Intensity fluctuations in laser links between the ground and a satellite

Laser-beam-intensity fluctuations between an uplink (ground to satellite) and a downlink (satellite to ground) are described. The dependence of the beam radius on log-intensity variance in the uplink and the dependence of receiving-aperture diameter on the log-intensity variance in the downlink using a known theory were calculated. Statistical analysis of the experimental data on the laser links was performed, and high correlation coefficients of 0.94 between the normalized intensity variances of the uplink and those of the stellar scintillation were obtained. The beam-pointing error in the satelliteborne laser transmitter chiefly caused fluctuations in the downlink.