Availability analysis of a ship-to-ground FSO link

This paper analyzes the availability of a free-space optical (FSO) communication link, established between a maritime platform and a land base. In this analysis, the impact of the laser beam misalignment, caused by the vessel’s six oscillatory motions in a seaway, is considered. The hydrodynamic system is modeled, through a ship’s response amplitude operator (RAO), under a typical sea-state condition. Finally, the link availability is calculated based on FSO losses, considering a beam with Gaussian power distribution.