A

PROJECT REPORT
ON
SATELLITE COMMUNICATION

WINTER TRAINING REPORT

ON
SATELLITE COMMUNICATION

Prepared For
E & T Department
Infocom Services, ONGC
Tel Bhawan, Dehradun

SUBMITTED TO: -

SUBMITTED BY:-

Mr. A.K Singh

CE (E&T)
INFOCOM Services
ONGC, Dehradun

Mayank Rawat
3rd Year, ECE
THDC-IHET
Tehri-Garhwal

CERTIFICATE
Dated: 03-02-2016
This is to certify that MAYANK RAWAT, ELECTRONICS
AND COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING student of THDCIHET, Tehri Garhwal worked as winter trainee in ONGC,
Dehradun under my supervision from 04-01-2016 to 03-02-2016
on the project SATELLITE COMMUNICATION.
His overall conduct throughout the training period was
impressive and I wish him success in his career.

Mr. A K SINGH
CE (E&T)
Infocom Services
ONGC, Dehradun

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The accomplishment of this project report depends upon
the united efforts of several sources of knowledge.
I express my sincere gratitude and indebtedness to Mrs.
SUMITA CHADHA, DGM (E&T), Infocom Services
ONGC for providing us a chance to involve ourselves
with the working environment and people of ONGC, Tel
Bhavan, Dehradun.
I deeply indebted to our concerned course coordinator
Mr. A.K Singh, CE (E&T) for his valuable and inspiring
guidance towards the progress on the topic SATELLITE
COMMUNICATION and providing valuable
information for the development of my project.
I am always grateful to my parents who have been very
cooperative and supportive in preparing this report. I
appreciate help of my colleagues for their questions and
criticism while working with the project has been very
constructive.

CONTENTS
1. About ONGC

Introduction
Vision & mission
History
ONGC group

2. Overview of SATELLITE COMMUNICATION

Introduction
Satellites
Types of satellites
Satellites orbit

3. Systems involved in SATELLITE COMMUNICATION

Space Segment
Ground Segment

4. SATELLITE ACCESS TECHNIQUES

TDMA
FDMA
CDMA

5. Visit to SATELLITE EARTH STATION of ONGC

6. Application of SATELLITE COMMUNICATION
7. Merits and Demerits of SATELLITE COMMUNICATION

ABOUT ONGC
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC) is an Indian multinational
oil and gas company headquartered in Dehradun, India. It is a Public Sector
Undertaking (PSU) of the Government of India, under the administrative control of
the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. It is India's largest oil and gas
exploration and production company. It produces around 69% of India's crude oil
(equivalent to around 30% of the country's total demand) and around 62% of its
natural gas.
On 31 March 2013, its market capitalization was INR 2.6 trillion (US$48.98
billion), making it India's second largest publicly traded company. In a government
survey for FY 2011-12, it was ranked as the largest profit making PSU in India.
ONGC has been ranked 357th in the Fortune Global 500 list of the world's biggest
corporations for the year 2012. It is ranked 22nd among the Top 250 Global
Energy Companies by Platts.
ONGC was founded on 14 August 1956 by Government of India, which currently
holds a 68.94% equity stake. It is involved in exploring for and exploiting
hydrocarbons in 26 sedimentary basins of India, and owns and operates over
11,000 kilometers of pipelines in the country. Its international subsidiary ONGC
Videsh currently has projects in 15 countries. ONGC has discovered 6 of the 7
commercially producing Indian Basins, in the last 50 years, adding over 7.1 billion
tones of In-place Oil & Gas volume of hydrocarbons in Indian basins. Against a
global decline of production from matured fields, ONGC has maintained
production from its brownfields like Mumbai High, with the help of aggressive
investments in various IOR (Improved Oil Recovery) and EOR (Enhanced Oil
Recovery) schemes. ONGC has many matured fields with a current recovery factor
of 25-33%. Its Reserve Replacement Ratio for between 2005 and 2013, has been
more than one. During FY 2012-13, ONGC had to share the highest ever underrecovery of INR 494.2 million (an increase of INR 49.6 million over the previous
financial year) towards the under-recoveries of Oil Marketing Companies (IOC,
BPCL and HPCL).

History
Foundation to 1961
During pre-independence, the Assam Oil Company in the North-Eastern and
Attock Oil company in North-Western part of undivided India were the only oil
companies producing oil in the country. The major part of Indian sedimentary
basins was deemed to be unfit for development of oil and gas resources.
After independence, the Government realized the importance of oil and gas for
rapid industrial development and its strategic role in defense. Consequently, while
framing the Industrial Policy Statement of 1948, the development of the
hydrocarbon industry in the country was considered to be of utmost necessity.
Until 1955, private oil companies mainly carried out exploration of hydrocarbon
resources of India. Assam Oil Company was producing oil at Digboi, Assam
(discovered in 1889) and the Oil India Ltd. (a 50% joint venture between
Government of India and Burmah Oil Company) was engaged in developing two
fields Naharkatiya and Moran in Assam. In West Bengal, the Indo-Stanvac
Petroleum project (a joint venture between Government of India and Standard
Vacuum Oil Company of USA) was engaged in exploration work. The vast
sedimentary tract in other parts of India and adjoining offshore remained largely
unexplored.

In 1955, Government of India decided to develop the oil and natural gas resources
in the various regions of the country as part of Public Sector development. With
this objective, an Oil and Natural Gas Directorate was set up in 1955 under the
then Ministry of Natural Resources and Scientific Research. The department was
constituted with a nucleus of geoscientists from the Geological survey of India.
A delegation under the leadership of Mr. K D Malviya, the then Minister of
Natural Resources, visited several countries to study the oil industry and to
facilitate the training of Indian professionals for exploring potential oil and gas
reserves. Foreign experts from USA, West Germany, Romania and erstwhile
USSR visited India and helped the government with their expertise. Finally, the
visiting Soviet experts drew up a detailed plan for geological and geophysical
surveys and drilling operations to be carried out in the 2ndFive Year Plan (1956-57
to 1960-61).
In April 1956, the Government of India adopted the Industrial Policy Resolution,
which placed mineral oil industry amongst the Schedule 'A' industries, the future
development of which was to be the sole and exclusive responsibility of the state.
Soon, after the formation of the Oil and Natural Gas Directorate, it became
apparent that it would not be possible for the Directorate with limited financial and
administrative powers to function efficiently. So in August, 1956, the Directorate
was raised to the status of a commission with enhanced powers, although it
continued to be under the government. In October 1959, the Commission was
converted into a statutory body by an act of Parliament, which enhanced powers of
the commission further. The main functions of the Oil and Natural Gas
Commission subject to the provisions of the Act, were "to plan, promote, organize
and implement programs for development of Petroleum Resources and the
production and sale of petroleum and petroleum products produced by it, and to
perform such other functions as the Central Government may, from time to time,
assign to it". The act further outlined the activities and steps to be taken by ONGC
in fulfilling its mandate.

