A Systems-of-Systems Framework to Support Decision-Making for Lunar Communication Network Design Under Stochastic Disruptions

As space agencies and commercial actors prepare for sustained human presence on the Moon, the need for high-performance lunar communication infrastructure is becoming critical. Future missions will require networks that support high data rates, low latency, and robust, uninterrupted links between the lunar surface and Earth. Designing such networks poses significant challenges, including trade-offs in architecture and technology selection, a vast number of possible configurations, and the computational cost of evaluating them. This paper presents a system-of-systems framework for the rapid evaluation and comparison of lunar communication network alternatives defined by constellations of Earth-orbiting and cislunar satellites. A high-bandwidth use case: real-time 16K video streaming of the Artemis III landing, is employed to benchmark network performance, as it exceeds the requirements of foreseeable lunar missions. Network architectures are analyzed using high-fidelity simulations in Ansys Systems Tool Kit (STK), combined with Python-based post-processing that integrates graph theory, Monte Carlo simulations of stochastic disruption events, and surrogate modeling for accelerated analysis. Evaluation metrics include network complexity, latency, robustness, and link continuity under disruptions such as satellite failures and adverse ground station weather. The proposed decision-making framework enables rapid and comprehensive exploration of the design space, providing critical insights for the development of scalable lunar communication networks.