A comprehensive survey of orbital edge computing: Systems, applications, and algorithms

The number of satellites, especially those operating in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO), has been exploding in recent years. Additionally, the burgeoning development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) software and hardware has opened up new industrial opportunities in both air and space, with satellite-powered computing emerging as a new computing paradigm: Orbital Edge Computing (OEC). Compared to terrestrial edge computing, the mobility of LEO satellites and their limited communication, computation, and storage resources pose challenges in designing task-specific scheduling algorithms. Previous survey papers have largely focused on terrestrial edge computing or the integration of space and ground technologies, lacking a comprehensive summary of OEC architecture, algorithms, and case studies. This paper conducts a comprehensive survey and analysis of OEC’s system architecture, applications, algorithms, and simulation tools, providing a solid background for researchers in the field. By discussing OEC use cases and the challenges faced, potential research directions for future OEC research are proposed.