1961 1990

Since its inception, ONGC has been instrumental in transforming the country's
limited upstream sector into a large viable playing field, with its activities spread
throughout India and significantly in overseas territories. In the inland areas,
ONGC not only found new resources in Assam but also established new oil
province in Cambay basin (Gujarat), while adding new petroliferous areas in the
Assam-Arakan Fold Belt and East coast basins (both inland and offshore).
ONGC went offshore in early 70's and discovered a giant oil field in the form of
Bombay High, now known as Mumbai High. This discovery, along with
subsequent discoveries of huge oil and gas fields in Western offshore changed the
oil scenario of the country. Subsequently, over 5 billion tonnes of hydrocarbons,
which were present in the country, were discovered. The most important
contribution of ONGC, however, is its self-reliance and development of core
competence in E&P activities at a globally competitive level.

After 1990

The liberalized economic policy, adopted by the Government of India in July 1991,
sought to deregulate and de-license the core sectors (including petroleum sector)
with partial disinvestments of government equity in Public Sector Undertakings
and other measures. As a consequence thereof, ONGC was re-organized as a
limited Company under the Company's Act, 1956 in February 1994.
After the conversion of business of the erstwhile Oil & Natural Gas Commission to
that of Oil & Natural Gas Corporation Limited in 1993, the Government
disinvested 2 per cent of its shares through competitive bidding. Subsequently,
ONGC expanded its equity by another 2 per cent by offering shares to its
employees.

During March 1999, ONGC, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) - a downstream giant
and Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) - the only gas marketing company,
agreed to have cross holding in each other's stock. This paved the way for long-

term strategic alliances both for the domestic and overseas business opportunities
in the energy value chain, amongst themselves. Consequent to this the Government
sold off 10 per cent of its share holding in ONGC to IOC and 2.5 per cent to GAIL.
With this, the Government holding in ONGC came down to 84.11 per cent.
In the year 2002-03, after taking over MRPL from the A V Birla Group, ONGC
diversified into the downstream sector. ONGC has also entered the global field
through its subsidiary, ONGC Videsh Ltd. (OVL). ONGC has made major
investments in Vietnam, Sakhalin, Columbia, Venezuela, Sudan, etc. and earned its
first hydrocarbon overseas revenue from its investment in Vietnam.

Global Ranking

ONGC is ranked as the Top Energy Company in India, Fifth in Asia and
21st globally as per Platts Top 250 Global Energy Rankings; Maintains
place as World's Third ranked E&P Company in the list.

Ranked 21st among global Oil and Gas Operations industry in Forbes Global
2000 list of the World's biggest companies for 2014; Ranked 176 in the overall
list - based on Sales (US$ 29.6 billion), Profits (US$ 4.5 billion), Assets (US$
53.8 billion) and Market Value (US$ 46.4 billion).

Only Indian energy major in Fortune's Most Admired List 2014 under
'Mining, Crude Oil Production' category (No. 7 worldwide - Up 3 places from
previous year)

Ranked 26 in 'Transparency in Corporate Reporting' among the world's 124

largest listed companies published by Transparency International (Up from 39
in 2012)

Ranked 217 in the Newsweek Green Rankings World's Greenest Companies

2014 (up from 386 in 2012).

Vision, Mission and Objective:Vision

To build and nurture a world class Human capital for leadership in energy
business.

Mission
To adopt and continuously innovate best-in-class HR practices to support
business leaders through engaged empowered and enthused employees.

Objectives
Enrich and sustain the culture of integrity, belongingness, teamwork,
accountability and innovation.
Attract, nurture, engage and retain talent for competitive advantage.
Enhance employee competencies continuously.
Build a joyous work place.
Promote high performance work systems.
Upgrade and innovate HR practices, systems and procedures to global
benchmarks.
Promote work life balance.
Measure and Audit HR performance.
Promote work life balance Integrate the employee family into the organizational
fabric.
Inculcate a sense of Corporate Social responsibilities among employees.

ONGC Group of Companies:-

What is a satellite?
A satellite is an object that moves around a larger object. Earth is a satellite
because it moves around the sun. The moon is a satellite because it moves around
Earth. Earth and the moon are called natural satellites.
But usually when someone says satellite, they are talking about a man-made
satellite. Man-made satellites are machines made by people. These machines are
launched into space by human endeavor and orbit Earth or other body in space.
The worlds first artificial satellite, the sputnik 1, was launched by the Soviet
Union in 1957. Since then, thousands of satellites have been launched into orbit
around the Earth. As per the latest estimates, the total number of artificial satellites
orbiting the Earth today is around 8,300. Of these, about 3,000 are not operational
having lived out their useful life and are part of the space debris.
Satellites are usually semi independent computer controlled systems. Satellites
subsystems attend many tasks, such as power generation, thermal control,
telemetry, altitude control and orbit control.
A satellite has to maneuver using its own small rocket engines. It also has to
maintain its orientation, using thrusters or gyroscopes, otherwise it will tumble
along its orbit and its antenna will drift out of the alignment with the Earth. Space
is not a friendly environment either; satellites have to survive temperature
variations of more than 200 C.
Once in orbit, a satellite usually carries out multiple functions, with different
payloads or instruments. It then sends information to aground station about the
condition of its payload and its systems, and receives instructions back from the
ground operators.

Johann Keplar developed empirically three laws of planetary motion, based on

conclusions drawn from the extensive observations of MARS by Tycho Brahe.
While they were originally defined in terms of motion of the planets about the sun,
they apply equally to the motion of natural or artificial satellites about the Earth.
Law of orbit: - Each planet revolves around the sun in an elliptical orbit, with sun
at one focus of the elliptical orbit.
Law of area: - The line joining the planet to the sun sweeps out equal areas in
equal times i.e. the areal velocity of a planet around the sun always remains
constant.
Law of periods: - the square of the period of any planet about the sun is
proportional to the cube of the semi major axis of the elliptical orbit (T2 r3).

An artificial satellite is launched into space with the help of atleast a two stage
rocket. The satellite is placed at the tip of the rocket. The first stage of the rocket
takes the satellite vertically up against the gravity to the desired height of its orbit
above the surface of the earth.
Then the first stage of the rocket detaches and the second stage tilts it through 90.
The second stage is used to impart required horizontal velocity to the rocket to
make the satellite revolve in a circular orbit around the earth. This horizontal
velocity is called critical orbital velocity and depends on the height of the orbit.
Horizontal velocity is lesser than the critical velocity; satellite follows a
parabolic path, and falls on the earth.
Horizontal velocity is precisely equal to the critical velocity; satellite follows
a desired circular path.
Horizontal velocity is greater than critical velocity but lesser than escape
velocity; satellite moves in an elliptical orbit.
Horizontal velocity is greater than escape velocity; satellite leaves the
gravitational field of the earth and escapes into the space.

Types of Satellites (Based on orbits):When a satellite is launched, it is placed in an orbit around the earth. The earths
Gravity holds the satellite in a certain path as it goes around the earth and that path
is called an orbit. There are several kinds of orbits.

Centric classification:Geocentric orbit: - An orbit around the planet Earth, such as the Moon or artificial
satellites. Currently there are approximately 2465 artificial satellites orbiting the
earth.
Heliocentric orbit: - An orbit around the Sun. In our Solar System, all planets,
comets, and asteroids are in such orbits, as are many artificial satellites pieces of
space debris. Moon by contrast is not in a heliocentric orbit but rather orbit its
parent planet.

