Joseph N. Pelton

The Future of Communications Satellites

The satellite industry is exciting for a variety of reasons. It involves state of the art technology both in space and on the ground. It is international in scope. It is now a highly competitive industry with a rapidly expanding menu of services and applications. The market is highly dynamic, and staying on top of it requires a wide range of technical, operational, financial, regulatory, trade and standards-related knowledge.

Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008)

A giant of science fiction literature wrote with scientific precision and imaginative insight about Earth and space sciences.

Satellite Deployment, Station-Keeping and Related Insurance Coverage

Without reliable launch services there would be no communications satellite industry. The good news is that the reliability of satellite launchers has continued to increase over time. The bad news is that despite high expectations launch services have not really gotten cheaper. The most important development in launch services over the last half century is probably the fact that a number of countries and launch services organizations within those countries have developed launch capabilities to low, medium and geosynchronous orbits. This competition has helped to lower costs. Also the development of larger boosters has allowed the launch of larger and more cost-efficient satellites (in terms of total systems costs).

Top Ten Things to Know about Satellite Communications

There are, of course, a great many things to know about the field of satellite communications. These range from the technical, operational, financial, and business aspects to the regulatory environment. The satellite communications markets and activities are quite dynamic and vary widely around the world and thus require constant monitoring. Also risk management is a key element of maintaining a successful operation in the field. The following top ten things to know about satellite communications are drawn from the preceding chapters and interviews with many people in the field from around the world.

Key Business, Trade and Regulatory Issues

The satellite industry is among the most complex of any business in the world. Success depends on developing and implementing new technologies in space and on the ground as well. It also requires implementing the most modern of operating systems that utilize the maximum amount of automation. Perhaps of equal importance are strategic, trade, business and regulatory issues. To operate a successful global satellite business requires the ability to have access to a range of assigned frequencies for satellite communications operating on satellites with internationally registered orbital locations within the international regulatory processes of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). There is also the need to formally establish “landing rights” in every country where service is provided.

Overview of Communications Satellite Technology and Operation

The original idea of a communications satellite that could be deployed in geosynchronous orbit was a quite simple one. The concept was to create the equivalent of a very, very tall microwave relay tower in the sky. This virtual tower could connect voice, messages or data links across oceans or could be a broadcast station for radio and television with very broad coverage.

The Design, Engineering, Manufacture, and Operation of a Communications Satellite

The design, engineering, manufacture, deployment and operation of communications satellites constitute a complex and demanding process. The development of new and better technology has allowed satellites to improve over time. Today’s satellites have much higher capacity, operate for a much more sustained period of time, operate over a broader range of frequencies, provide an ever-increasing range of diverse satellite services and work with more cost effective and user friendly ground antenna systems.

Earth Stations, Antennas and User Devices

Satellite engineers focus heavily on the design, launch, and safe operation of spacecraft. To satellite operators, the reliable deployment and uninterrupted provision of satellite signals and the successful maintenance of their TTC&M network and spacecraft control center represent their prime objectives. The truth of the matter, however, is that without Earth stations, antennas and various types of user transceivers and user devices, the satellite assets would be worthless. The entire goal of satellite systems design over the past half century has been to find ways to make the ground antennas lower in cost, smaller in size, more transportable and much easier to use. This is in part because Earth station costs dominate the total system costs in most satellite networks.

Orbits, Services and Systems

In the 17th century Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) first observed the moons of Jupiter through his handcrafted telescope. These observations ultimately led to his realization that not only did planets encircle the Sun, but that moons could and indeed did encircle planets. To the moon of Jupiter he applied the Latin word satelles, which means “servant.” He concluded that somehow a planet ‘commanded’ its moons to remain in their constant orbits just as a master or mistress commanded the actions of a servant.

Introduction to Satellite Communications

First of all, satellite communications are vital to our planet’s operation. Did you ever wonder how television programs get to your television set? Or perhaps considered where signals go when you stick a credit card into a gas pump when you buy some gasoline or petrol? Chances are when you see a news item from around the world − even if you watch cable television − that the signal went at least part of the way via satellite. Over 12,000 satellite television channels now routinely fly some 50,000 miles through outer space before they reach a television set or wireless telephone or cable head end. Satellites have changed how interconnected the world is today. Satellites have enabled the Internet to reach countries around the world. Satellites allow better education, better health care, more news, more and better airline connections and, in short, a more vital and democratic world. If you have ever wondered how satellites work, what orbits they fly in, or what services they provide to a contemporary world then this book is for you.