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Definition

Margin

The difference between a resource allocation and the current best estimate. Positive margin means the design has room. Margin policies typically require 20-30% margin at PDR and 10-15% at CDR.

Related terms

Link Budget

A detailed accounting of all gains and losses in a communications link from transmitter to receiver. Includes transmit p...

Low Earth OrbitLEO

An orbit with an altitude between roughly 200 km and 2,000 km. LEO offers lower latency, higher resolution imaging, and ...

Mass Budget

A comprehensive accounting of the mass of every component, subsystem, and the total spacecraft. Includes dry mass, wet m...

Medium Earth OrbitMEO

An orbit with altitude between LEO and GEO, typically 2,000 to 35,786 km. GPS and navigation constellations operate in M...

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