Altitude classification:Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites

These satellites are placed 500-1500 kms above the surface of the earth. As LEOs
circulate on a lower orbit; hence they exhibit a much shorter period that is 95 to
120 minutes. LEO systems try to ensure a high elevation for every spot on earth to
provide a high quality communication link. Each LEO satellite will only be visible
from the earth for around ten minutes.
Using advanced compression schemes, transmission rates of about 2,400 bit/s can
be enough for voice communication. LEOs even provide this bandwidth for mobile
terminals with Omni-directional antennas using low transmit power in the range of
1W. The delay for packets delivered via a LEO is relatively low (approx 10 ms).
The delay is comparable to long-distance wired connections (about 510 ms).
Smaller footprints of LEOs allow for better frequency reuse, similar to the
concepts used for cellular networks. LEOs can provide a much higher elevation in
Polar Regions and so better global coverage.
These satellites are mainly used in remote sensing and providing mobile
communication services (due to lower latency).

Disadvantages of LEO satellites: - The biggest problem of the LEO concept is

the need for many satellites if global coverage is to be reached. Several concepts
involve 50200 or even more satellites in orbit. The short time of visibility with a
high elevation requires additional mechanisms for connection handover between
different satellites. The high number of satellites combined with the fast
movements resulting in a high complexity of the whole satellite system. One
general problem of LEOs is the short lifetime of about five to eight years due to
atmospheric drag and radiation from the inner Van Allen belt. Assuming 48
satellites and a lifetime of eight years, a new satellite would be needed every two
months.

Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellites

MEOs can be positioned somewhere between LEOs and GEOs, both in terms of
their orbit and due to their advantages and disadvantages. Using orbits around
10,000 km, the system only requires a dozen satellites which is more than a GEO
system, but much less than a LEO system. These satellites move more slowly
relative to the earths rotation allowing a simpler system design (satellite periods
are about six hours). Depending on the inclination, a MEO can cover larger
populations, so requiring fewer handovers.
Disadvantages of MEO satellites: - Again, due to the larger distance to the earth,
delay increases to about 7080 ms. The satellites need higher transmit power and
special antennas for smaller footprints.

Geostationary or geosynchronous earth orbit (GEO) satellites

GEO satellites are synchronous with respect to earth. Looking from a fixed point
from Earth, these satellites appear to be stationary. These satellites are placed in
the space in such a way that only three satellites are sufficient to provide
connection throughout the surface of the Earth (that is, their footprint is covering
almost 1/3rd of the Earth). The orbit of these satellites is circular.
There are three conditions which lead to geostationary satellites; lifetime
expectancy to be 15 years.
The satellite should be placed 37,786 kms above the surface of the earth.
These satellites must travel in the rotational speed of earth, and in the
direction of motion of earth, that is eastward.
The inclination of satellite with respect to earth must be 0.
Geostationary satellite in practical is termed as geosynchronous as there are
multiple factors which make these satellites shift from the ideal geostationary
condition.
Gravitational pull of sun and moon makes these satellites deviate from their
orbit. Over the period of time, they go through a drag. (Earths gravitational
force has no effect on these satellites due to their distance from the surface
of the Earth.)
These satellites experience the centrifugal force due to the rotation of Earth,
making them deviate from their orbit.

The non-circular shape of the earth leads to continuous adjustment of speed

of satellite from the earth station.

These satellites are used for TV and radio broadcast, weather forecast and also,
these satellites are operating as backbones for the telephone networks.

Disadvantages of GEO satellites:Northern or southern regions of the Earth (poles) have more problems receiving
these satellites due to the low elevation above latitude of 60, i.e., larger antennas
are needed in this case. Shading of the signals is seen in cities due to high buildings
and the low elevation further away from the equator limit transmission quality. The
transmit power needed is relatively high which causes problems for battery
powered devices. These satellites cannot be used for small mobile phones. The
biggest problem for voice and also data communication is the high latency as
without having any handovers, the signal has to at least travel 72,000 kms. Due to
the large footprint, either frequencies cannot be reused or the GEO satellite needs
special antennas focusing on a smaller footprint. Transferring a GEO into orbit is
very expensive.

Inclination classification:Inclined Orbit

An orbit whose inclination in reference to equatorial plane is not zero degrees.

Polar Orbits
An orbit that passes above or nearly above both poles (North and South Pole) of
the planet on each of its revolutions. Therefore it has an inclination of (or very
close to) 90 degrees. These orbits are highly inclined in shape.

Polar sun synchronous orbit

A nearly polar orbit that passes the equator at same local time on every pass.
Useful for image taking satellites because shadows will be nearly the same on
every pass.

Why satellites for communication?

It is difficult to go through a day without using a communication satellite at least
once. Communication satellites allow radio, television and telephone transmission
to be sent live anywhere in the world. Before satellites, transmissions were difficult
or impossible at long distances. The signal which travels in straight lines could not
bend around the earth to reach a destination far away. Because satellites are in
orbit, the signals can be sent instantaneously into the space and then redirected to
another satellite or directly to their destination.
Two satellites which are commonly used in satellite communication are:

Passive satellite: It is just a plastic balloon having a metal coated over it. This
sphere reflects the incoming microwave signals from one part of the earth to the
other part. It is known as a passive sphere.

Active satellites: It basically does the work of amplifying the coming

microwaves signals. In an active satellite system, a transmitter, an antenna, a
power supply and a receiver are used.
The transmitters fitted on the earth generate the microwave. These rays are
received by the transponders attached to the satellites. The after amplifying, these
signals are transmitted back to the earth. This sending can be done at the same time
or after some delay. These amplified signals are stored in the memory of the
satellites, when earth properly faces the satellite, the starts sending the signals to
the earth.

Frequency Allocation for Satellite communication:Allocation of frequencies to satellite services is a complicated process which
requires international coordination and planning. This is done as per the
International Telecommunication Union (ITU). To implement this frequency
planning, the world is divided into three regions:
Region 1: Europe, Africa and Mongolia
Region 2: North and South America and Greenland
Region 3: Asia (excluding region 1 areas), Australia and south-west Pacific.
Within these regions, the frequency bands are allocated to various satellite
services. Some of them are listed below.
Fixed satellite service: Provides links for existing telephone networks used for
transmitting television signals to cable companies.
Broadcasting satellite service: Provides Direct Broadcast to homes.
Mobile satellite services: This includes services for land, maritime and
aeronautical mobile.
Navigational satellite services: Include Global Positioning systems
Meteorological satellite services: They are often used to perform Search and
Rescue service.

USE OF MICROWAVE IN SATCOM:Microwave transmission refers to the technology of transmitting information or

energy by the use of radio waves whose wavelengths are conveniently measured in
small numbers of centimeters; these are called microwaves. This part of the radio
spectrum ranges across frequencies of roughly 1GHz to 30 GHz. These correspond
to wavelengths from 30 cm down to 1cm.

