Satellite Orbits There is only one main force acting on a satellite when it is in orbit, and that is the gravitational

force exerted on the satellite by the Earth. This force is constantly pulling the satellite towards the centre of the Earth. Types of Satellite Orbit Geostationary Orbit

24 hour period 36,000 km altitude circular orbit always visible to an Earth station in the coverage area zero (or very small) inclination for true geostationary case still the most important orbit for telecommunications but overcrowding is a growing problem

Low Earth Orbit

short orbital period (few hours) typically 100 - 600 km altitude usually circular orbit each satellite is only visible to an Earth station for typically less than one hour often used in multi-satellite constellations of growing interest at the present

Highly Elliptical Orbit

usually refers to special cases such as "Molniya" or "Tundra" make use of special case solution to give zero precession of arguement of perigee (63.4 inclination) Molniya has 24 hour period, perigee of 24,470 km and apogee of 47,100 km very useful because when used in constellations they provide "quasi-stationary" coverage to higher latitudes which cannot be served by geostationary satellites

Intermediate Orbits

orbital periods typically several hours typically 10,000 - 20,000 km altitude Earth station visibility typically several hours

A satellite doesn't fall straight down to the Earth because of its velocity. Throughout a satellites orbit there is a perfect balance between the gravitational force due to the Earth, and the centripetal force necessary to maintain the orbit of the satellite. The formula for centripetal force is: F = (mv2)/r The formula for the gravitational force between two bodies of mass M and m is (GMm)/r2

The most common type of satellite orbit is the geostationary orbit. This is described in more detail below, but is a type of orbit where the satellite is over the same point of Earth always. It moves around the Earth at the same angular speed that the Earth rotates on its axis. We can use our formulae above to work out characteristics of the orbit. (mv2/r) = (GMm)/r2 => v2/r = (GM)/r2 Now, v = (2r)/T. => (((2r)/T)2)/r = (GM)/r2 => (42r)/T2 = (GM)/r2 => r3 = (GMT2)/42 We know that T is one day, since this is the period of the Earth. This is 8.64 x 104 seconds. We also know that M is the mass of the Earth, which is 6 x 1024 kg. Lastly, we know that G (Newton's Gravitational Constant) is 6.67 x 10-11 m3/kg.s2 So we can work out r. r3 = 7.57 x 1022 Therefore, r = 4.23 x 107 = 42,300 km. So the orbital radius required for a geostationary, or geosynchronous orbit is 42,300km. Since the radius of the Earth is 6378 km the height of the geostationary orbit above the Earth's surface is ~36000 km. There are many different types of orbits used for satellite telecommunications, the geostationary orbit described above is just one of them. Outlined below are the most commonly used satellite orbits. The orbits are sometimes described by their inclination - this is the angle between the orbital plane and the equatorial plane. Geostationary Orbit

The most common orbit used for satellite communications is the geostationary orbit (GEO). This is the orbit described above the rotational period is equal to that of the Earth. The orbit has zero inclination so is an equatorial orbit (located directly above the equator). The satellite

and the Earth move together so a GEO satellite appears as a fixed point in the sky from the Earth. The advantages of such an orbit are that no tracking is required from the ground station since the satellite appears at a fixed position in the sky. The satellite can also provide continuous operation in the area of visibility of the satellite. Many communications satellites travel in geostationary orbits, including those that relay TV signals into our homes. However, due to their distance from Earth GEO satellites have a signal delay of around 0.24 seconds for the complete send and receive path. This can be a problem with telephony or data transmission. Also, since they are in an equatorial orbit, the angle of elevation decreases as the latitude or longitude difference increases between the satellite and earth station. Low elevation angles can be a particular problem to mobile communications. Low Earth Orbit/Medium Earth Orbit A low earth orbit (LEO), or medium earth orbit (MEO) describes a satellite which circles close to the Earth. Generally, LEOs have altitudes of around 300 1000 km with low inclination angles, and MEOs have altitudes of around 10,000 km. A special type of LEO is the Polar Orbit. This is a LEO with a high inclination angle (close to 90degrees). This means the satellite travels over the poles.

