## 1 Introduction  
The deployment of IoT technologies and networks, such as NB-IoT (Narrowband IoT) or Low Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN), can fully realize their potential when supported by ubiquitous connectivity. While satellite systems alone can provide true global coverage, geostationary communication satellites have long technological cycles (typically 10 years) and are expensive in both development and operation. Thus, small satellite systems are becoming more relevant as a backbone for Internet of Things (IoT) applications and Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication, in order to cover polar regions, oceans, and rural areas. The integration of a small satellite network into an IoT network will open new possibilities in coping with global challenges such as climate change, pollution, and disaster monitoring. Established satellite service providers, such as Argos, Iridium, and Orbcom, have started to provide IoT services to relay ground sensor data by satellite to users. Just recently (2018), several commercial satellite IoT initiatives such as HIBER, DIAMOND, and KEPLER have launched their first nanosatellites, demonstrating the technology and feasibility for satellite M2M communication (see Table 1). These are mostly based on custom Software Defined Radio (SDR) and proprietary protocols. In the scientific domain, the ICARUS system has been installed (in 2018) on the International Space Station (ISS) to establish an internet of animals by enabling animal tracking from space, based on very tiny sensors (Figures 1 and 2). The ISS inclination of 52.6 deg limits the coverage of higher latitudes, however. The system has moderate revisit times for low latitudes (0 to 2 contacts in 48 h at the equator) [1]. The integration of a satellite network into a terrestrial IoT/M2M network is a multi-parameter optimization problem, which includes:  
* Type of service: Data rate, bandwidth, latency, QoS, and IoT protocol. * Regulations: Frequency allocation and space debris removal. * Space segment: Network topology, coverage (number of satellites, orbit type, and altitude), Inter Satellite Link (ISL) yes/no, antenna type, and beam print. * Ground segment: Number of ground stations, number of gateways, user terminal Radio Frequency (RF) power and duty cycle. * Logistics: Launch, operation, and fleet management  
Figure 1: A 5 gr ICARUS animal tag with GNSS, accelerometer, magnetometer, temperature sensor, and 500 MB memory. Credit: Max Planck Society. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{l l l l l l l l l l l} \hline \hline
**Mission** & **Institution/Countary** & **Application/Services** & **Protocol** & **System Architecture** & **ISL** & **Data (IoT)** & **Latency** & **Frequency** & **User terminal** & **Status** \\ \hline ICARUS & \begin{tabular}{l} [PERSON] \\ Society(IE) \\ KeyComm. \\ (CAV) \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} Airmal tracking \\ Global data \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} Prospiratory \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} Sensor tag to ISS \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} no \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} UL.656 bps \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} -cday \\ \end{tabular}  & 402.25 MHz & \begin{tabular}{l} 5.86 800 km \\ TXPure 6 mW \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} Operational 2019 QQ \\ Demonstrate: \\ - 2.3 3U Colabet: 218 \\ - \\ - \\ - \\ - \\ - \\ - \\ \end{tabular}  \\ \multirow{2}{*}{FLET} & \ \begin{tabular}{l} Floot Space Tech. \\ (AUPS) \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{l} Knott \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{This article focuses on the space segment and addresses the design methodology and implementation of an adaptive network architecture with highly limited resources, as is the case in a nanosatellite (\(\approx\)10 kg) network. A key task for increasing the operational efficiency and shortening the latency in distributed satellite systems is the miniaturization of ISL technology.