Microwave Link
A microwave link is a communication system that uses a beam of radio waves in
the microwave frequency range to transmit video, audio, or data between two
locations, which can be away from just a few feet or meters to several miles or
kilometers apart. Microwave links are commonly used by television broadcasters
to transmit programmes across a country, for instance, or from an outside
broadcast back to a studio.
Uses of microwave links
In communication between satellites and base stations.
As backbone carriers for cellular systems.
In short indoor communications.
In linking telephone exchanges without copper/optical fiber lines.

Frequencies allocated to the satellites:Frequency Band (GHZ) Designations: VHF: 0.1-0.3

UHF: 0.3-1.0
L-band: 1.0-2.0
S-band: 2.0-4.0
C-band: 4.0-8.0
X-band: 8.0-12.0
Ku-band: 12.0-18.0 (Ku is Under K Band)
Ka-band: 18.0-27.0 (Ka is Above K Band)
V-band: 40.0-75.0
W-band: 75-110
Mm-band: 110-300
m-band: 300-3000
Based on the satellite service, following are the frequencies allocated to the
satellites: VHF band for Mobile & Navigational satellite services.
L-band for Mobile & Navigational satellite services.
C-band for fixed satellite services.
Ku-band for Direct Broadcast satellite services.

Basic Elements of satellite communication:The Space Segment: - The space segment itself is also known as the satellite,
and is composed of three separate units, namely the fuel system, the satellite and
telemetry controls, and the transponder. The transponder includes the receiving
antenna to pick-up signals from the ground station, a broad band receiver, an input
multiplexer, and a frequency converter which is used to reroute the received
signals through a high powered amplifier for downlink. The primary role of a
satellite is to reflect electronic signals. In the case of a telecom satellite, the
primary task is to receive signals from a ground station and send them down to
another ground station located a considerable distance away from the first. This
relay action can be two-way, as in the case of a long distance phone call. Another
use of the satellite is when, as is the case with television broadcasts, the ground
station's uplink is then downlinked over a wide region, so that it may be received
by many different customers possessing compatible equipment. Still another use
for satellites is observation, wherein the satellite is equipped with cameras or
various sensors, and it merely downlinks any information it picks up from its
vantage point.

The Ground Station:-This is the earth segment. The ground station's job is
two-fold. In the case of an uplink, or transmitting station, terrestrial data in the
form of baseband signals, is passed through a baseband processor, an up-converter,
a high powered amplifier, and through a parabolic dish antenna up to an orbiting
satellite. In the case of a downlink, or receiving station, works in the reverse
fashion as the uplink, ultimately converting signals received through the parabolic
antenna to base band signal.

SPACE SEGMENT & SATELLITE LINK DESIGN:Spacecraft Technology- Structure:The space segment will obviously include the satellites, but it also includes the
ground facilities needed to keep the satellites operational, these being referred to as
the tracking, telemetry, and command (TT&C) facilities. In many networks it is
common practice to employ a ground station solely for the purpose of TT&C.

The equipment carried aboard the satellite also can be classified according to
function. The payload refers to the equipment used to provide the service for
which the satellite has been launched.
In a communications satellite, the equipment which provides the connecting link
between the satellites transmit and receive antennas is referred to as the
transponder. The transponder forms one of the main sections of the payload, the
other being the antenna sub-systems. In this chapter the main characteristics of
certain bus systems and payloads are described.

Power Supply:The primary electrical power for operating the electronic equipment is obtained
from solar cells. Individual cells can generate only small amounts of power, and
therefore, arrays of cells in series-parallel connection are required. Figure shows
the solar cell panels for the HS 376 satellite manufactured by Hughes Space and
Communications Company.
In geostationary orbit the telescoped panel is fully extended so that both are
exposed to sun- light. At the beginning of life, the panels produce 940W dc power,
which may drop to 760W at the end of 10 years. During eclipse, power is provided
by two nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) long-life batteries, which will deliver 830W. At
the end of life, battery recharge time is less than 16 h.

Capacity of cylindrical and solar-sail satellites, the cross-over point is estimated to

be about 2kW, where the solar-sail type is more economical than the cylindrical
type (Hyndman, 1991).

Altitude & Orbit Control:The attitude of a satellite refers to its orientation in space. Much of the equipment
carried aboard a satellite is there for the purpose of control- ling its attitude.
Attitude control is necessary, for example, to ensure that directional antennas point
in the proper directions. In the case of earth environmental satellites, the earthsensing instruments must cover the required regions of the earth, which also
requires attitude control. A number of forces, referred to as disturbance torques,
can alter the attitude, some examples being the gravitational fields of the earth and
the moon, solar radiation, and meteorite impacts.
Attitude control must not be con- fused with station keeping, which is the term
used for maintaining a satellite in its correct orbital position, although the two are
closely related. To exercise attitude control, there must be available some measure
of a satellites orientation in space and of any tendency for this to shift. In one
method, infrared sensors, referred to as horizon detectors, are used to detect the
rim of the earth against the background of space.
With the use of four such sensors, one for each quadrant, the center of the earth can
be readily established as a reference point. Usually, the attitude-control process
takes place aboard the satellite, but it is also possible for control signals to be
transmitted from earth, based on attitude data obtained from the satellite. Also,
where a shift in attitude is desired, an attitude maneuver is executed. The control
signals needed to achieve this maneuver may be transmitted from an earth station.
Controlling torques may be generated in a number of ways. Passive attitude
control refers to the use of mechanisms which stabilize the satellite without putting
a drain on the satellites energy supplies; at most, infrequent use is made of these
supplies, for example, when thruster jets are impulsed to provide corrective torque.
Examples of passive attitude control are spin stabilization and gravity gradient
stabilization.
The other form of attitude control is active control. With active attitude control,
there is no overall stabilizing torque present to resist the disturbance torques.
Instead, corrective torques are applied as required in response to disturbance
torques. Methods used to generate active control torques include momentum
wheels, electromagnetic coils, and mass expulsion devices, such as gas jets and ion
thrusters.

Thermal Control and Propulsion:Satellites are subject to large thermal gradients, receiving the suns radiation on
one side while the other side faces into space. In addition, thermal radiation from
the earth and the earths albedo, which is the fraction of the radiation falling on
earth which is reflected, can be significant for low altitude earth-orbiting satellites,
although it is negligible for geostationary satellites.
Equipment in the satellite also generates heat which has to be removed. The most
important consideration is that the satellites equipment should operate as nearly as
possible in a stable temperature environment.
Various steps are taken to achieve this. Thermal blankets and shields may be used
to provide insulation. Radiation mirrors are often used to remove heat from the
communications payload. These mirrored drums surround the communications
equipment shelves in each case and pro- vide good radiation paths for the
generated heat to escape into the surrounding space.
One advantage of spinning satellites compared with body-stabilized is that the
spinning body provides an averaging of the temperature extremes experienced
from solar flux and the cold back- ground of deep space. In order to maintain
constant temperature conditions, heaters may be switched on (usually on command
from ground) to make up for the heat reduction which occurs when transponders
are switched off. The INTELSAT VI satellite used heaters to maintain propulsion
thrusters and line temperatures (Pilcher, 1982).