LEO Orbit

Polar Orbit

Satellites that observe our planet such as remote sensing and weather satellites often travel in a highly inclined LEO so they can capture detailed images of the Earths surface due to their closeness to Earth. A satellite in a Polar orbit will pass over every region of Earth so can provide global coverage. Also a satellite in such an orbit will sometimes appear overhead (unlike a GEO which is only overhead to ground stations on the equator). This can enable communication in urban areas where obstacles such as tall buildings can block the path to a satellite. Lastly, the transmission delay is very small. Any LEO or MEO system however, for continuous operation, requires a constellation of satellites. The satellites also move relative to the Earth so widebeam or tracking narrowbeam antennas are needed. Elliptical Orbits

A satellite in elliptical orbit follows an oval-shaped path. One part of the orbit is closest to the centre of Earth (perigee) and another part is farthest away (apogee). A satellite in this type of orbit generally has an inclination angle of 64 degrees and takes about 12 hours to circle the planet. This type of orbit covers regions of high latitude for a large fraction of its orbital period. Laws Of Motion Kepler's laws were originally developed to describe the motion of planetary bodies, but they are just as relevant for theoretical satellite orbits around the earth.

Each planet moves around the sun in a ellipse with the sun at one focus (i.e motion is in a plane). A line from the sun to a planet (radius vector) sweeps out equal areas in equal intervals of time. The ratio of the square of the orbit period (T) to the cube of the semi-major axis (a) is a constant (i.e T2/a3 = constant)

The geometry of an ellipse:

and: c2=a2-b2 Eccentricity (e) is defined as: e2=1-(b/a)2

Newton's universal law of gravitation tells us that: F=(G.M.m)/r2 From Newton's Second Law of Motion we get: F=m.a Centripetal acceleration (assume circular motion for simplicity): a=v2/r Taking these three expressions, and simplifying we get the following equation: v=(G.M/r)0.5 i.e =(G.M/r3)0.5

Keplerian Elements The "Keplerian Elements" are a set of 6 parameters which define the position of a satellite at a given epoch (date and time) as well as defining the shape and position of its elliptical orbit around the Earth. The 6 parameters are outlined below.

Right Ascention of the Ascending Node The angle in the equatorial plane between the direction of the first point of Aries and the direction to the ascending node, measured counter-clockwise when viewed from the north side of the equatorial plane. Argument of Perigee The angle in the plane of the satellite orbit between the ascending node and the perigee, measured in the direction of the satellite motion.

Mean Anomaly The angle at the Earth's centre, measured from the perigee in the direction of the

satellite's motion, which the satellite would have if it were moving at a constant angular speed, i.e M = 2**t/T (radians), where T is the orbital period. Semi Major Axis Half the length of the longest diameter of the ellipse. Inclination The angle between the Earth's equatorial plane and the plane of the satellite, measured positively above the equatorial plane with reference to the ascending segment of the orbit. Eccentricity A term defining the "circularity" of the ellipse; e=0 is a cirlce, e = 1 is a line (i.e a totally flat ellipse).

With these elements at a known epoch, it is possible to fix the position of the satellite in space and predict its theoretical future movement. Launch Vehicles Expendable Vehicles

Ariane (Europe) Delta (USA) Atlas Centaur (USA) Proton (Russia) Long March (China) Japan + others?

Reusable Vehicles

STS - Space Shuttle (USA) Europe (Hermes)? Russia?

Unconventional Approaches

Cruise Missiles Floating platforms

Vehicle Delta 3194 Delta PAM-D Atlas-Centaur Titan IIIC Ariane 3

GTO/kg 900 1250 2000 2400

GSO/kg 480 670 1070 1400 1500

Space Transportation System (space shuttle) can deliver to LEO/Parking orbit only. Also the payload must have additional PAM/PKM to achieve GTO. Total STS payload bay launch capability is very large, but must take account of the support cradle and also the PAM stage.

All prices are quoted for a dedicated launch. Estimated prices are shown underlined:

Vehicle Ariane 44LP Ariane 5 Atlas IIAS Long March 2E/HO SL-12 ProtonKM Titan III Titan IV Centaur Delta II H-II HOTOL

Mass to GTO 3900kg 6900kg 3630kg 4800kg 4500kg to GEO 4500kg 4500kg to GEO 1819kg 4200kg 3700kg

GTO Inclination 7 7 28.5 28 N/A 28.5 N/A 28.5 30.5 ?

Reliability 94.1% ? 94% 92% 98% 96.4% >90% 93.6% ? >98%

Cost (1993) $92M $120M $137M $30M ($58M)* $30-$40M $120M $200 - $300M $50M $70M $1-$5M

*Long March have quoted a price of $30 million, but in order to protect the interests of western launch vehicles, the US has used the COCOM rules to prevent Long Match from launching any vehicle commercially for less than $58 million. This is likely to apply also to the Soviet Proton and other soviet vehicles.

