Understanding Communication Satellites

Understanding Communications Satellites Most of us take satellites for granted. Satellites are so far removed from our daily reality, they're easy to forget about. Yet even from the unimaginable distance at which they orbit the earth, they allow us to use mobile phones, TV, radio and the internet. So who makes them? Who launches them? And what do they look like up close? Luxembourg In the late 1980s Luxembourg made a successful move from its traditional steel industry into the finance, investment and services sectorş. Luxembourg has nearly twice as EUROPE USA many communications satellites as the second biggest player, the USA. ణ O LUXEMBOURG Luxembourg 8999999?999 Number of satellites by country 100 80 60 40 20 Argentina Greece Philippines Singapore Norway UAE Malaysia. Mexico Turkey Russia Japan France Thailand China Saudi. Arabia Hong Kong Luxembourg Intelsat And SES Intelsat and SES are two'of the largest sätellite còmmunications companies in the world. Both are based in Luxembourg.' ŞES has 49 geostationary satellites. Their range covers 99% of the world's population. Intelsat became a private company in 2001 and boasts a fleet of 50 satellites. Satellite's Footprint A satellite's footprint is the surface area on earth that it's transmission covers. 54 dBW 52 dBW 50 dBW 48 dBW 46 dBW * 44 dBW' 42 dBW The satellite's signal střength is measured in decibel watts (dBW). Different Orbital Altitudes Communications satellites travel at different orbital altitudes, speeds and directions in relation to the earth. Scale: 1 Pixel = 100 Km / 62.1 mi 384,000 + km LEO Zone (Low Earth Orbit) * MEO Zone HEO Zone (High Earth Orbit) (Medium Earth Orbit) HIGH EARTH ORBIT MEDIUM EARTH ORBIT 2000 Km/ 1243.7 mi LOW EARTH ORBIT EARTH RADIUS 6378 Km/3963 mile 215 km/ 133.6 mi- Sputnik 1 700 - 1700 km - Polar Orbiting Satellites 35,786 km Geostationary (GSO) Satellites 390 km/ 242.3 mi - Former Russian Space: 595 km/369.7 mi- Hubble Space Telescope evel 0 km/m! 340 km/ 211.3 m Station International Space MIR Station 600 - 800. km - 372.8/ 497.4 n Low Earth Orbit (LEO) The satellite travels at an altitude of between 500 and 2000km. Its high velocity helps it to resist the earth's gravitational pull. Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) The satellite' travels at an altitude of between 8000 - 20,000km: Polar Orbit The satellite orbits the Earth approximately in the direction of pole to pole. "Geostationary Orbit The satellite orbits at an altitude of 35,786km over the equator. It travéls at the same speed and in the same direction as the rotation of the earth. From certain points on the Earth's*surface the satellite will appear to be stationary. Boeing 601 The Boeing 601 is one of the most popular models of satellite in the world. Width: 90ft X-Wing.Reflector Thruster Solar Wing Battery Cells Antenna Array Width: 90ft Mirrored Radiator Panel Weight: 1727 Kg 6ft Satellite Launch Rockets By Nationality: The communications satellite industry is an international enterprise requiring the cooperation of various parties skilled in different aspects of the manufacturing and deployment process. Japan China India Gęrmany i . International US Russia EU Sources http://www.satellites.spacesim.org/english/function/communic/index.himl. http://www.luxembourg.co.uk/nutshell.html http://www.satnews.com/operating_sats.shtml http://www.intelsat.com/. http://www.ses.com/ http://myfavouritewbrld.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/satellite-internet.jpg http://www.geo-orbit.org/easthemipgs/ftelekup.html http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/space/bss/factsheets/601/601fleet.html http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Orbitalaltitudes.jpg http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/space/bss/about/What_is_a_Satellite_2006.pdf Egypt Israel Italy Australia **** **** Brazil Korea Spain EU India Canada International UK *** USA Sea 37.6 km/ 23:4 mi - Self Propelled det Aircioft Flight Synchronous Satellites