Introduction to Satellite

Communications
Dr. Ali Hussein Muqaibel
EE418- Satellite Communication

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Agenda

Types : GEO, LEO,

Def. of Satellites History
MEO & HEO

Spectrum Applications Terminology: ITU,

Allocation (Comm., Navigation,..) Intelsat, Inmersat

Tables and Web Current

resources of Developments and
Information Future Trends
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 Introduction
• What are satellites?!
• A satellite is a moon, planet or machine that orbits a planet or star.
• https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/5-8/features/nasa-knows/what-is-a-
satellite-58.html

• How much is the total Satellite revenue?

• How many satellites are there? https://www.statista.com/statistics/185998/worldwide-revenues-of-the-satellite-services-by-service-since-2001/

• What do we mean by space?

• Types of Satellites based on Orbit
• GSO: (Geostationary Satellite Orbit)
• NGSO: (Non-Geostationary Satellite Orbit)

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GEO (Geostationary Earth Orbit)
• Appear to be stationary over a fixed point on the ground. GEO 36,000 km
• It can establish one-third of the earth service (entire continent) ,
24/7 operation.
• DBS-TV (Direct broadcast satellite television): largest single revenue
source for GEO accounting for $17 B in 1998, $88.4B in 2020.
MEO 5,000 – 15,000 km
• By 2001, 200 GEO are in orbit, with satellite every 2o or 3o
operating in almost every available frequency band. As of May
2021, the website UCS Satellite Database lists 4,550 known LEO 500 -1000 km
satellites. (https://www.ucsusa.org/)
• GEO improved in weight, size, lifetime, and cost over the years.
• Example: a GEO can weigh 6000Kg with cost $125M with lifetime
15 years. How much should be the yearly income to make the
venture profitable?
• Typical path length 38,500 km, with altitude 35,786 km.
• Compare fiber optics with satellite? Indonesia has 3000 islands over more than Main orbit types
thousand miles.

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Types Non-Geostationary Satellite Orbit (NGOS)
LEO (Low Earth Orbit): NGSO:
In 2000, 138 LEO satellites in orbit. LEO
MEO
In 2022, more than 2,000 are in orbit and
HEO
operational.
In addition to data services, LEO satellites are GSO:
used for earth imaging and surveillance. GEO (Geostationary
MEO (Medium Earth Orbit): Earth Orbit)
Global Positioning System (GPS), uses 24 MEO
satellite.
Positioning applications increases
dramatically.
HEO (Highly Elliptic Orbit)
USSR Molniya HEO, first regional satellite.
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History of Satellite
Communications
Dr. Ali Hussein Muqaibel

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Historical Background
• Mid-1800: Telegraph cables had been laid across the ocean.
• 1945: High Frequency (HF) radio was the only method for https://www.itu.int/itunews/manager/display.asp?lang=en
transcontinental distances (not all reliable). &year=2008&issue=03&ipage=Arthur-Clarke&ext=html

• 1945: C. Clarck suggested in the British Radio Magazine Wireless World

that a radio relay satellite in an equatorial orbit with a period of 24h
would remain stationary with respect to earth and can carry
communication signals.
• 1953: cables carrying voice signals across the Atlantic started.
• 1957: First “man-made” satellite started in 1957 with USSR lunching its
satellite Sputnik I for Communication. (V2 Rocket)
• 1958: Explorer I was the first U.S. satellite and the first satellite to carry
science instruments. SCORE was the first voice communication
established via satellite (LEO, lasted 35 days in orbit after batteries
failed).

Explorer 1 was the first U.S. satellite and the first satellite to carry
science instruments. The satellite was launched on Jan. 31, 1958.

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) 2

 Sputnik - I
Sputnik – I was the first artificial Earth satellite.
It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit
by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part
of the Soviet space program.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_1

The V-2 Rocket

(German 'Retaliation Weapon 2'), was the
world’s first long-range guided ballistic missile.

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Historical Background (Cont. 2)

• 1960: First passive communication satellite launched into space (Large balloons, Echo I and II).
• 1962-1963: The first true communication satellite Telstar I and II .They were built by Bell Labs and used C-band.
The uplink was 6389 MHz and the downlink was 4169 MHz with 50 M Hz bandwidth.
• 1961: International Telecommunication Union (ITU) recommended for international cooperation.
• For commercial arrangement Intelsat (the International Telecommunications Satellite Organization) is
established.
• 1965: the first stationary satellite (Early Bird also named Intelsat I) provides long distance telephone service.
Later live TV could be broadcasted across the Atlantic.
• Comsat managed Intelsat with series of Satellites (Intelsat I through V).
• National Satellite Service:
• USSR Molniya first HEO.
• Canada used GEO for national services.
• 1985: they expanded to the Ku band. Then, L, S, C, Ku, K, Ka, V, and Q bands.

