The op only mentioned cryptographic checks, not signed and encrypted. Even then, the signature and encryption algorithms used are important and you should still

The op only mentioned cryptographic checks, not signed and encrypted. Even then, the signature and encryption algorithms used are important and you should still have a MAC to detect alteration of the cipher text. Hence my AEAD suggestion. Given the nature of the comms- to a device in the expanse of space- securing the transmission from malicious users seems like the last thing they should worry about. It’s more the accidental corruption of data, hence something like a CRC or simple MAC are sufficient for the circumstances. Why waste energy and CPU cycles on something you don’t actually need?