Welcome to EE422!

Introduction to Satellite
Communications
Lecture 2

Spring 2021
Ways to Categorize Communication
Satellites
 Coverage area
 Global, regional, national

 Service type
 Fixed service satellite (FSS)
 Broadcast service satellite (BSS)
 Mobile service satellite (MSS)

 General usage
 Commercial, military, experimental
Classification of Satellite Orbits
 Orbit is the path along which satellite moves in the space around earth.
 Basic characteristics of orbits in which a satellite can be placed around
Earth, categorized by inclination, shape, and altitude. 

1) By shape of the orbit

• Circular orbit with center at earth’s center
• Elliptical orbit with one foci at earth’s center

Circular orbit Elliptical orbit

Classification of Satellite Orbits
2) By inclination
A Satellite can move in three types of orbits namely:
 Synchronous /Equatorial orbit above earth’s equator.
 Polar orbit passes over both poles.
 inclined orbits.
Classification of Satellite Orbits
3) By Altitude
• Geostationary orbit (GEO)
• Medium earth orbit (MEO)
• Low earth orbit (LEO)
Factors in Satellite Communication
 Elevation Angle: The angle of the horizontal of the earth
surface to the center line of the satellite transmission beam.
 Coverage Angle: A measure of the portion of the earth surface
visible to a satellite taking the minimum elevation angle into
account.

Orbit Height (h)

Elevation angle (𝚹)

Coverage angle (𝛃)

Factors in Satellite Communication
 Other impairments to satellite communication:

• The distance between an earth station and a satellite

antenna (free space loss).

• Satellite Footprint: The satellite transmission’s strength is

strongest in the center of the transmission , and decreases
farther from the center as free space loss increases.
 For downlink, terrestrial distance between earth
station antenna and “aim point "of satellite .

• Atmospheric attenuation caused by affected by oxygen,

water, angle of elevation, and higher frequencies
Geometry Terms
• Elevation angle – ideal would be 0o

• Minimum elevation angle – 3 problems dictate this angle

be greater than 0o

• Downlinks – 5o to 20o

• Uplinks – min of 5o required

• Coverage angle - the measure of the portion of the

earth's surface visible to the satellite
Minimum Elevation Angle
 Reasons affecting minimum elevation angle of earth
station’s antenna (>0o )
• Buildings, trees, and other terrestrial objects block
the line of sight
• Atmospheric attenuation is greater at low elevation
angles
• Electrical noise generated by the earth's heat near
its surface adversely affects reception
 Frequency Bands Available for Satellite
Communications
 Different kinds of satellites use different frequency bands.
Band Frequency Total Bandwidth General Application
Range
L 1 to 2 GHz 1 GHz Mobile satellite service (MSS)
S 2 to 4 GHz 2 GHz MSS, NASA, deep space research
C 4 to 8 GHz 4 GHz Fixed satellite service (FSS)
X 8 to 12.5 GHz 4.5 GHz FSS military, terrestrial earth
exploration, meteorological satellites
Ku 12.5 to 18 GHz 5.5 GHz FSS, broadcast satellite service (BSS)
K 18 to 26.5 GHz 8.5 GHz BSS, FSS
Ka 26.5 to 40 GHz 13.5 GHz FSS
Satellite Network Configurations
 Point to Point link

 Broadcast link
Satellite Network Configurations
 Sub-Type of Broadcast : VSAT (very small aperture terminal)
 Subscribers use low cost VSAT antenna.
 Stations share a satellite transmission capacity for
transmission to a hub station
 Hub can Exchange Messages with the subscribers and Relay
Messages between the subscribers
Types of Satellite Categories
 Satellites are divided in four major categories as follows:
1) Communication Satellite.
2) Weather satellite.
3) Remote-sensing satellite.
4) Scientific satellite.
There are Many Types of Satellites
 Communication Satellite.
To broadcast television, internet, and enable telephone applications

 Weather satellite.
To record and monitor the Earth’s climate: temperature, pollution,
cloud movement

 Remote-sensing satellite.
This type of satellites can be used to find out the condition of crops,
forests or minerals underground, condition of soil etc. Indian satellite
IRS is a remote sensing satellite.

 Earth Observation Satellites

To observe the earth with various sensors, including optical and radar
cameras. Typically used for environmental monitoring and various
mapping applications.
Satellite Orbits
What keeps a satellite in an orbit around earth? Why doesn’t a
satellite go directly towards Earth, and why doesn’t it escape Earth?
The answer is that there are two main forces that act on a satellite or
any object that is in orbit around Earth (or any other planet or star).
These forces are called

1) Centrifugal force: This force acts on the satellite along the line
between the satellite and the center of mass of Earth in the outwards
direction. This results from the fact that the object moves and
objects in motion tend to travel in straight lines.

2) Centripetal force: This force acts on the satellite along the line
between the satellite and the center of mass of Earth in the inward
direction. This results from the gravitational force exerted on the
satellite by Earth
Satellite Orbits
Satellite Orbits
In addition to the previous two forces, there is less important forces that
may alter the path of motion of a satellite including:

3) Moon and Solar gravitations: Although satellites are usually placed in

orbits that are much closer to Earth than to Earth’s moon and knowing that
the gravitational pull of the Moon is itself much lower than the
gravitational pull of Earth, satellites motion nevertheless is affected by the
Moon’s (and sun’s) gravities just like sea water is affected by Moon’s
gravity resulting in tides. The effect of these gravities results in the satellite
wobbling (moving up and down slowly) while in orbit.

4) Atmospheric drag: This force may be significant for satellites that are
at LEO orbits, especially at altitudes less than 200 km or so. The effect of
this force results in slowing the satellite motion and hence altering its
orbital altitude.

5) Solar winds and cosmic radiation: these forces have small effect on
the motion of satellites.