Launch Flight Plan The launch flight plan is different for Expendable and Reusable Launch Vehicles. The flight plan will be comprised of clear stages seperated by motor "burns"

boost phase parking orbit transfer orbit final orbit

The objective is usually to achieve target orbital position with the minimum fuel used, but this takes the maximum time to achieve. An operator can trade off fuel for speed. However, you cant refual a satellite in orbit (yet!). Reusable Launch Vehicle

Elliptical transfer orbit - "Hohmann Transfer Ellipse" - is minimum energy path between two circular orbits. Expendable Launch Vehicle

Maintaining The Satellite In Orbit Stationkeeping:

Maintaining the nominal orbital position against perturbing forces re-locating the satellite to a new orbital longitude position

Attitude Control and Stabilisation

Maintaining orientation of satellite's communications antennas in the direction of the Earth and with the correct rotational positioning

Maintaining orientation of solar panels in the direction of the sun to maximise electrical power generation re-establishing orientation in the event of the satellite "tumbling" in space

Stationkeeping and Stabilisation require two elements:

Sensors to fix orientation in space Reaction devices to provide stabilisation forces to move the satellite

Sources of Positional Data Sun

bright and unambiguous but, will not be visible during eclipse accuracy is ~1 arc minute direction must be known to align solar panels

Earth

always available, bright and unambiguous but, large angle at most satellites may require a scanning motion, must be protected from sun accuracy is ~0.1 because of horizon definition due to atmosphere direction must be known to align antennas

Magnetic Field

economical, low power requirements, always available for low altitude satellites but, poor resolution (~0.5), good only near the Earth, spacecraft must be magnetically clean

Stars

available anywhere in the sky with very high accuracy (~0.001) but, sensors are heavy, complex and expensive, identifying targets is slow and complex, sensors need protection from the sun, multiple stars may cause problems

Inertial Space (gyroscopes and accelerometers)

requires no external sensors, highly accurate for limited time intervals but, senses changes in orientation only, subject to drift, rapidly moving parts

Earth Station Types -International Gateway Earth Station (8 - 32m Antenna) e.g. BT's Goonhilly and Madley, UK -National Trunk System Earth Stations

(8 - 32m Antenna) e.g. Rio, operating to Brazilsat -TV Distribution Earth Stations (5 - 18m Antenna) e.g. IDB Teleport, Newark, USA -Small-dish Business System Stations (2.5 - 5.5m Antenna) -Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSAT) (5.5 - 15m Hubs) (1.2 - 3.5m VSATs) -Television Receive Only Terminals (TVRO) (0.45 - 3m Antenna) Earth Station Components An Earth terminal will always include an antenna. Terminals may also include:

Low-noise amplifiers (LNAs) or low-noise down-converters High-power amplifiers (HPAs) Signal processing equipment (e.g. down-converters, up-converters, IF amplifiers, modems and codecs) Transmission and signalling equipment at the interface between the terminal and the terrestrial network Supervisory and control equipment Enclosures to protect the equipment from the environment

Note, not everything is present in every terminal. For example, HPAs are not required for receive-only terminals. An earth-station comprises:

A feed and reflector system. A pedestal or mount which supports the reflector and feed and enables the antenna to be accurately pointed towards the satellite.

The feed and reflector have to be made very accurately in order to maximise the gain on-axis, minimise the sidelobes and ensure good polarisation isolation. Large antennas (which have narrow beams) normally have tracking systems which keep the antenna pointing at the satellite even when the satellite moves. Even for tracking antennas, the reflector, feed and mount must be very rigid so as to ensure maximum beam stability, even during high winds. The most commonly used mount for large earth stations is the elevation-over-azimuth (ELAZ) mount. The azimuth axis is vertical and the elevation axis is horizontal and the EL-AZ

mount gives full steerability. Single Axis Mount. If the beam of an hour-angle/declination mount is pointed at a distant star in the equatorial plane then the beam points parallel to the equator. If the beam is pointed at a satellite in the GSO then the beam will point at an angle (d) to the celestial equator. This angle varies only slightly with satellite position. The satellite may be tracked over a limited arc of the GSO by rotating it about the hour-angle axis alone. By tilting the axis of rotation away from the hour-angle axis it is possible to improve the tracking. Power Amplifiers EIRP EIRP of emissions from earth stations (excluding mobile stations) ranges - around 20 dBW for low-rate data applications - to nearly 90 dBW for some TV and large multi-channel telephony applications EIRPs are achieved using antennas with gains ranging from around 20 dBi to 66 dBi. Corresponding powers necessary to deliver to the antenna ranges from around 1 watt to several hundred watts. BUT maximum power capability of the transmitters in some earth stations is several hundred kilowatts. It is necessary to use the transmitters very inefficiently when they are amplifying more than one carrier Losses in the networks required to combine the outputs of a number of transmitters. Main types of PA in earth-stations are:

