The representation of information in

Analog variable intensity and/or frequency by

a continuous signal.
Equipment that sends and/or receives
Antenna
signals from a satellite.
A cross sectional area of an antenna
Aperture
exposed to the satellite signal.
The highest point in the satellite’s orbit
(km); the point in the orbit of a
Apogee
satellite where it is farthest from the
object about which it revolves.
ASCII (American Standards
A code with seven information signals
Code for Information
and one parity check signal.
Interchange)
Data transmission in which each
information character or byte is
Asynchronous Transmission
individually synchronized, usually by
the use of start or stop elements.
ATP Acceptance Test Procedure
The loss in power of electromagnetic
Attenuation signals between transmission and
reception points.
Antenna mount that requires two
separate adjustments-of azimuth and
AZ-EL Mount
elevation-to move from one satellite to
another.
The angle between an antenna beam
Azimuth and the meridian plane, measured
along a horizontal plane.
The range of frequencies utilized for
the transmission of a signal or group of
Bandwidth
inter-related signals expressed in Hertz
(Hz).
A video or audio signal transmitted at
Baseband
its original frequency.
The percentage of received bits that
are in error during transmission;
BER (Bit Error Rate)
expressed as a number referenced to a
power of ten.
The angular coverage of an antenna
beam. Earth station beams are usually
Beamwidth specified at the half-power (or -3 dB)
point. Satellite beams are based on the
area to be covered.
 Binary Synchronous Communications
Bisync
(BSC).
Bit A single unit of information.
BPSK Binary Phase Shift Keying.
Corporate communications tool
involving video transmissions of
BTV (Business Television) information via satellite. Common uses
of business television are for meetings,
product introductions and training.
A continuous frequency capable of
Carrier being modulated with a second data-
carrying signal.
Antenna comprised of two reflectors,
the parabolic reflector and an
Cassegrain hyperbolic subreflector at the focus
point, which reflects signals back into
the feed.
Frequencies of approximately 4 to 6
C-Band GHz for satellite downlink and uplink
transmission, respectively.
Path for electrical communication
Channel
between two facilities.
A mode of transmission in which signals
are downlinked in a rotating corkscrew
pattern. A satellite’s transmission
Circular Polarization
capacity can be doubled by using both
right-hand and left-hand circular
polarization.
CPU Central Processing Unit.
Refers to the ratio of the satellite
carrier (or signal) to noise level in a
C/N (Carrier-to-Noise Ratio)
given channel. Usually measured in dB
at the LNA output.
Placement of several satellites near
each other in orbit. This allows a single
Colocation
fixed antenna to receive signals from
all of the satellites without tracking.
DAMA Demand Assignment Multiple Access.
Decibel. A unit of signal measurement
that expresses a ratio between two
dB
electrical signals or levels
logarithmically.
dBW An expression of power in dB relative to
 one watt.
Equipment that performs frequency
D/C (Down Converter)
conversion to a lower (IF) band.
DCE Data Circuit Terminating Equipment.
The time it takes for a signal to go from
Delay the sending station through the
satellite to the receiving station.
Equipment that converts the RF signal
from the carrier into baseband signals
Demodulator
(video, audio, or data) for further
processing or amplification.
The representation of information in
Digital binary form (ones and zeros),
discontinuous in time.
Transmission of information from a
Downlink satellite to earth for reception by earth
stations.
DPSK Differential Phase Shift Keying.
A software module that manages an I/O
Driver
port to an external device.
DTE Data Terminal Equipment.
A method of signaling and basis for
DTMF (Dual Tone
operation of push-button telephone
Multifrequency)
sets.
Method in which transmission is possible
simultaneously in both directions of a
Duplex Operation telecommunications channel. Generally,
two frequencies in radio
communications are required.
Any system (combination of satellite
antenna, amplification, conversion, and
Earth Station reception electronics) that can either
transmit to or receive signals from
orbiting satellites.
When a satellite passes through the line
Eclipse between the earth and the sun or the
earth and another satellite.
EIRP (Effective Isotropic Refers to measure of satellite signal
Radiated Power) strength on the ground.
The angle between an antenna beam
Elevation
and the horizontal plane.
Equiment that converts a baseband
Encoder
analog input into a digital data stream.
 The process of coding, "scrambling," or
altering a signal electronically so it can
Encryption only be decoded by recipients who have
the equipment and knowledge to
reverse the encryption code.
F/D Ratio of antenna focal length to
antenna diameter. A higher ration
means a shallower dish.
FDMA (Frequency Division Refers to the use of multiple carriers
Multiple Access within the same transponder where
each uplink has an assigned frequency
slot and bandwidth.
A technique that ensures the
FEC (Forward Error
transmitted message is received at the
Correction)
receiving end without error.
Feeds Device mounted at the focus point of
the antenna that gathers signals
reflected from the dish.
FEP Front End Processor.
Distance from the feed to the center of
Focal Length
the dish.
The area of the earth's surface that a
satellite's signal is expected to cover.
Footprint
Shown as an EIRP contour map xpressed
in dBW.
Gain Increased signal power usually the
result of amplification; measured in
decibels.
