MODULE 1

CONTENTS

• Definition of an Orbit and a Trajectory,

• Orbiting satellites: Basic Principles,

• Orbital parameters,

• Injection velocity and Resulting satellite trajectories,

• Types of Satellite orbits,

• Orbital perturbations,

• Satellite stabilization,

• Orbital effects on Satellite’s performance,

• Eclipses,

• Look angles: Azimuth angle, Elevation angle.

Definition of an Orbit and a Trajectory

• Study of orbits and trajectories of satellites and satellite launch vehicles is the most
fundamental topic of the subject of satellite technology.

• In general, “Trajectory” is a path traced by a moving body.

• In Satellite Communication, ‘trajectory’ refers to a path that is not periodically revisited.

Example: The path followed by a rocket on its way to the right position for a satellite
launch.

• An “orbit” is a trajectory that is periodically repeated.

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 • Examples: Path followed by the motion of an artificial satellite around Earth, motion of
different planets of the solar system around the sun and the motion of artificial
satellites around Earth.

Orbiting Satellites – Basic Principles

• The motion of natural and artificial satellites around Earth is governed by two forces.
One of them is the centripetal force directed towards the center of the Earth due to the
gravitational force of attraction of Earth and the other is the centrifugal force that acts
outwards from the center of the Earth.

• In the case of a satellite orbiting Earth, the satellite exerts a centrifugal force. However,
the force that is causing the circular motion is the centripetal force. In the absence of
this centripetal force, the satellite would have continued to move in a straight line at a
constant speed after injection. The centripetal force directed at right angles to the
satellite’s velocity towards the center of the Earth transforms the straight-line motion to
the circular or elliptical one, depending upon the satellite velocity.

• Satellite exerts a centrifugal force; circular motion is due to the centripetal force.
[straight line at a constant speed after injection]

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 • The centrifugal force is simply the reaction force exerted by the satellite in a direction
opposite to that of the centripetal force. This is in accordance with Newton’s third law
of motion, which states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.

• The only radial force acting on the satellite orbiting Earth is the centripetal force. The
centrifugal force is not acting on the satellite; it is only a reaction force exerted by the
satellite.

Newton’s First Law of Motion (Law of Gravitation)

The law was stated to be applicable to real objects as long as their sizes are small compared to
the distance between them.

According to Newton’s law of gravitation, every particle irrespective of its mass attracts every
other particle with a gravitational force whose magnitude is directly proportional to the
product of the masses of the two particles and inversely proportional to the square of the
distance between them and written as

where m1, m2 = masses of the two particles

r = distance between the two particles

G = gravitational constant = 6.67 × 10−11 m3/kg s2

Forces F12 and F21 are equal in magnitude but opposite in direction. The acceleration
experienced by the two particles depends on their masses and is inversely proportional to each
other.

Newton’s Second Law of Motion

If the orbiting velocity of the satellite around the Earth is ‘v’, then the acceleration, called
centripetal acceleration, experienced by the satellite at a distance r from the center of the Earth

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would be v2/r. The satellite experiences a reaction force of mv2/r. This is the centrifugal force
directed outwards from the center of the Earth and for a satellite is equal in magnitude to the
gravitational force.

If orbit is circular & satellite orbits with a uniform velocity ‘v’, equating the gravitational force
and centrifugal force;

In the case of an elliptical orbit, the forces governing the motion of the satellite are the same.
The velocity at any point on an elliptical orbit at a distance d from the center of the Earth is
given by the formula

where a = semi-major axis of the elliptical orbit

Orbital period of satellites is expressed as

Kepler’s First Law

The orbit of a satellite around Earth is elliptical with the center of the Earth lying at one of the
foci of the ellipse. The elliptical orbit is characterized by its semi-major axis a and eccentricity e.
Eccentricity is the ratio of the distance between the center of the ellipse and either of its foci (=
ae) to the semi-major axis of the ellipse a.