TT&C Sub system:The TT&C subsystem performs several routine functions aboard the spacecraft.
The telemetry, or telemetering, function could be interpreted as measurement at a
distance. Specifically, it refers to the overall operation of generating an electrical
signal proportional to the quantity being measured and encoding and transmitting
this to a distant station, which for the satellite is one of the earth stations.
Data which are trans- mitted as telemetry signals include attitude information such
as that obtained from sun and earth sensors; environmental information such as the
magnetic field intensity and direction, the frequency of meteorite impact, and so
on; and spacecraft information such as temperatures, power supply voltages, and
stored-fuel pressure.
Telemetry and command may be thought of as complementary functions. The
telemetry subsystem transmits information about the satellite to the earth station,
while the command subsystem receives command signals from the earth station,
often in response to telemetered information. The command subsystem
demodulates and, if necessary, decodes the command signals and routes these to
the appropriate equipment needed to execute the necessary action. Thus attitude
changes may be made, communication transponders switched in and out of
circuits, antennas redirected, and station-keeping maneuvers carried out on
command. It is clearly important to prevent unauthorized commands from being
received and decoded, and for this reason, the command signals are often
encrypted. Encrypt is derived from a Greek word kryptein, meaning to hide, and
rep-resents the process of concealing the command signals in a secure code. This
differs from the normal process of encoding which converts characters in the
command signal into a code suitable for transmission.
Tracking of the satellite is accomplished by having the satellite transmit beacon
signals which are received at the TT&C earth stations. Tracking is obviously
important during the transfer and drift orbital phases of the satellite launch. Once it
is on station, the position of a geostationary satellite will tend to be shifted as a
result of the various disturbing forces, as described previously. Therefore, it is
necessary to be able to track the satellites movement and send correction signals
as required.

Transponders:A transponder is the series of interconnected units which forms a single

communications channel between receive and transmit antennas in a
communication satellite. Some of the units utilized by a transponder in a given
channel may be common to a number of transponders. Thus, although reference
may be made to a specific transponder, this must be thought of as an equipment
channel rather than a single item of equipment.
The bandwidth allocated for C-band service is 500MHz, and this is divided into
sub bands, one transponder. A typical transponder bandwidth is 36 MHz, and
allowing for a 4-MHz Guard band between transponders, 12 such transponder scan
be accommodated in the 500-MHz bandwidth.

By making use of polarization isolation, this number can be doubled. Polarization

isolation refers to the fact that carriers, which may be on the same frequency but
with opposite senses of polarization, can be isolated from one another by receiving
antennas matched to the incoming polarization. With linear polarization, vertically
and horizontally polarized carriers can be separated in this way, and with circular
polarization, left-hand circular and right-hand circular polarizations can be
separated.

The wideband receiver:The wideband receiver is shown in more detail in fig below. A duplicate Receiver
is provided so that if one fails, the other is automatically switched in. The
combination is referred to as a redundant receiver, meaning that although two are
provided, only one is in use at a given time.
The first stage in the receiver is a low-noise amplifier (LNA). This amplifier adds
little noise to the carrier being amplified, and at the same time it provides sufficient
amplification for the carrier to override the higher noise level present in the
following mixer stage.

In a well-designed receiver, the equivalent noise temperature referred to the LNA

input is basically that of the LNA alone. The overall noise temperature must take
into account the noise added from the antenna. The equivalent noise temperature of
a satellite receiver may be on the order of a few hundred Kelvins. The LNA feeds
into a mixer stage, which also requires a local oscillator (LO) signal for the
frequency-conversion process.
With advances in field-effect transistor (FET) technology, FET amplifiers, which
offer equal or better performance, are now available for both bands. Diode mixer
stages are used. The amplifier following the mixer may utilize bipolar junction
transistors (BJTs) at 4 GHz and FETs at 12 GHz, or FETs may in fact be used in
both bands.

The Input De-multiplexer:The input de-multiplexer separates the broadband input, covering the frequency
range 3.7 to 4.2 GHz, into the transponder frequency channels.
This provides greater frequency separation between adjacent channels in a group,
which reduces adjacent channel interference.
The output from the receiver is fed to a power splitter, which in turn feeds the two
separate chains of circulators.

The full broadband signal is transmitted along each chain, and the channelizing is
achieved by means of channel filters connected to each circulator. Each filter has a
bandwidth of 36 MHz and is tuned to the appropriate center frequency.
Although there are considerable losses in the de-multiplexer, these are easily made
up in the overall gain for the transponder channels.

The power amplifier:The fixed attenuation is needed to balance out variations in the input attenuation so
that each transponder channel has the same nominal attenuation, the necessary
adjustments being made during assembly.
The variable attenuation is needed to set the level as required for different types of
service. Because this variable attenuator adjustment is an operational requirement,
it must be under the control of the ground TT&C station.
Traveling-wave tube amplifiers (TWTAs) are widely used in transponders to
provide the final output power required to the transmit antenna. Fig. below shows
the schematic of a traveling wave tube (TWT) and its power supplies. In the TWT,
an electron-beam gun assembly consisting of a heater, a cathode, and focusing
electrodes is used to form an electron beam. A magnetic field is required to confine
the beam to travel along the inside of a wire helix used in ground stations, the
magnetic field can be provided by means of a solenoid and dc power supply.

The comparatively large size and high power consumption of solenoids make them
unsuitable for use aboard satellites, and lower-power TWTs are used which

employ permanent- magnet focusing. The wave actually will travel around the
helical path at close to the speed of light, but it is the axial component of wave
velocity which interacts with the electron beam.
This component is less than the velocity of light approximately in the ratio of helix
pitch to circumference. Because of this effective reduction in phase velocity, the
helix is referred to as a slow wave structure.
The advantage of the TWT over other types of tube amplifiers is that it can provide
amplification over a very wide bandwidth. Input levels to the TWT must be
carefully controlled, however, to minimize the effects of certain forms of
distortion.
The worst of these result from the nonlinear transfer characteristic of the TWT,
illustrated in Fig. below.

At low-input powers, the output-input power relationship is linear; that is, a given
decibel change in input power will produce the same decibel change in output
power. At higher power inputs, the output power saturates, the point of maximum
power output being known as the saturation point. The saturation point is a very
convenient reference point, and input and output quantities are usually referred to
it. The linear region of the TWT is defined as the region bound by the thermal
noise limit at the low end and by what is termed the 1-dB compression point at the
upper end. This is the point where the actual transfer curve drops.

GROUND OR EARTH STATIONS:A ground station, earth station or earth terminal is a terrestrial terminal station
designed for extra planetary telecommunication with spacecraft, or reception of
radio waves from an astronomical radio source. Ground stations are located either
on the surface of the earth, or within the atmosphere. Earth stations communicate
with spacecraft by transmitting and receiving radio waves in super high frequency
or extremely high frequency bands (e.g. microwave). When a ground station
successfully transmits radio waves to a spacecraft (or vice versa), it establishes a
telecommunication link.
Specialized satellite earth stations are used to telecommunicate with satelliteschiefly communication satellites. Other ground stations communicate with manned
space stations or unmanned space probes. A ground station that primarily receives
telemetry data or that follows a satellite not in geostationary orbit is called a
tracking station.
When a satellite is within a ground stations line of sight, the station is said to have
a view of the satellite. It is possible for a satellite to communicate with more than
one ground station at a time. A pair of ground stations are said to have a satellite in
mutual view when the stations share simultaneous, unobstructed, line of sight
contact with the satellite.

DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
The design consideration depend on a number of factors, some of them are:
Type of service: fixed satellite service, mobile satellite service or broadcast
satellite service.
Type of communication requirements: telephony, data, service or broadcast
satellite service.
Required baseband signal quality at the destination
Traffic requirements: number of channels, type of traffic- continuous or
busty
Cost
Reliability

International Regulations
Most of the fixed satellite service frequencies are shared with the terrestrial
systems. For them to coexist, the International telecommunication union (ITU)
has specified certain constraints in the transmitted effective radiated power (EIRP)
of satellites.
By limiting the EIRP of satellites for applications like direct broadcast and mobile
communication, a smaller diameter antenna could be used. This leads to exclusive
allocation of frequency bands. The limitation seen in these applications are mainly
because of the technological constraints of the space and ground segments.

Major subsystems of the earth stations:

Transmitter
Receiver
Antenna
Tracking equipment
Terrestrial interface equipment
Power supply

Digital information is the form of binary digits from terrestrial networks enters
earth station and is then processed (filtered, multiplexed, formatted etc) by the base
band equipment. The encoder performs error correction coding to reduce the error

rate, by introducing extra digits into digital stream generated by the base band
equipment. The extra digits carry information.
The function of the modulator is to accept the symbol stream from the encoder and
use it to modulate an intermediate frequency (I.F) carrier. In satellite
communication, I.F carrier frequency is chosen at 70 MHz for communication
using a 36MHz transponder bandwidth and at 140 MHz for a transponder
bandwidth of 54 or 72 MHzs The I.F is needed because it is difficult to design a
modulator that works at the uplink frequency of 6 GHz.
The modulated I.F carrier is fed to the up converter and frequency-translated to the
uplink R.F frequency.
This modulated R.F carrier is then amplified by the high power amplifier (HPA) to
a suitable level for transmission and radiation by the antenna to the satellite.
On the receiving side, the earth station antenna receives the low-level modulated
R.F carrier in the downlink frequency spectrum.
The low noise amplifier (LNA) is used to amplify the weak received signals and
improve the signal to Noise ratio (SNR). The error rate requirements can be met
more easily.
R.F is to be reconverted to I.F at 70 or 140 MHz because it is easier design a
demodulation to work at these frequencies than 4 or 12 GHz. The demodulator
estimate which o the possible symbols was transmitted based on observation of the
received if carrier.
The decoder performs a function opposite that of the encoder. Because the
sequence of the symbols recovered by the demodulator may contain errors, the
decoder must use the uniqueness of the redundant digits introduced by the encoder
to the correct the errors and recover information-bearing digits.
The information stream is fed to the base-band equipment for processing for
delivery to the terrestrial network. The tracking equipments track the satellite and
align the beam towards it to facilitate communication.

Feed Systems
The primary feed system used in existing earth stations performs a number of
functions. Depending on the type of earth station, these functions may be:
To illuminate the main reflector.
To separate the transmission and receive bands and combine polarizations in
a dual polarized system.
To provide error signals for some types of satellite tracking system.
A horn antenna is commonly used as the primary feed at microwave frequencies. A
horn consists of an open waveguide which is flared at the transmitting end so that
the impedance of the free space matches the impedance of the waveguide. This
ensures an efficient transfer of power.

Tracking System
Tracking is essential when there is a significant fraction of satellite drift, as seen by
an earth station antenna. An earth station's tracking system is required to perform
some of the functions such as

Satellite acquisition.
Automatic tracking.
Manual tracking.
Program tracking.

Satellites transmit a beacon which is used by earth stations for tracking. The
received beacon signal is fed into the auto-track receiver where tracking
corrections or, in some auto-track systems estimated positions of the satellites, are
derived. In other auto-tack techniques the feed systems provides the required
components of error signal.
The output of the auto-track receivers are processed and used to drive each axis of
the estimated satellite position. In manual mode, an operator sets the desired angles
for each axis on a control console.

Antenna
An antenna is used to radiate electromagnetic energy efficiently and in desired
directions. Antennas act as matching systems between sources of electromagnetic
energy and space. The goal is using antennas is to optimize this matching.

Low noise amplifier

In the earliest earth stations, MASERs were used as the front-end amplifier. These
devices are relatively narrow band, require liquid helium temperatures and hence
are expensive with difficult maintenance requirements. Thus, these were replaced
by parametric amplifiers which could provide wide bandwidths, with the required
low-noise temperatures at lower cost and complexity.
Several improvements have been made to parametric amplifiers over the years.
These have been made possible by the availability of improved device and the use
of thermoelectric cooling. In recent years the advent of gallium arsenide fieldeffect transistors has greatly simplified the front-end amplifier design of earth
stations. These devices provide similar orders of noise temperature and bandwidths
as those of parametric amplifiers but at a lower cost.

High-power amplifier
The high power amplifier (HPA) in an earth station provides the radio frequency
(RF) carrier power to the input terminals of the antenna that, when it is combined
with the antenna gain, it yields the equivalent isotropic radiated power (EIRP)
required for the uplink of the satellite. The waveguide loss between the HPA is
responsible for the calculation for the calculation of the EIRP.
The output power typically may be a few watts for a single data channel, around a
hundred watts or less for a low capacity system or several kilowatts for high
capacity traffic.
An earth station HPA can be one of three types: a klystron power amplifier
(KPA), a travelling wave tube amplifier (TWTA), or a solid state power amplifier
(SSPA). The KPA and TWTA achieve amplification by modulating the flow of
electrons through a vacuum tube.
Solid state power amplifiers use gallium arsenide (GaAs) field effect transistors
(FETs) that are configured using power combining techniques. The klystron is a
narrowband, high power device, while TWTAs and SSPAs have wide bandwidths
and operate over a range of low, medium, and high powers.

Satellite access techniques:FREQUENCY DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS (FDMA)

FDMA is a channel access method used in multiple-access protocols as a
channelization protocol. FDMA gives users an individual allocation of one or
several frequency bands, or channels. Multiple Access systems coordinate access
between multiple users.
FDMA requires high-performing filters in the radio hardware, in contrast to
TDMA and CDMA.
FDMA is not vulnerable to the timing problems that TDMA has.
Since a predetermined frequency band is available for the entire period of
communication, stream data (a continuous flow of data that may not be
packetized) can easily be used with FDMA.
Due to the frequency filtering, FDMA is not sensitive to near far problem
which is pronounced for CDMA.
Each user transmits and receives at different frequencies as each user gets a
unique frequency slot.
FDMA also supports demand assignment in addition to fixed assignment.
Demand assignment allows all users apparently continuous access of the radio
spectrum by assigning carrier frequencies on a temporary basis using a
statistical assignment process. The first FDMA demand-assignment system for
satellite was developed by COMSAT for use on the Intelsat series IVA and V
satellites.