Travelling wave tube (TWT) amplifiers Klystron amplifiers Solid-state (SS) power amplifiers

Travelling wave tube amplifiers (TWTA) have bandwidths of 500 MHz and more and powers from a few watts to many kilowatts. Klystrons have bandwidths of 40 to 80 MHz and are tuneable over 500 MHz or more. Powers from several hundred watts to many kilowatts. Cheaper, easier to set up, operate and maintain than TWTAs. Solid-State Power Amplifiers are comparatively cheap and reliable. Power is relatively limited compared with TWTAs and Klystrons. The most important characteristics of HPAs, apart from frequency, power, bandwidth and linearity are:

Gain: The gain of TWTAs and klystrons ranges from about 35 to 50 dB and Intermediate Power Amplifiers (IPAs) are often needed between the modulators and power amplifiers.

Variation of group delay with frequency: This is another cause of intermodulation. AM/PM conversion: This causes intelligible crosstalk and intermodulation noise. Noise and spurious outputs: All amplifiers generate noise; the noise figure (NF) of microwave power amplifiers is usually about 30 dB but special low-noise tubes are available as pre-amplifiers; Pas may also generate spurious tones and may modulate output signals as a result of ripple on power supplies.

Low-Noise Amplifiers The information carrying capacity of any radio system is proportional to the ratio: C / T = (carrier power / system noise temperature) It is therefore necessary to make the system noise temperature as small as possible to maximise the information capacity. The value of T on the downlink of a satellite system depends primarily on the noise temperature of the earth-station antenna and the amplifier following it. A satellite antenna looks at the earth (at a temperature of around 290K) so there is little point in spending a lot of money to fit it with a low-noise amplifier. However, an earth-station antenna looks at the sky and its noise temperature is usually much lower than 290K. As an example, the noise temperature of an earth-station antenna working at 4 GHz varies from about 20K at high elevation angles to around 45K at an elevation angle of 5 (when the sky is clear). Earth terminals equipped with large antennas used to use cryogenic parametric amplifiers (paramps). Cryogenic means "at a very low temperature" and cryogenic paramps were cooled to around 20K (i.e. -253 C) by using refrigerating plant circulating gaseous helium. Cryogenic paramps are expensive and require a lot of skilled maintenance effort. Higher satellite powers have made them unnecessary for most satellite systems and they are rarely used nowadays. Types of LNA in common use today include:

Uncooled Field-Effect Transistor (FET) amplifiers which have a noise temperature of 55 to 75K at 4 GHz or around 200K at 11 GHz Amplifiers cooled by thermoelectric diodes which have a noise temperature of 35K to 45K at 4 GHz and around 120K at 11 GHz

In the above example, an antenna of gain 52 dBi and noise temperature 35K is connected to an LNA of gain 50 dB and noise temperature 80K via waveguide and hence to a receiver via co-axial cable. What is the system noise temperature Te? First some definitions: Tr = (NF - 1) x 290 K (1) Tp = [(1 - G) / G] x 290 K (2) To = G . Ti K (3) Where (all components assumed to be at 290K): Tr = noise temperature NT corresponding to a noise figure NF Tp = noise temperature of a passive network (e.g. waveguide) of gain G To = output noise temperature of a noiseless network of gain G Thus: T1 = [(1 - 0.955) / 0.955] x 290 = 13.7K T2 = 80 T3 = [(1 - 0.25) / 0.25] x 290 = 870K T4 = (15.85 - 1) x 290 = 4307K Now: Te = Ta.G1 + T1.G1 + T2 + T3/G2 + T4/(G2.G3) Where: Te = noise temperature of the system (earth-station) referred to the input of the LNA Ta = the noise temperature of the antenna at its output terminals and G1, G2, G3 and T1, T2, T3, T4 are the gains and input noise temperatures of the corresponding networks as given in the previous figure Hence: Te = 35 x 0.955 + 13.7 x 0.955 + 80 + 870 / 105 + 4307 / (105 x 0.25) = 33 + 13 + 80 + 0.17

i.e. Te = 126 K

G/T The ratio between the receive gain of an earth-station and its noise temperature is a measure of the "quality" with which it is able to receive signals (Also known as the "Figure of Merit") G/T ranges from around 37 dB/K for high-gain low-noise FSS antennas to about -23 dB/K for low-gain high-noise mobile terminals.