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The law of conservation of energy states that energy can neither be created nor destroyed; it
can only be transformed from one form to another. For satellites, sum of the kinetic and the
potential energy of a satellite always remain constant. The value of this constant is equal to
−Gm1m2/(2a), where

m1 = mass of Earth
m2 = mass of the satellite

a = semi-major axis of the orbit

The kinetic and potential energies of a satellite at any point at a distance r from the center of
the Earth are given by

Kepler’s Second Law (Law of Conservation of Momentum)

The line joining the satellite and the center of the Earth sweeps out equal areas in the plane of
the orbit in equal time intervals i.e. the rate (dA/dt) at which it sweeps area A is constant. The
rate of change of the swept-out area is given by

where m is the mass of the satellite

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Angular momentum of the orbiting satellite of mass m is given by mr2ω, where ω is the angular
velocity of the satellite is given by the product of the radius vector and the component of linear
momentum perpendicular to the radius vector is constant at all points on the orbit.

vprp = vara = vr cos γ

where

vp = velocity at the perigee point rp = perigee distance

va = velocity at the apogee point ra = apogee distance

v = satellite velocity at any point in the orbit r = distance of the point

γ = angle between the direction of motion of the satellite and the local horizontal

Radius vector is expressed as v cos γ , where γ is the angle between the direction of motion of
the satellite and the local horizontal, which is in the plane perpendicular to the radius vector r
(shown in figure below).

Therefore, the product rv cos γ is constant. γ will be zero for circular orbits and at apogee &
perigee points.

Kepler’s Third Law (Law of Time Periods)

The square of the time period of any satellite is proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis
of its elliptical orbit. For the purpose of derivation, consider a circular orbit with radius r.

Equating the gravitational force with the centrifugal force;

Replacing v by ωr in the above equation gives

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Substituting ω = 2π/T ; or

The above equation holds good for elliptical orbits provided r is replaced by the semi-major axis
a. This gives the expression for the time period of an elliptical orbit as below.

Orbital Parameters (Basic definitions/Concepts)

1. Ascending and descending nodes

The two points at which the satellite orbit cuts the equatorial plane are called the ascending &
descending nodes. The point where the satellite passes from the northern hemi- sphere to the
southern hemisphere is called the “descending node (N1)”. The point where the satellite passes
from the southern hemisphere to the northern hemisphere is called the “ascending node (N2)”.

2. Equinoxes

The line of intersection of the Earth’s equatorial plane and the Earth’s orbital plane that passes
through the center of the Earth is known as the “line of equinoxes”. The direction of this line
with respect to the direction of the sun on 20-21 March determines a point at infinity called the
vernal equinox (Y). The same concept is depicted in the figure below.

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TheinclinationoftheequatorialplaneofEarthwithrespecttothedirectionof the sun, defined by the
angle formed by the line joining the center of the Earth and the sun with the Earth’s equatorial
plane follows a sinusoidal variation and completes one cycle of sinusoidal variation over a
period of T = 365 days.

The inclination angle is zero for t = T/2 and T which is observed on 20-21 March, called the
“spring equinox”, and 22-23 September, called the “autumn equinox”. The yearly variation of
angular inclination of Earth with Sun is shown below.

3. Solstices

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Solstices are the times when the inclination angle is at its maximum, i.e. 23.4 degrees. Solstices
occur twice during a year on 20-21 June, called the “summer solstice”, and 21-22 December,
called the “winter solstice”.

4. Apogee

Apogee (distance) is the farthest point of the satellite in orbit from the center of the Earth.
Apogee distance is related to eccentricity (e) and semi-major axis (a) as shown below.

Apogee distance = a (1 + e)

Also, if Perigee distance & Perigee velocity are known, Apogee distance can be computed as
follows.

‘V’ is the velocity of the satellite at a distance ‘d’ from the center of the Earth.

5. Perigee

Perigee (distance) is the nearest point of the satellite in orbit from the center of the Earth.
Perigee distance is related to eccentricity (e) and semi-major axis (a) as shown below.

Perigee distance = a (1 - e)

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 6. Eccentricity

The ratio of the distance between the center of the ellipse and the center of the Earth to the
semi-major axis of the ellipse is called orbit “eccentricity”.

e = √(a2 − b2)/a, where a and b are semi-major and semi-minor axes respectively.

7. Semi-major axis

Semi major axis is half of the major axis of the ellipse (elliptical orbit). It is expressed as,

8. Right ascension of the ascending node

It is the line joining the ascending and descending nodes, with respect to the direction of the
vernal equinox. It tells us about the orientation of the line of nodes.

The right ascension of the ascending node is represented as  and is measured from the vernal
equinox towards the line of nodes in the direction of rotation of Earth. The angle varies
between 0 and 360o.

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 9. Inclination

Inclination is the angle that the orbital plane of the satellite makes with the Earth’s equatorial
plane. Inclination is the angle between the satellite’s orbital plane containing the trajectory of
the satellite from the descending node to the ascending node and the Earth’s equatorial plane
containing the trajectory of a point on the Equator from between points (n1 & n2) vertically
below the descending and ascending nodes.

