The Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS)

Overview

The Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS) is a multinational forum formed in 1982 to discuss common problems in the development and creation of space communications systems. Today, the forum consists of the eleven major space agencies of the world and seeks to develop standards for communication and data systems in space. CCSDS standards reduce the cost of spaceflight by promoting cost-effective commercialization. [1]

 

Development Process

CCSDS’s development process begins with a concept paper. The requirement is then put into proposal in terms of the standard and the practice which the standard describes. After approval in the proposal stage, the standard is moved to the draft stage where it will undergo experiments and testing. Once all testing has concluded, the final stage is the recommended stage where the CCSDS standard becomes Recommended Standard and Recommended Practice. These are published in the form of publicly available documents that are ready to be used in space missions.

 

List of Members

Below is a list of the main members of the CCSDS.

  • Italian Space Agency; Italy
  • Canadian Space Agency; Canada
  • National Center for Space Studies; France
  • China National Space Administration; China
  • DLR; Germany
  • European Space Agency
  • National Institute for Space Research; Brazil
  • JAXA; Japan
  • NASA; United States
  • Russian Federal Space Agency; Russia
  • UK Space Agency; United Kingdom

Related Links

Website: CCSDS Home Page

Website: CCSDS Publications

Website: CCSDS Formal Agency Reviews

Website: CCSDS Formal Recommendation for Space Data System Standards (August 2019; Optical Communications Physical Layer)

Website: CCSDS Formal Recommendation for Space Data System Standards (August 2019; Optical Communications Coding and Synchronization)