Unlocking the Performance Potential of Mega-Constellation Networks: An Exploration of Structure-Building Paradigms

The network structure design plays a vital role in the mega-constellation network (MSN) to coordinate massive network nodes to ensure the effectiveness and reliability of operations and services for future space wireless communications networks. One of the critical issues in MCN is how to design an optimal network control structure by configuring the most stable inter-satellite link (ISL) to achieve high available MCN within a limited average transmission delays. To address this problem, this paper introduces a novel MCN structure design paradigm: Structure = Motif + Lattice (SML), which decouples MCN design into local motifs design and global lattices design. Specifically, we formulate the High-Availability and Low-Latency Mega-Constellation Design (HALLMD) problem, aimed at maximizing ISL availability while minimizing the transmission latency. To solve HALLMD, we propose SMLOP, a heuristic algorithm that efficiently finds optimal network structures in polynomial time. Experimental validation on four public state-of-the-art constellations demonstrates significant improvements, including enhanced capacity by $5\sim 18\%$, increased throughput by $1\sim 12\%$, reduced path stretch by $12\sim 23\%$, and Round-Trip Time (RTT) by $8\sim 77\%$.