The inclination angle can be determined from the latitude l at the injection point and the angle
Az between the projection of the satellite’s velocity vector on the local horizontal and North.

cos i = sin Az cos l

10. Argument of the perigee

The angle ω between the line joining the perigee and the center of the Earth and the line of
nodes from the ascending node to the descending node in the same direction as that of the
satellite orbit is called the “Argument of the Perigee”. It defines the location of the major axis of
the satellite orbit.

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 11. True anomaly of the satellite

An angle θ, called the “true anomaly of the satellite” is formed by the line joining the perigee
and the center of the Earth with the line joining the satellite and the center of the Earth. It
indicates the position of the satellite in its orbit.

12. Angles defining the direction of the satellite

The direction of the satellite is defined by two angles, the first by angle γ between the direction
of the satellite’s velocity vector and its projection in the local horizontal and the second by
angle Az between the north and the projection of the satellite’s velocity vector on the local
horizontal.

Injection Velocity and Resulting Satellite Trajectories

The horizontal velocity with which a satellite is injected into space by the launch vehicle with
the intention of imparting a specific trajectory to the satellite has a direct bearing on the
satellite trajectory. The concept of the 3 cosmic velocities explain the same.

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Case 1:

If the injection velocity is equal to the first cosmic velocity/ first orbital velocity, the satellite
follows a circular orbit and moves with a uniform velocity equal to √ (μ/r). This expression is
reduced from the equation below.

The first cosmic velocity V1 is the one at which apogee and perigee distances are equal, i.e. R =
r, and the orbit is circular.

Case 2:

If the injection velocity happens to be less than the first cosmic velocity, the satellite follows a
ballistic trajectory and falls back to Earth. If the perigee lies in the atmosphere or exists only
virtually below the surface of the Earth, the satellite accomplishes a ballistic flight and falls back
to Earth as shown below.

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Case 3:

For injection velocity greater than the first cosmic velocity and less than the second cosmic
velocity, i.e. V > √(μ/r) and V < √ (2μ/r), the orbit is elliptical and eccentric. The orbit eccentricity
is between 0 and 1.

The injection point in this case is the perigee and the apogee distance attained in the resultant
elliptical orbit depends upon the injection velocity. The higher the injection velocity, the greater
is the apogee distance.

Case 4:

When the injection velocity equals √ (2μ/r), the apogee distance R becomes infinite and the
orbit takes the shape of a parabola & eccentricity is 1. This value of injection velocity is called
the “second cosmic velocity”. At this velocity, the satellite escapes Earth’s gravitational pull.

Case 5:

When injection velocity greater than the second cosmic velocity, the trajectory is hyperbolic
within the solar system and the orbit eccentricity is greater than 1. If the injection velocity is
increased further, satellite succeeds in escaping from the solar system. This is known as the
“third cosmic velocity” and is related to the motion of planet Earth around the Sun.

Expression for third cosmic velocity is expressed as:

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Types of Satellite Orbits

The satellite orbits can be classified on the basis of:

1. Orientation of the orbital plane 2. Eccentricity 3. Distance from Earth

Orientation of the orbital plane

Orbits can be classified as equatorial orbits, polar orbits and inclined orbits based on the angle
of inclination of the satellite.

In an equatorial orbit, the angle of inclination is zero, i.e. the orbital plane of the satellite
coincides with the Earth’s equatorial plane. The satellite in this orbit will have a latitude of 0
degrees. For an angle of inclination equal to 90 degrees, the satellite is said to be in the polar
orbit. For an angle of inclination between 0◦ and 180◦, the orbit is said to be an inclined orbit.

For inclinations between 0◦ and 90◦, the satellite travels in the same direction as the direction
of rotation of the Earth. The orbit in this case is referred to as a direct or prograde orbit.
For inclinations between 90◦ and 180◦, the satellite orbits in a direction opposite to the
direction of rotation of the Earth and the orbit in this case is called a retrograde orbit.
Retrograde orbits are more stabler than the prograde orbits and also provide better spatial
resolution. However, artificial satellites in LEOs are rarely in this orbit due to the extra velocity
(and propellant) required to launch into orbit against the direction of the Earth's rotation.
Some countries, most notably Israel, only have an West coast and cannot launch
eastwards, mandating retrograde orbits for satellites launched from their soil.