Advantages of FDMA
Uses existing hardware and hence this technology is cost efficient.
Network timing is not required, hence making the system less complex.
No restrictions regarding the baseband type of modulation is there.
Disadvantage of FDMA
Inter modulation noise in the transponder leads to interference with other
links sharing new spectrum and thus reduces the capacity of satellite.
Flexibility in channel allocation is less (as seen in MCPC, but not in
SCPC).
Uplink power control is required to maintain the link quality.
As strong and weak carriers, both are used, weak carriers are often
suppressed.

TIME DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS (TDMA)

Time division multiple access (TDMA) is a channel access method for shared
medium networks. It allows several users to share the same frequency channel by
dividing the signal into different time slots. The users transmit in rapid succession,
one after the other, each using his own time slot. This allows multiple stations to
share the same transmission medium (e.g. radio frequency channel) while using
only a part of its channel capacity.
TDMA is a type of Time-division multiplexing, with the special point that
instead of having one transmitter connected to one receiver, there are multiple
transmitters. In the case of the uplink from a mobile phone to a base station
this becomes particularly difficult because the mobile phone can move around and
vary the timing advance required to make its transmission match the gap in
transmission from its peers.

Shares single carrier frequency with multiple users

Non-continuous transmission makes handoff simpler
Slots can be assigned on demand in dynamic TDMA
Less stringent power control than CDMA due to reduced intra cell
interference
Higher synchronization overhead than CDMA
Advanced equalization may be necessary for high data rates if the channel
is "frequency selective" and creates inter-symbol interference

 Cell breathing (borrowing resources from adjacent cells) is more

complicated than in CDMA
Frequency/slot allocation complexity
Pulsating power envelop: Interference with other devices

Advantages of TDMA
Here, satellite power utilizations can be maximized as inter modulation noise
is minimum.
Uplink power control is not required.
Transmission plans and capacity management is done by the satellite are
very flexible.
The digital format of TDMA allows utilization of all advantages of digital
techniques.

Disadvantages of TDMA
It requires a network wide time synchronization which makes the entire
system very complex.
Analog of digital conversions are required.
Interface with analog terrestrial plan is expected.

CODE DIVISION MULTIPLE ACCESS (CDMA)

CDMA uses a modulation technique called spread spectrum. Here all the
users transmit signals simultaneously on the
multiple
access
schemes.(Spread Spectrum: It refers to a modulation technique that
converts the baseband signal to a modulated signal with a spectrum
bandwidth that covers or is spread over the band orders of magnitude
larger than that normally necessary to transmit the baseband signal itself.)
It could be used as a multiple access system by giving each user a
unique pseudo random code rather than a unique carrier frequency or time
slot.
All the users contribute to the noise background.
To detect the desired signal in the presence of all the interferences, the
composite signal is cross-correlated with the known pseudo random number
spreading sequence.
The net performance is improved essentially by the ration of the un-spread
signal bandwidth.
Highly resistant to interferences and thus satellite spacing could be reduced
considerably without causing unacceptable degradation in the received
signal quality.
Spread spectrum sequences are resistant to multiple noises present in the
mobile terminals.
Small antennas can be used without any interference issues from the
neighboring satellites.
CDMA is a very secure form of communication.

Visit to Satellite Earth Station, ONGC

As a part of the study undertaken by us in the summer training,our mentor also
provided us the opportunity to see the satellite earth station in the KDMIPE
campus.
Satellite earth station at KDMIPE ONGC Ltd,from this station all necessary voice
and data are transmitted to all the remote stations .The satellite network is ONGCs
private network on which all the necessary data and voice are received and
transmitted. ONGC has hired a transponder of the INSAT-3E satellite for its
private communication network. This network connects all the stations all over
india.
This satellite earth station setup is highly complex and very costly components
instruments are used here. This satellite earth station setup is called Integrated
Communication Network System(ICNET). The main or master satellite earth
station is situated in URAN(Mumbai). This master station controls all frequencies
and can set them for all the remote stations for transmission purpose. Hence
URAN is the main satellite communication system and master earth station of
ONGC.
The Earth Station at KDMIPE has installed PAMA modems (Radyne
DMD2401),DAMA Modems (Radyne DMD2401 ), DAMA modems (skylinx
SR8000),MFTDMArack , upconverters(ComtechUT4505),Downconverters
(comTech DT4503), jigh power amplifier (webSat 200W SSPA), LNA (L3 COM
23K noise Temperature), Antenna control unit and motor controller (Azimuthal
and Elevation actuators).

Antenna
An 11 meter diameter antenna is used here. The control unit i.e the antenna control
unit(ACU) consist of the various electrical components necessary to provide
accurate position control.

The AU is the main system component and it contains the control logic electronics
to generate motor drive commands. The motor control commands are produced by
the ACU as a result of inputs from the positive transducer,limit and status switches,
front panel push buttons and beacon signal receiving equipment.
For automatic satellite tracking operators, the optional down converter receives the
signal from the LNA and converts it to a 70 Mhz signal and outputs a DC Signal
proportional to the received signal strength. This signal is used by the ACU to
optimize the antenna position. The elevation and azimuthal motors drive the
antenna to the desired position.

763R-2 Down Converter

It is present in the same rack as the beacon receiver. The DT-4500 series C band
down converter is supplied by the Comtech communication Corp. The converter
operates at a RF frequency range of 3625 to 4200Mhz and has a typical gain of 48
dB.It translate the satellite beacpon signals in the 4GHz region required by the
43S-2beacon receiver.

Up Converter
In ongc we use a C band converter to translate it into 4.8GHz. It translate the IF
signal frequency into a rado frequency of 6GHz. Here we use two stages up

converter; the first stage L band converter converts it to @GHz. They are also
produced by Comtech Commmunication Corp. The model is UT-4500 series.

Satellite Modems
The satellite modems are microprocessors controlled BPSK,QPSK modulator and
demodulators. The modems are supplied by a NY firm radyne COM stream and
the 32 data modems are of series DMD 2401.

LNAs and HPAs

The LNAs and HPAs at ONGC ground segment are installed by L3
communication satellite networks.

Satellites Used by ONGC and Its Specifications:

Satellite- GSAT 10
Location- 83deg east
Altitude- 36000km
Transponder Number- #6

Centre freq of transponder

Tx freq-6050MHz
Rx freq-3825MHz
Beacon freq-4197.50
EIRP of Tx-38 dB

Applications of Satellite Communication:Weather Forecasting:Certain satellites are specifically designed to monitor the climatic conditions of
earth. They continuously monitor the assigned areas of earth and predict the
weather conditions of that region. This is done by taking images of earth
from the satellite. These images are transferred using assigned radio frequency to
the earth station. (Earth Station: its a radio station located on the earth and used
for relaying signals from satellites.) These satellites are exceptionally useful in
predicting disasters like hurricanes, and monitor the changes in the Earth's
vegetation, sea state, ocean color, and ice fields.

Radio and TV Broadcast:These dedicated satellites are responsible for making 100s of channels across the
globe available for everyone. They are also responsible for broadcasting live
matches, news, and world -wide radio services. These satellites require a 30-40 cm
sized dish to make these channels available globally.

