Satellitecommunications-Educypedia.pptVIP

Satellite communications Introduction Before the lecture Try to find out more by reading: /rleonard/regcontents.html /iridium.htm /global_positioning_system.htm /Article9.html /tutorial.html Satellites Several types LEOs - Low earth orbit MEOs - Medium earth orbit GEOs - Geostationary earth orbit GEOs Originally proposed by Arthur C. Clarke Circular orbits above the equator Angular separation about 2 degrees - allows 180 satellites Orbital height above the earth about 23000 miles/35000km Round trip time to satellite about 0.24 seconds GEOs (2) GEO satellites require more power for communications The signal to noise ratio for GEOs is worse because of the distances involved A few GEOs can cover most of the surface of the earth Note that polar regions cannot be “seen” by GEOs GEOs (3) Since they appear stationary, GEOs do not require tracking GEOs are good for broadcasting to wide areas Early experiments US Navy bounced messages off the moon ECHO 1 “balloon” satellite - passive ECHO 2 - 2nd passive satellite All subsequent satellites used active communications ECHO 1 Photo from NASA Early satellites Relay 4000 miles orbit Telstar Allowed live transmission across the Atlantic Syncom 2 First Geosynchronous satellite TELSTAR Picture from NASA SYNCOM 2 Picture from NASA Major problems for satellites Positioning in orbit Stability Power Communications Harsh environment Positioning This can be achieved by several methods One method is to use small rocket motors These use fuel - over half of the weight of most satellites is made up of fuel Often it is the fuel availability which determines the lifetime of a satellite Commercial life of a satellite typically 10-15 years Stability It is vital that satellites are stabilised to ensure that solar panels are aligned properly to ensure that communications antennae are aligned properly Early satellites used spin stabilisation Either this required an inefficient omni-directional aerial Or antennae were precisely