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Satellite-Enabled Backhaul for Remote and Disaster Recovery Scenarios in 5G

Varinder Kumar Sharma

Technical Manager

sharmavarinder01@gmail.com

Abstract- Fifth generation (5G) wireless networks have greatly improved the connectivity of ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC), massive machine-type communication (mMTC), and enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB). Despite these achievements there are still large discrepancies in providing equitable access to rural, remote and disaster affected areas where terrestrial backhaul is not available or has been destroyed. Legacy transport mechanisms—fiber, microwave and copper solutions—are easily damaged in the field, cumbersome to deploy and expensive in remote locations. In this scenario, satcom-enabled backhaul becomes a robust and scalable alternative that fits well with 5G’s NTN standards to ensure service continuity. This article studies architecture design, standardization and operation viability of 5G services based on satellite backhaul featuring the coverage in remote areas and disaster recovery.

At the standards front, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has been advancing its NTN specifications wider and deeper over Releases 15 through 17, leading up to frameworks that open up possibility of bringing satellite links directly into the Integrated Access and Backhaul System Architecture Stack for a more transparent operation. Specifications such as TR 38.811 and TR 38.821 have standardized channel models, Doppler and delay effects, and potential solutions for NR-NTN deployments. These standards set the foundation for the addition of geostationary (GEO), medium Earth orbit (MEO) and low Earth orbit (LEO) constellations in 5G’s service-based architecture. In coordination with these releases, operators can develop an access and backhaul hybrid solution to meet ultra-broadband requirements while safeguarding against interruptions in service due to terrestrial infrastructure issues.

There are two key operational advantages to satellite backhaul. It does so in a few ways; first, it allows there to be always-on connectivity in rural and underserved areas where ground-based infrastructure isn't cost-effective. Second, it provides fast operational recovery after natural or artificial disasters by enabling fast introduction of cells-on-wheels (CoWs), portable gNBs, or integrated access and backhaul (IAB) nodes that connect to the 5G core through satellite links. Recent disaster events case studies illustrate that satellite systems could bring time-to-service (TTS) down within hours instead of days or weeks to restore fiber or microwave connections. This resiliency is strengthened by adapting network slicing, MEC and slicebox orchestration according to emergency workers, telemedicine and humanitarian logistics.

However, the satellite-enabled backhauling brings new engineering dilemmas that need to be taken into account for mass 5G deployment. GEO satellites, although providing a wide coverage area, introduce high latency (500–650 ms) that can affect real-time applications unless sufficiently optimized transport layers such as QUIC with BBR are used. LEO constellations provide similar latency as ground-based microwave to 30-50 ms one-way round trip) but because they do not stay in one place, require an advanced tracking antenna system and beam-handover mechanism to follow the satellite across the sky. Moreover, weather fading at Ka-band, gateway diversity and rain-fade mitigation techniques have a significant impact on link reliability. This interworking should be orchestrated with the terrestrial 5G network having more advanced mobility triggers, discontinuous coverage support, and optimized PDCP/RLC configurations as defined in Rel-17.

The present work contributes to extend the literature on NR-NTN by introducing a systematic approach for planning, testing, and deploying satellite backhauling in remote and emergency scenarios. We provide performance assessment of link budget models, jitter and delay envelopes, transport optimization and integration schemes in respect to the edge UPF placement and slice orchestration. We illustrate, with representative LEO and GEO backhaul profiles, that throughput goals of 100–300 Mb/s/site and restoration times less than six hours are attainable under realistic scenarios. The results indicate that, by going beyond the traditional all-satellite architecture towards an optimal design that incorporates long-haul terrestrial links, satellite-enabled backhaul in combination with multi-polarization-gain pattern antennas can meet the strict QoS requirements of mission-critical disaster recovery services, and bridging the digital divide for rural areas.

Keywords- 5G; Satellite Backhaul; Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN); Disaster Recovery; Remote Connectivity; Low Earth Orbit (LEO); Medium Earth Orbit (MEO); Geostationary Orbit (GEO); High-Altitude Platform Systems (HAPS); Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB); Network Slicing; Resilient Communication; Public Safety Networks; Emergency Telecommunications; 3GPP Release 17; Service Continuity; Mobile Edge Computing (MEC).