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) 4

 Satellite Pictures
Echo I Intelsat I Telstar I

1960 First passive communication 1965 First communications satellite 1962: First non-government active
satellite launched into space (Large launched into geostationary orbit for communication satellite launched Telstar I (MEO).
commercial use Early Bird (re-named
balloons, Echo I and II).
INTELSAT 1). https://airandspace.si.edu/collection-objects/communications-satellite-
telstar/nasm_A20070113000
https://www.amusingplanet.com/2020/07/the-balloon-satellites-of-project- 5
echo.html
 Historical Background (Cont. 3)
• Then, video distribution and VSAT (very small aperture terminal)
• In 1995: Other bands expanded, like Ka-band and digital traffic.
• For marine applications (ships and aircrafts) the International Maritime Satellite
Organization (Inmarsat)
• In 1998-2000: LEO and MEO (Iridium 1998, Globalstar 1999, and Orbcomm 2000)
proved to be very costly than anticipated. Iridium cost $5 B and sold for $25 M, 0.5 %.
• Global Positioning System (GPS) with cost $12 B, GLONASS is the Russian global
navigation satellite system (GNSS) system
• In 2010: Eutelsat launched its KA-SAT satellite, which had 82 narrow spot beams
connected to 10 ground stations across Europe.
• In 2016: Europe global navigation satellite system (GNSS) (Galileo) went live.
• 2014-2022: Satellite constellations dramatically increased the number of in-orbit
spacecrafts: A satellite constellation refers to a network of low earth orbit (LEO)
satellites that work together to create a ‘mesh network’; Iridium was an early pioneer
of this technology, and it is having a renaissance, with SpaceX’s Starlink, Telesat’s
Lightspeed and Amazon’s Kuiper.
• Future!
https://www.groundcontrol.com/en/knowledge/guides/a-brief-history-of-satellite-communications/
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Saudi Satellites
• Saudi Arabia has several simple communication satellites that are in orbit.
• These satellites were built by King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology over the past several
years.
• Some are micro-satellites and their size is relatively small (0.2 × 0.2 × 0.2 𝑚).

SaudiSat 3 (200 kg) SaudiSat 1A SaudiSat 1B

Saudi Space Commission

https://saudispace.gov.sa/en/home/

(20 cm, 10 kg)

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Dr. Ali Hussein Muqaibel

Spectrum Allocation
for Satellite Communications
• Frequency Spectrum Concepts
• Radio Frequencies (RF)
• Microwave Frequencies
• Spectrum Management
• Spectrum Regulation and Standards
• International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
• Examples: Commonly Used Satellite Bands
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Frequency Spectrum Concepts
• Frequency: Rate at which an electromagnetic wave
reverts its polarity (oscillates) in cycles per second
or Hertz (Hz).
• Wavelength: distance between wavefronts in
space. Given in meters as:
 = 𝑐/𝑓
• 𝑐 = speed of light (3 × 108 𝑚/𝑠 in vacuum)
• 𝑓 = frequency in Hertz
• Frequency band: range of frequencies.
• Bandwidth: Size or “width” (in Hertz) or a
frequency band.
• Electromagnetic Spectrum: full extent of all
frequencies from zero to infinity.

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 Radio Frequencies (RF)
Satellite Applications

• RF Frequencies: Part of the electromagnetic spectrum

ranging between 20kHz/300 MHz and 300 GHz.
• Interesting properties for (300 MHz and 300 GHz):
• Efficient generation of signal power
• Radiates into free space
• Efficient reception at a different point. https://terasense.com/terahertz-technology/radio-frequency-bands/

• Differences depending on the RF frequency used:

- Signal Bandwidth
- Propagation effects (diffraction, noise, fading)
- Antenna Sizes

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Microwave Frequencies
• Sub-range of the RF frequencies approximately from 1GHz to 30GHz.
• Main properties:
- Line of sight propagation (space and atmosphere).
- Blockage by dense media (hills, buildings, rain)
- Wide bandwidths compared to lower frequency bands.
- Compact antennas, directionality possible.
- Reduced efficiency of power amplification as frequency grows:
Radio Frequency Power OUT
Direct Current Power IN

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Spectrum Management How much did Mobily pay for 50MHz?

Unlicensed bands

Wifi, BT, UWB,…

Licensed bands

BS

Cellular 5
Spectrum Regulation

• Spectrum a scarce public resource, hence allocated

• Licensed bands and Unlicensed bands
• Spectral allocation in
• Saudi Arabia by Communications and Information
Technology Commission (CITC)
• US controlled by FCC (commercial) or OSM (defense)

• FCC auctions spectral blocks for set applications.