Equatorial orbit Polar orbit

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 Prograde orbit Retrograde orbit

Eccentricity

On the basis of eccentricity, the orbits are classified as elliptical and circular. When the orbit
eccentricity lies between 0 and 1, the orbit is elliptical with the center of the Earth lying at one
of the foci of the ellipse. When the eccentricity is zero, the orbit becomes circular.

Elliptical orbit Circular orbit

Molniya orbits are highly eccentric, inclined and elliptical orbits are used to cover higher
latitudes, which are otherwise not covered by geostationary orbits. Typical eccentricity and
orbit inclination figures for the Molniya orbit are 0.75 and 65◦ respectively. The apogee and
perigee points are about 40 000 km and 400 km respectively from the surface of the Earth.

The Molniya orbit serves the purpose of a geosynchronous orbit for high latitude regions. It is a
12-hour orbit and a satellite in this orbit spends about 8 hours above a particular high latitude
station.

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 Molniya orbits

Distance from Earth

Depending upon the distance, these are classified as low Earth orbits (LEOs), medium Earth
orbits (MEOs) and geostationary Earth orbits (GEOs), as shown below.

Satellites in the low Earth orbit (LEO) circle Earth at a height of around 160 to 500 km above the
surface of the Earth. These satellites, being closer to the surface of the Earth, have much
shorter orbital periods and smaller signal propagation delays. A lower propagation de- lay
makes them highly suitable for communication applications. Due to lower propagation paths,
the power required for signal transmission is also less, with the result that the satellites are of
small physical size and are inexpensive to build.

Medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites orbit at a distance of approximately 10000 to 20000km
above the surface of the Earth. They have an orbital period of 6 to 12 hours. These satellites
stay in sight over a particular region of Earth for a longer time. The trans- mission distance and
propagation delays are greater than those for LEO satellites. These orbits are generally polar in
nature and are mainly used for communication and navigation applications.

A geosynchronous Earth orbit is a prograde orbit whose orbital period is equal to Earth’s
rotational period. If such an orbit were in the plane of the equator and circular, it would remain

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stationary with respect to a given point on the Earth. These orbits are referred to as the
geostationary Earth orbits (GEOs). For the satellite to have such an orbital velocity, it needs to
be at a height of about 36 000 km, 35 786 km to be precise, above the surface of the Earth.

Sun Synchronous orbits

These orbits lie in a plane that maintains a fixed angle with respect to the Earth–sun direction.
They are also called “helio-synchronous orbit”. The orbital plane has a fixed orientation with
respect to the Earth–sun direction and the angle between the orbital plane and the Earth–sun
line remains constant throughout the year.

Satellites in these orbits have applications in passive remote sensing, meteorological, military
reconnaissance and atmospheric studies. The satellite passes over a given location on Earth
every time at the same local solar time, thereby guaranteeing almost the same illumination
conditions, varying only with seasons.

Every time a sun-synchronous satellite completes one revolution around Earth, it traverses a
thin strip on the surface of the Earth. During the next revolution it traverses another strip
shifted westwards and the process of shift continues with successive revolutions as shown
below.

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Depending upon the orbital parameters and speed of rotation of Earth, after making a certain
number of revolutions around Earth, it comes back close to the first strip that it had traversed.
It may not exactly overlap the first strip, as the mean distance between the two strips, called
the tracking interval, may not be an integral multiple of the equatorial perimeter. the number
of revolutions required before the satellite repeats the same strip sequence forms one “orbital
cycle”.

Orbital Perturbations

The satellite in orbit experiences various perturbing torques that cause variations in its orbital
parameters with time. These include gravitational forces from other bodies like solar and lunar
attraction, magnetic field interaction, solar radiation pressure, asymmetry of Earth’s
gravitational field etc. The satellite’s position needs to be controlled both in the east–west as
well as the north–south directions.

A typical 1◦ drift in the east or west direction is equivalent to a drift of about 735 km along the
orbit in the case of a geostationary satellite.

The effect of variation in the gravitational field of the Earth on the satellite is more
predominant for geostationary satellites than for satellites orbiting in low Earth orbits as in the
case of these satellites the rapid change in the position of the satellite with respect to the
Earth’s surface will lead to the averaging out of the perturbing forces. In the case of a

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geostationary satellite, these forces result in an acceleration or deceleration component that
varies with the longitudinal location of the satellite.

Satellite is also subjected to the gravitational pulls of the sun and the moon. The Earth’s orbit
around the sun is an ellipse whose plane is inclined at an angle of 7◦ with respect to the
equatorial plane of the sun. The gravitational pulls of Earth, sun and moon have negligible
effect of the satellites orbiting in LEO orbits, where the effect of atmospheric drag is more
predominant.

