ECN - Based Packet Loss Differentiation for Adaptive TCP in LEO Satellite Networks

Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite networks are becoming increasingly important for next-generation communication technologies due to their wide coverage and low latency. However, the changing network topology and high packet loss rates in LEO networks pose challenges for the traditional Transmission Control Protocol (TCP), which has difficulty distinguishing between congestion-induced packet loss and other types of loss. This problem leads to a significant reduction in throughput and bandwidth utilization. In this paper, we propose a new TCP protocol named LOTCP (Loss-Optimized TCP), which employs Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN) to distinguish between congestion loss and non-congestion loss. LOTCP utilizes handover information and satellite bandwidth data to make these distinctions. It relies on ground stations and Software-Defined Network (SDN) controllers to monitor network conditions, allowing TCP to adjust the congestion window more effectively in response to congestion events. Simulation results indicate that LOTCP delivers significantly improved throughput compared to existing protocols. This research presents a promising approach for optimizing TCP performance in LEO satellite networks.