• Some spectrum set aside for universal use
• Worldwide spectrum controlled by ITU-R
• Regulation is a necessity.
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Standards
• Interacting systems require
standardization
• Companies want their systems adopted
as standard
• Alternatively try for de-facto standards
• Standards determined by CITC in Saudi
Arabia
• Standards determined by TIA/CTIA in US
• IEEE standards often adopted
• Process troubled with inefficiencies and
conflicts
• Worldwide standards determined by
ITU-T
• In Europe, ETSI is equivalent of IEEE
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 International Telecommunication
Union (ITU)

International Telecommunication Union (ITU): Members from practically all countries around the
world.
• Allocates frequency bands for different purposes and distribute them around the planet.
• Creates rules to limit RF Interference (RFI) between countries that reuse same RF bands.
• Mediates disputes and creates rules to deal with harmful interference when it occurs.
• Meets bi-annually with its members, to review rules and allocations: World Radio
Communication Conference (WRC). https://www.itu.int/

• There are also the Regional Radio Communication Conferences (RCC), which happen less often.

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 Examples: Radio Frequency Spectrum
Commonly Used Bands
Organization Satellites Types Transponders Orbit
SHF
Locations
AM HF VHF UHF L S C X Ku Ka V Q
0.1 1 10 100 1 10 100 Arab Satellite Arabsat 2A Broadcasting 22 C band, 12 Ku band 26o E
Communications Arabsat 2B Broadcasting, 22 C band, 12 Ku band 30.5o E
MHz GHz Organization Arabsat 3A telecom. 20 Ku band 26o E
www.arabsat.com Broadcasting

Terrestrial Bands

Space Bands

Shared (Terrestrial and Space)

Propagation through rain and clouds becomes a problem as RF frequency is increased

C-band (6/4 GHz) Rain has little impact 99.99% availability is possible
Ku-band (10-12 GHz) Link margin of  3 dB needed for 99.8% availability
Ka-band (20 - 30 GHz) Link margin of  6 dB needed for 99.6% availability
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• Communications satellites: (GEO, Molniya orbits or LEO)
• Earth observation satellites: non-military for environmental
monitoring, meteorology, map making etc.
• Navigational satellites
• Weather satellites: monitor Earth’s weather and climate
• Reconnaissance satellites: Earth observation or
communications satellites for military or intelligence
applications.

Satellite Systems
Applications
Dr. Ali Hussein Muqaibel

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Introductions

• A repeater is simply a receiver linked to a transmitter,

always using different radio frequencies that can
receive a signal from one earth station, amplify it and
transmit it to another earth station.
• Applications are shifting to digital with rate after
compression:
• for digital voice 4.8 kbps
• video with MPEG (Moving Picture Coding Expert Group)
compression the rate is 6.2 Mbps.

• Growth requires new frequency bands

https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/satellite-communication-market
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Applications
• Current GEO Satellite Applications:
• Broadcasting - mainly TV at present
• high-definition television (HDTV) and 4K
• Point to Multi-point communications
• Very small aperture terminals (VSAT), Video distribution for Cable TV
• Communications between substations and dispatch centers,
especially for remote locations or backup links
• Communication with mobile assets (e.g. drones)
• Monitoring of power lines
• Monitoring of vegetation
• Positioning of assets (GPS)
• Synchronization of electronic equipment (GPS)
• Weather forecast as input for planning operations
• Wireless local loop (WLL) technology
• WLL means that the subscriber is connected to the nearest exchange through a radio
link instead of through these copper wires.

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Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)
• GPS is a medium earth orbit (MEO) satellite system
• GPS satellites broadcast pulse trains with very accurate time signals
• A receiver able to “see” four GPS satellites can calculate its position within 30
m anywhere in world
• 24 satellites in clusters of four, 12 hour orbital period
• GLONASS is a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) owned and operated by
the Russian
• Galileo is a GNSS that went live in 2016,created by the European Union.

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Case Study: Mobile Service
• GMSS stands for Global Mobile Satellite System
• GlobalstarINMARSAT, Iridium Communications, Singtel, Telstra, etc.
• Several new systems are just starting service: Starlink (SpaceX) and
OneWeb have projects to launch constellations of hundreds of
satellites, which could provide a cheaper broadband service.
• What are the factors/challenges we need to consider compared
with cellular base station system?
• What kind of orbit ? Circular or inclined orbit with < 1400 km altitude
(delay?)
• Satellite travels across sky from horizon to horizon in 5 - 15 minutes
• Earth stations must track satellite or have omni-directional antennas
• Constellation of satellites is needed for continuous communication.
• Handoff needed.
• Low cost phased array antennas for mobiles are needed
• Mobile systems are limited by use of omni-directional antennas
• A self-phasing, self-steering phased array antenna with 6 dB gain can
quadruple the capacity of a system
• Directional antennas allow frequency re-use

https://www.openpr.com/news/2022508/mobile-satellite-services-market-2020-impressively-grow