Satellite Communication at Millimeter Waves: a Key Enabler of the 6G Era

While technical standard development for 5G radio services is still an ongoing process, the scientific community is drafting the key drivers, requirements, challenges and research questions towards 6th generation (6G) networks. 6G developments will foster, among other innovations, the evolution of wireless systems towards a 3D, continuous and ubiquitous service coverage by complementing terrestrial networks with computing stations placed on satellite platforms. Along these lines, in this paper we demonstrate the feasibility of using millimeter wave (mmWave) frequencies to establish high-capacity satellite communications, in view of the huge traffic demands and service continuity requirements of forthcoming 6G applications. We also identify the most promising configuration(s) for satellite networking and discuss the design trade-offs in this domain.