Advances in Satellite Communications

Publisher Summary This chapter attempts to explain different aspects of communications satellite technology specifically related to electronics and electron physics. Advances in electrical communications, whether by cable or radio, have been characterized by the exploitation of progressively higher carrier frequencies. Bandwidth is required to transmit large amounts of information within a certain time interval, provided that no obstacles are encountered in the channels. An important characteristic of satellites is their unique capability of satisfying the requirements of large communication networks involving numerous earth terminals, resulting in a multinodal topology with variable traffic demands at each node. In addition to orbital control, and in order to allow the pointing of highly directional antennas toward the earth or even parts of it, satellites must have some form of attitude control. The most common method of attitude control for communications satellites has been obtained by spinning a single or dual configuration platform, permitting a pointing accuracy of the antennas on the order of a few tenths of a degree. It is found that the present commercial satellite system uses frequency modulation and frequency division multiplex combined with frequency division multiple accesses.

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