Framing ATM Cells for Satellite Onboard Switching

1. Introduction
There are many reasons to interconnect satellite and ATM networks, mainly the possibility of very fast deployment of large-scale broadband services over wide geographical areas. However, several problems arise that prevents a seamless integration of these two technologies. For example, the cell transport method should be adapted to the burst error characteristics of satellite links, which are very different to those of fiber optic; the link access schemes should be optimized for ATM technology; more elaborate traffic management procedures are necessary in order to maintain…