Due to orbital perturbances, satellites do not return to the same point in space after one
revolution. The time elapsed between the successive perigee passages is referred to as
anomalistic period. The anomalistic period (TA) is given by

ω0 is the angular velocity for spherical Earth, K = 66 063.1704km2, a is the semi-major axis, e is
the eccentricity and i = cos−1 WZ, WZ is the Z axis component of the orbit normal.

The orbit control is performed by firing thrusters in the desired direction or by releasing jets of
gas. It is also referred to as station keeping. Thrusters and gas jets are used to correct the
longitudinal drifts (in-plane changes) and the inclination changes (out-of- plane changes).
Correcting longitudinal drifts demand larger velocity increment compared to correcting the
inclination changes.

Satellite Stabilization

Attitude control of satellites refers to the control of deviation of satellite’s orbital path from the
desired path.

Commonly employed techniques for satellite attitude control include:

1. Spin stabilization
2. Three-axis or body stabilization

Spin stabilization

The satellite body is spun at a rate between 30 and 100 rpm about an axis perpendicular to the orbital
plane. For stability, the satellite should be spun about its major axis, having a maximum moment of
inertia (a quantity expressing a body's tendency to resist angular acceleration). To maintain stability, the

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moment of inertia about the desired spin axis should at least be 10 % greater than the moment
of inertia about the transverse axis.

The rotating body offers inertial stiffness, which prevents the satellite from drifting from its
desired orientation.

Spin-stabilized satellites are generally cylindrical in shape and the cylindrical surface is covered
with solar cells for solar power utilization. A portion of the cylindrical surface of the satellite
remains unexposed to the Sun, limiting the power generation capability, this becomes a
disadvantage of this technique. However, these satellites are simpler in design and less
expensive than three-axis stabilized satellites.

Simple spinner configuration and the Dual spinner configuration are the 2 types of spinning
configurations employed in spin-stabilized satellites. In the simple spinner configuration, the
satellite payload and other subsystems are placed in the spinning section, while the antenna
and the feed are placed in the de-spun (spun in a direction opposite to that of the spinning
satellite body) platform.

In the dual spinner configuration, the entire payload along with the antenna and the feed is
placed on the de-spun platform and the other subsystems are located on the spinning body.
Most of the modern spin-stabilized satellites employ dual spinner configuration.

Three-axis or Body stabilization

Stabilization is achieved by controlling the movement of the satellite along the three axes, i.e.
yaw, pitch and roll, with respect to a reference as shown below.

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The satellite body is generally box shaped for three-axis stabilized satellites. Antennae are
mounted on the Earth-facing side and on the lateral sides adjacent to it. These satellites use flat
solar panels mounted above and below the satellite body in such a way that they always point
towards the sun, which is an advantage. Hence, three-axis stabilized satellites have more power
generation capability and more additional mounting area available for complex antennae
structures compared to spin-stabilized satellites.

Reaction or momentum wheels are used to correct orbit perturbations. Small corrective forces
are applied on the wheels to correct the undesirable changes in the satellite orbit.

Momentum wheels are commonly used. The basic control technique used here is to speed up
or slow down the momentum wheel depending upon the direction in which the satellite is
perturbed. For example, an increase in speed of the wheel in the clockwise direction will make
the satellite to rotate in a counterclockwise direction.

In case of reaction wheels, separate wheel is provided for each axis. They can be rotated in
either direction depending upon the active correction force.

Concept of Station Keeping

Station keeping is the process of maintenance of the satellite’s orbit against different factors
that cause temporal drift. Satellites undergo a progressive drift due to some natural forces such
as minor gravitational perturbations due to the sun and moon, solar radiation pressure. So,
they need to have their orbits adjusted from time to time. The orbital adjustments are usually
made by releasing jets of gas or by firing small rockets tied to the body of the satellite.

In the case of spin-stabilized satellites, station keeping in the north–south direction is

maintained by firing thrusters parallel to the spin axis in a continuous mode. The east–west
station keeping is obtained by firing thrusters perpendicular to the spin axis.

In the case of three-axis stabilization, station keeping is achieved by firing thrusters in the east–
west or the north–south directions in a continuous mode.