Military Satellites:These satellites are often used for gathering intelligence, as a communications
satellite used for military purposes, or as a military weapon. A satellite by itself is
neither military nor civil. It is the kind of payload it carries that enables one to
arrive at a decision regarding its military or civilian character.

Navigation Satellites:The system allows for precise localization world-wide, and with some
additional techniques, the precision is in the range of some meters. Ships and
aircraft rely on GPS as an addition to traditional navigation systems. Many
vehicles come with installed GPS receivers. This system is also used, e.g., for
fleet management of trucks or for vehicle localization in case of theft.

Global Telephone:One of the first applications of satellites for communication was the establishment
of international telephone backbones. Instead of using cables it was sometimes
faster to launch a new satellite. But fiber optic cables are still replacing
satellite communication across long distance as in fiber optic cable, light is used
instead of radio frequency, hence making the communication much faster (and of
course, reducing the delay caused due to the amount of distance a signal needs
to travel before reaching the destination.).Using satellites, to typically reach a
distance approximately 10,000 kms away, the signal needs to travel almost
72,000 kms, that is, sending data from ground to satellite and (mostly) from
satellite to another location on earth. This causes substantial amount of delay
and this delay becomes more prominent for users during voice calls.

Global Mobile Communication:The basic purpose of satellites for mobile communication is to extend the area of
coverage. Cellular phone systems, such as AMPS and GSM (and their successors)
do not cover all parts of a country. Areas that are not covered usually have
low population where it is too expensive to install a base station. With the
integration of satellite communication, however, the mobile phone can switch to
satellites offering world-wide connectivity to a customer. Satellites cover a
certain area on the earth. This area is termed as a footprint of that satellite.
Within the footprint, communication with that satellite is possible for mobile
users. These users communicate using a Mobile-User-Link (MUL). The basestations communicate with satellites using a Gateway-Link (GWL). Sometimes it
becomes necessary for satellite to create a communication link between users
belonging to two different footprints. Here the satellites send signals to each other
and this is done using Inter-Satellite-Link (ISL).

Global positioning system (GPS):The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a space-based navigation system that
provides location and time information in all weather conditions, anywhere on or
near the earth where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS
satellites. The system provides critical capabilities to military, civil, and
commercial users around the world. The United States government created the
system, maintains it, and makes it freely accessible to anyone with a GPS
receiver.The Russian Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) was

developed contemporaneously with GPS, but suffered from incomplete coverage

of the globe until the mid-2000s. There are also the planned European Union
Galileo positioning system, India's Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System,
and the Chinese BeiDou Navigation Satellite System.

VSAT (very small aperature terminal ) :VSATs are used to transmit narrowband data (e.g., point-of-sale transactions using
credit cards, polling or RFID data, or SCADA), or broadband data (for the
provision of satellite Internet access to remote locations, VoIP or video). VSATs
are also used for transportable, on-the-move (utilising phased array antennas) or
mobile maritime communications

A very small aperture terminal (VSAT) is a two-way satellite ground station or a

stabilized maritime VSAT antenna with a dish antenna that is smaller than 3
meters. The majority of VSAT antennas range from 75 cm to 1.2 m. Data rates
range from 4 kbit/s up to 4 Mbit/s; some upgraded modules can even reach a max
downlink of up to 16 Mbit/s. VSATs access satellites in geosynchronous orbit to
relay data from small remote earth stations (terminals) to other terminals (in mesh
topology) or master earth station "hubs" (in star topology).

RADARSAT:RADARSAT is an advanced Earth observation satellite project developed by

Canada to monitor environmental change and to support resource sustainablility.
RADARSAT was launched on 4 Nov 1995 and is designed for a five-year lifetime.
RADARSAT uses Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), an active microwave sensor,
allowing 24 hour data collection independent of weather conditions and
illumination. The SAR sensor uses a 5.6 cm wavelength which is known as Cband, has a HH polarization (horizont transmit, horizon reveive) and has selective
viewing angles that allow a wide range of terrain conditions, applications and
ground coverage requirements to be accommodated.Imaging modes for
RADARSAT include Fine, Standard, Wide, ScanSAR (narrow and wide), and
Extended Beam (high and low incidence angles).

Merits & Demerits of Satellite communication:Merits of Satellite Communication:There are many advantages of satellite communication available for different
purposes, which can be seen as below: The satellite communication is very helpful for the people staying in remote
areas, as this service covers the long distance transmissions being very
powerful in sending and receiving the signals. With this, the people in the
remote areas can stay in touch with the people staying in the other parts of
the world.
The satellite communication services are very helpful for the department of
defense, where the people on the fields cannot use the wired services every
time. Also, for such people, it is very important to keep their missions and
secrets undisclosed due to the national security reasons. Satellite
communication service fulfils this purpose as none of the calls or any other
communication made through the satellite communication can be tracked by
the common services. Hence, the satellite communication is a must for the
defense and maintaining the security of the nation.
The satellite communication services are very much helpful during the time
of natural disasters as the wired services have large chances of failing, but
the satellite communication being absolutely wireless and working through
the signals from the satellites above, this service can never fail. Many
innocent lives can be saved knowing the status of the areas in which there is
more destruction.
The satellite communication provides with the status of the weather as well.
With this, if any changes in the weather or even the occurring natural
disaster can be predicted, with which many people and property can be
saved.
Satellite communication services include the services like voice calling,
video calling, radio, television channels, internet, fax, etc. These services are
very important for not just the domestic usage, but also have become very
important part of the commercial activities in different companies. People

can make long distance calls either at very nominal rate, or even for free in
some services.
The satellite communication services are very beneficial and also much cost
friendly as well. People can use the satellite communication services at very
reasonable cost and for any purpose they desire.
Satellite communication services being so portable are very easy to install
and user-friendly as well. With this, people can save lot of time and also,
anybody can use these services anywhere they want and anytime they want.
Demerits of Satellite Communication:As the technology advances there are better ways of doing everything. Like for
example, decades ago, people have no choice but to travel distances to deliver a
letter or a news but now satellite communication is available. Like everything else
there certain disadvantages of the satellite communication, despite being the latest
and the most advanced medium of communication: The satellite communication is really very expensive. This is only in the
reach of the rich and the powerful. A middle income person cant even think
of utilizing this.
As the satellite is placed really away from the earth there is a time lag
between the time a message is sent and delivered. In the cell phones it is
done there and then. This is very annoying and disrupts the message as well.
These satellite communication phones cant work when you are inside a
building. These can though work in air. These satellite communication
phones need to be exposed to the sky for them to be functional.

Conclusions:Satellite communication is the generic term for the communication via satellite. It
includes transmitting a signal from the earth up to a satellite and then receiving that
signal back at earth.
A communication satellite is essentially a microwave link repeater. These are
normally located in the geo stationary orbit. Satellite systems can provide a variety
of services including television broadcast, communication through telephones and
mobiles phones, broadcast communication systems, internet, military
communications, weather forecasting, global positioning and many more. It is used
today on a large scale.
The scope of satellite communication is in every field of our daily life. The very
well known uses are television broadcast and ATMs. Various business
organizations use it for communication. It is the backbone of information
technology.
So it can be concluded that satellite communication is a very efficient and useful
technique of communication.