Genetic Algorithm for TDRS Communication Scheduling with Resource Constraints

The task of scheduling communications between Tracking and Data Relay satellites (TDRS) down link and spacecraft is getting more and more critical since an increasing number of spacecraft must communicate with ground station by the TDRS. In such a congested scenario, the current practice, in which experts build hand-made schedules, often leaves a large number of communication requests unserved. This paper propose a tight time-indexed formulation of the problem able to include several complex technological constraints. A genetic algorithm is then devised which provides near-optimal solutions of a set of large-scale test problems arising in the TDRS SpaceCraft constellation. The genetic shows numerical stability and robustness adequate for practical implementation.