about the copolar detection algorithm and other possible ones.