Smooth transitioning between generations of systems and devices in a satellite system

A method for satellite communication comprising:

• providing a legacy gateway communicating with a first plurality of satellites, wherein the legacy gateway includes radio frequency transmitters that communicate with satellites and support a first generation air interface;
• providing a new gateway communicating with a second plurality of satellites, wherein the new gateway includes radio frequency transmitters that communicate with satellites and support a second generation air interface;
• providing a satellite resource manager that is part of a central server based on the ground and communicates with the legacy gateway and the new gateway;
• and
• assigning by a central based server on the ground communicating with the legacy gateway and the new gateway a satellite of the first and second plurality of satellites to the legacy gateway or the new gateway depending on an area that the satellite covers being in an area of the legacy gateway or the new gateway.

A satellite communication system comprising:

• a legacy gateway communicating with a first plurality of satellites, wherein the legacy gateway includes radio frequency transmitters that communicate with satellites and support a first generation air interface;
• a new gateway communicating with a second plurality of satellites, wherein the new gateway includes radio frequency transmitters that communicate with satellites and support a second generation air interface;
• a satellite resource manager that is part of a central server based on the ground and communicates with the legacy gateway and the new gateway, wherein the satellite resource manager assigns a satellite of the first and second plurality of satellites to the legacy gateway or the new gateway depending on an area that the satellite covers over the earth, wherein the satellite resource manager changes an assignment of the satellite from the legacy gateway to the new gateway when the satellite is over an area with user terminals serviced by the new gateway;
• a forward link that transmits with a duty-cycled forward link time, with a portion of a forward link time dedicated to the legacy gateway and a remaining portion of the forward link time dedicated to the new gateway, the forward link including reference symbols inserted into a frame of the portion of the forward link time dedicated to the legacy gateway;
• and
• a return link that uses a plurality of carriers in a beam shared by the new gateway and the legacy gateway;
• wherein,
• the legacy gateway and the new gateway are combined into an integrated gateway that communicates with the first and second plurality of satellites, wherein the integrated gateway comprises:
• a plurality of radio frequency transmitters that communicate with the first and second plurality of satellites;
• a new baseband module that communicates with the plurality of radio frequency transmitters using a new air communication interface;
• and a legacy baseband module that communicates with the plurality of radio frequency transmitters using a legacy air communication interface,
• the satellite resource manager controls communication of the radio frequency transmitters to the first and second plurality of satellites transmitting on a legacy band or a new band of communication service and changes the communication of a radio frequency transmitter from communication with a legacy user terminal to a new user terminal using new satellite system protocols.