Historical Perspective 1968

INTELSAT III - to give 3 Ocean Region Coverage

1971

ITU-WARC for Space Telecommunications INTELSAT IV Launched INTERSPUTNIK - Soviet Union equivalent of INTELSAT formed

1976

MARISAT - First civil maritime communications satellite service started

1977

EUTELSAT - European regional satellite ITU-WARC for Space Telecommunications in the Satellite Service

1980

INTELSAT V launched - 3 axis stabilised satellite built by Ford Aerospace

1983

ECS (EUTELSAT 1) launched - built by European consortium supervised by ESA

1984

UK's UNISAT TV DBS satellite project abandoned

1989

INTELSAT VI - one of the last big "spinners" built by Hughes

1990

IRIDIUM, TRITIUM, ODYSSEY and GLOBALSTAR S-PCN projects proposed CDMA designs more popular EUTELSAT II

1992

OLYMPUS finally launched - large European development satellite with Ka-band, DBTV and Ku-band SS/TDMA payloads - fails within 3 years

1993

INMARSAT II - 39 dBW EIRP global beam mobile satellite - built by Hughes/British Aerospace

1994

INTELSAT VIII launched - first INTELSAT satellite built to a contractor's design Hughes describe SPACEWAY design

1996

INMARSAT III launched - first of the multibeam mobile satellites (built by GE/Marconi)

1997

IRIDIUM launches first test satellites ITU-WRC'97

1999

AceS launch first of the L-band MSS Super-GSOs - built by Lockheed Martin Iridium Bankruptcy - the first major failure?

2000

Thuraya launch L-band MSS Super-GSO

2004

Teledesic network planned to start operation

Historical Perspective 1968

INTELSAT III - to give 3 Ocean Region Coverage

1971

ITU-WARC for Space Telecommunications INTELSAT IV Launched INTERSPUTNIK - Soviet Union equivalent of INTELSAT formed

1976

MARISAT - First civil maritime communications satellite service started

1977

EUTELSAT - European regional satellite ITU-WARC for Space Telecommunications in the Satellite Service

1980

INTELSAT V launched - 3 axis stabilised satellite built by Ford Aerospace

1983

ECS (EUTELSAT 1) launched - built by European consortium supervised by ESA

1984

UK's UNISAT TV DBS satellite project abandoned

1989

INTELSAT VI - one of the last big "spinners" built by Hughes

1990

IRIDIUM, TRITIUM, ODYSSEY and GLOBALSTAR S-PCN projects proposed CDMA designs more popular EUTELSAT II

1992

OLYMPUS finally launched - large European development satellite with Ka-band, DBTV and Ku-band SS/TDMA payloads - fails within 3 years

1993

INMARSAT II - 39 dBW EIRP global beam mobile satellite - built by Hughes/British Aerospace

1994

INTELSAT VIII launched - first INTELSAT satellite built to a contractor's design Hughes describe SPACEWAY design

1996

INMARSAT III launched - first of the multibeam mobile satellites (built by GE/Marconi)

1997

IRIDIUM launches first test satellites ITU-WRC'97

1999

AceS launch first of the L-band MSS Super-GSOs - built by Lockheed Martin Iridium Bankruptcy - the first major failure?

2000

Thuraya launch L-band MSS Super-GSO

2004

Teledesic network planned to start operation

INTELSAT
INTELSAT is the original "Inter-governmental Satellite organisation". It once owned and operated most of the World's satellites used for international communications, and still maintains a substantial fleet of satellites. INTELSAT is moving towards "privatisation", with increasing competition from commercial operators (e.g. PanAmSat, Loral Skynet, etc.). INTELSAT Timeline:

Interim organisation formed in 1964 by 11 countries Permanent structure formed in 1973 Commercial "spin-off", New Skies Satellites in 1998 Full "privatisation" by April 2001

INTELSAT has 143 members and signatories listed here. INTELSAT Structure: