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Satellite Communications

Introduction
Satellite Orbits
Overview of a satellite system
Link Budget
Digital Communication Technologies
Coverage
Satellite Systems & Applications (Examples)
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Introduction
Satellite communications systems exist because
earth is a sphere.
Radio waves travel in straight lines at the
microwave frequencies used for wideband
communications
Repeater is needed to
convey signals very long
distances

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Introduction (cont.)
Communications satellites is an artificial station in
space which operates as a radio relay

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Introduction (cont.)
Satellites are important in: voice communications, video & radio
transmission, navigation (GPS), remote sensing (maps, weather
satellites) etc.
A majority of communication satellites are in geostationary earth
orbit an altitude of 35 786 km
Satellite in fixed place
Typical path length from earth station to a GEO satellite
is 38 500 km
Satellite systems operate in the microwave and millimeter wave
frequency bands, using frequencies between 1 and 50 GHz
Above 10 GHz rain causes significant attenuation of the
signal
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History of Satellite Communications

Some Milestones
Satellite communications began in October 1957 with the launch
by the USSR a small satellite called Sputnik 1 (4.10.1957)
Beacon transmitter, no communications capability
3.11.1957 Sputnik 2
12.4.1961 Vostok 1
First true communication satellites (Telstar I & II) were launched
in July 1962 & May 1963
10/1964 Syncom 2: First GEO satellite, 7.4/1.8 GHz (one TVchannel or several 2-way telephone connections
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Satellite Orbits

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Geostationary orbits
A satellite in a geostationary orbit appears
to be in a fixed position to an earth-based
observer. A geostationary satellite revolves
around the earth at a constant speed once
per day over the equator.
As a result, an antenna can point in a fixed
direction and maintain a link with the
satellite. The satellite orbits in the direction
of the Earth's rotation, at an altitude of
approximately 35,786 km (22,240 miles)
above ground. This altitude is significant
because it produces an orbital period equal
to the Earth's period of rotation

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Geostationary Orbits
The geostationary orbit is useful for communications
applications because ground based antennas, which must be
directed toward the satellite, can operate effectively without
the need for expensive equipment to track the satellites
motion. Especially for applications that require a large number
of ground antennas (such as direct TV distribution).

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Satellite Orbits [5]

Geostationary Orbit (GEO) satellites, i.e. satellites that are stationary
with respect to a fixed point on the earth
Good coverage: Theoretically, only three GEO satellites are
sufficient to serve all the earth.
The simplest space configuration and simple space control system
No need for tracking system at the earth stations
No variation of propagation delay and elevation angle
Negligible Doppler effects

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Low-Earth-orbiting Satellites
A Low Earth Orbit (LEO) typically is a circular orbit about 400 kilometers
above the earths surface.
It requires a period (time to revolve around the earth) of about 90 minutes.

Because of their low altitude, these satellites are only visible from within a
radius of roughly 1000 kilometers from the sub-satellite point.

In addition, satellites in low earth orbit change their position relative to the
ground position quickly. So even for local applications, a large number of
satellites are needed if the mission requires uninterrupted connectivity.

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LEO
Low earth orbiting satellites are less expensive to position in space
than geostationary satellites and, because of their closer proximity
, to the ground
It require lower signal strength (Recall that signal strength falls off as
the square of the distance from the source, so the effect is
dramatic). So there is a trade off between the number of satellites
.and their cost

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Marker

Distance above
earth (km)

Low Earth
Orbit (LEO)

Cyan area

to 2,000 160

Medium
Earth Orbit
(MEO)

Yellow area

to 34,780 2,000

International
Space
Station (ISS)

Red dotted
line

500

Global
Positioning
System
(GPS)
satellites

Green dashdot line

20,230

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Overview of a Satellite
System

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The satellite system is composed of a space segment and

a ground segment
The Space Segment contains one or several active
satellites organizers.
The Control Segment consists of all ground facilities for the
control and monitor the satellites (tracking, telemetry and
command) and for management the traffic and the
resources onboard the satellite
The Ground Segment consists of all traffic earth stations

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Satellites Satellite Subsystems

Attitude and Orbit Control System
Rocket motors to move satellite back to the correct orbit
Keep antennas point toward to earth
Telemetry, tracking, command and monitoring
Telemetry system monitor satellite health, tracking system is located
at the earth station and provides information about elevation & angles
of the satellite
Power system
Electrical power from solar cells
Communication subsystem
Major component of communications satellites, one or more
antennas & a set of receivers and transmitters (transponders).

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Satellite communication system & interfacing with terrestrial entities

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? What Are Satellite Payloads

The payloads on communications
satellites are effectively just
repeaters. They receive the signals
that are transmitted to them and then
retransmit them at a different
frequency back to earth
Modern satellites do more than this.
They receive the signals and then
demodulate them to access the data,
the data can then be processed
before being modulated and
retransmitted. The data can be
stored for later retransmission or
modulated using a different method,
even at a different data rate
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A wireless repeater

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Satellite
A typical satellite consists of a number of repeaters (transponders), each of
which provides a large-capacity communication channel.
Each transponder has a receiver tuned to a frequency range that has been
allocated for uplink communication signals from Earth to the satellite.
Following the receiver, each transponder consists of a frequency shifter to
lower the received signals to a downlink frequency, a filter tuned to the
frequency of the transponder and a power amplifier to transmit signals
back to Earth.

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The communication capacity of a satellite is determined by the number of

transponder channels and the volume of communication that can be
transmitted on each channel.
Although this varies from one type of satellite to another, the most
commonly used satellite in 1995 had 24 transponders. Each can carry a
colour TV signal (or 6 digitally compressed TV signals) or at least 1200
telephone voice signals in one direction. Each new generation of satellites
tends to have increased communication capability

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Elements of basic satellite link

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Ground Segment

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Control Segment

Communications satellite operations are monitored from control rooms such as this
one, where minor orbit adjustments can be made and communications functions can
be regularly checked. If problems occur, technicians can attempt repairs or transfer
communications to a different satellite
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Common Frequency Bands

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Main Parameters
Coverage
Cost: Infrastructure and bandwidth
DATA structure size
Mobility vs Transportability
Latency: Time critical applications
Complexity: Size of network
Regulatory
Interface: GPS, Device telemetry
Interoperability: Switchover to available network
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