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Orbital Effects on Satellite’s Performance

1. Doppler Shift

It is evident that geostationary satellites appear to be stationary with respect to an Earth

station terminal. But there are some variations between the satellite and the Earth station
terminal. As the satellite is moving with respect to the Earth station terminal, the frequency of
the satellite transmitter also varies with respect to the receiver on the Earth station terminal. If
the frequency transmitted by the satellite is fT, then the received frequency fR is given by
equation

where,
vT is the component of the satellite transmitter velocity vector directed towards the Earth
station receiver, vP is the phase velocity of light in free space (3 × 108 m/s)

2. Variation in Orbital Distance

Variation in the orbital distance results in variation in the range between the satellite and the
Earth station terminal. The distance variation affects the satellite’s performance. Suitable
preventive measures must be taken to ensure that the user terminals receive the correct data
at the right time. Such range variation issues are more prominent in LEOs & MEOs compared to
GEOs.

3. Effect of solar eclipse

Eclipse occurs when Earth’s equatorial plane coincides with the plane of Earth’s orbit around
the Sun. When the Sun crosses the Equator, satellite passes into the Sun’s shadow. Eclipse
begins 21 days before equinox and 21 days after equinox. They almost range from a minimum
of 10 mins to almost 72 minutes at a full eclipse. In such situations, solar cells on the satellite
become non-functional and satellites have to then operate using onboard batteries.

Ground control stations perform battery conditioning routines (discharging the batteries close
to their maximum depth of discharge and then fully recharging them just before the eclipse
occurs) prior to the occurrence of an eclipse to ensure best performance during the eclipse.

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 4. Sun’s Transit Outrage

The Earth station antenna will receive signals from the satellite as well as the microwave
radiation emitted by the sun when the satellite passes directly between the sun and the Earth
as shown below.

Such an interruption of geostationary satellite signals due to extremely noisy solar radiation is
termed as “Sun Transit Outrage”. It completely blanks out the satellite signal.

Sun outages typically occur around the time of Equinoxes (February, March, September &
October). The effects of a sun outrage can include partial degradation/ increased error rate or
sometimes a total signal destruction.

ECLIPSES

The major and most frequent source of an eclipse is due to the satellite coming in the shadow
of the Earth, the “solar eclipse”. The dark central region of the shadow is called “umbra” and
the less dark region surrounding the umbra is called the “penumbra”. In a total eclipse, the
satellite fails to receive any light whatsoever if it passes through the umbra. In fact, during the
equinoxes in March and September, the satellite, the Earth and the sun are aligned at midnight
local time and the satellite spends about 72 minutes in total darkness. From 21 days before and
21 days after the equinoxes, the satellite crosses the umbral cone each day for some time,
thereby receiving only a part of solar light for that time.

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During the rest of the year, the geostationary satellite orbit passes either above or below the
umbral cone.

Duration of an eclipse increases from zero to about 72 minutes starting 21 days before the
equinox and then decreases from 72 minutes to zero during 21 days following the equinox. The
duration of an eclipse on a given day around the equinox can be seen from the graph below.

Lunar eclipse (shown below) is when the moon’s shadow passes across the satellite, this occurs
less frequently (occurs once in 29 years).

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LOOK ANGLES of SATELLITES

Look angles are defined as the co-ordinates to which an Earth station antenna must be pointed
to communicate with a satellite. 2 of the most important look angles are Azimuth & Elevation. If
these are known, the process of pointing the Earth station antenna accurately towards the
satellite can be accomplished easily. In order to find these angles, precise location of satellites
has to be determined by the position of the sub-satellite point, Earth station latitude and
longitude must be known.

The sub-satellite point is the location on the surface of the Earth that lies directly between the
satellite and the center of the Earth. To an observer on the sub-satellite point, the satellite will
appear to be directly overhead.

1. Azimuth

Azimuth is Eastward (clockwise) from geographical North to projection of satellite path on a

local horizontal plane at the Earth station. An alternate way of defining - The azimuth angle A of
an Earth station is defined as the angle produced by the line of intersection of the local
horizontal plane and the plane passing through the Earth station, the satellite and the center of
the Earth with the true north.

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Azimuth angle (A) can be computed as follows:

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 2. Elevation

Elevation is the angle measured upward from local horizontal plane at Earth station to the
satellite path. It can also be explained as the angle between the line of intersection of the local
horizontal plane and the plane passing through the Earth station, the satellite and the center of
the Earth with the line joining the Earth station and the satellite.

The expression for Elevation angle (E) is given by

where

r = orbital radius, R = Earth’s radius

θs = Satellite longitude, θL = Earth station longitude, θl = Earth station latitude

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Prepared by:

Mrs. Shruthi N,

Assistant Professor, Dept. of ECE, BNMIT

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