Refers to a geosynchronous satellite
angle with zero inclination, so the
Geostationary
satellite appears to hover over one spot
on the earth’s equator.
Refers to the orbit in which the speed
of a satellite’s orbit is synchronized
with the speed of the earth’s rotation
so that they are always positioned
Geosynchronous above the same spot on the earth. For
this to occur, the satellite must be in
orbit 22,300 miles over the equator,
Most communications satellites are in
geosynchronous orbit.
GHz (Gigahertz) One billion cycles per second.
G/T (Gain-to-Noise Ratio of the gain of an antenna
Temperature) compared to the receive system noise
 temperature; expressed in dB per
degree K.
Hertz (Hz) One cycle per second.
Earth station equipment that amplifies
HPA (High-Power Amplifier)
the transmit RF signal.
VSAT RF equipment that upconverts and
HPC (High-Power Converter)
amplifies transmit signals.
The central earth station satellite
transmission facility that is the focal
Hub point for communicating to remote
locations within a satellite
communications network.
The frequency of a satellite receiver
IF (Intermediate Frequency) after downconversion or a satellite
modulator before upconversion.
A cable that provides communication
IFL (Interfacility Link)
between the ODU and IDU.
I/O Input/Output
IP Internet Protocol.
kbps One thousand bits per second.
kHz (Kilohertz) One thousand cycles per second.
Frequencies approximately in the 12 to
Ku-Band 14 GHz range for satellite reception and
transmission, respectively.
LAN Local Area Network.
LLC Logical Link Control.
Equipment that receives the satellite
signal reflected by the antenna and
LNA (Low Noise Amplifier)
amplifies it to the level needed by the
satellite receiving equipment.
Satellite receiving equipment that
LNB (Low Noise Block
converts all signals from the LNA to the
Downconverter)
lower IF frequencies.
Part of the earth station transmission
LNC (Low Noise Converter) subsystem consisting of an LNA and
downconverter.
Mbps One million bits per second.
Equipment that monitors and controls
M&C (Monitor and Control) Skystar network traffic and hub and
VSAT equipment status.
MHz (Megahertz) One million cycles per second.
 Equipment that converts between
Modem digital data and audio tones for
(Modulator/Demodulator) transmission and reception over analog
channels.
Modulator Equipment that converts audio, video,
or data signals (baseband) into an RF
signal.
MSK Minimum Shift Keying.
Average length of time for which a
MTBF (Mean Time Between
system, or a component of a system,
Failure)
works without fault.
Average time taken to arrive on site to
MTTR (Mean Time To
correct a fault in a system or
Respond)
component.
Multiplexing A technique that combines multiple
data channels on a single transmission
channel.
MUX Multiplexer equipment.
Extraneous and unwanted signal
Noise
disturbances.
Permanent Assignment Time Division
PA/TDMA
Multiple Access.
POP Point of Presence.
POS Point of Sale.
Protocol Formal set of rules governing the
format, timing, sequence, and error
control of messages on a data network.
PSK Phase Shift Keying.
PVC Permanent Virtual Circuit.
QPSK Quadrature Phase Shift Keying.
RA Random Access.
Random Access Time Division Multiple
RA/TDMA
Access.
RF (Radio Frequency) The frequency range from 10 kHz to 100
GHz used for transmitting data, audio,
or video.
A secondary system of backup
equipment that performs similarly to a
Redundancy
primary system, thereby preventing
network downtime and system outages.
Response Time The elapsed time between the end of
 an inquiry and the beginning of the
response.
RFI Radio Frequency Interference.
Equipment including an antenna, U/C,
RFT (Radio Frequency D/C, HPA, and LNA which provides the
Terminal) up and down conversion of signals in a
satellite-based network.
Referring to an earth station that
R/O (Receive Only) receives transmissions only and does
not transmit.
The process of selecting the correct
Routing
circuit path for a message.
Skystar equipment that contains the
SAC (Satellite Access satellite transmission facility
Controller) components and data network
components.
SCPC Single Channel Per Carrier.
SDLC Synchronous Data Link Control.
SNA System Network Architecture.
Relative power of the signal to the
S/N (Signal-to-Noise Ratio)
noise in a channel.
A lower powered transmitter used for
SSPA (Solid-State Power
amplification of RF signals at a remote
Amplifier)
site.
SVC Switched Virtual Circuit.
When characters or bits are transmitted
Synchronous at a fixed rate with the transmitting
and receiving devices synchronized.
Transmission Control Protocol/Internet
TCP/IP
Protocol.
TDM Time Division Multiplexing.
Refers to a form of multiple access
where a single carrier is time shared by
TDMA (Time Division many users. Signals from earth stations
Multiple Access) reaching the satellite consecutively are
processed in time segments without
overlapping.
A meeting involving at least one uplink
Teleconference and a number of downlinks at different
locations.
Telemetry The use of telecommunications for
automatically indicating or recording
 measurements at a distance from the
measuring instrument.
Interruptions in a satellite signal caused
Terrestrial Inteference by high power land-based microwave
links in the 4 GHz band.
Using earth-based equipment to follow
Tracking
a satellite’s position.
An intermediate elliptical orbit used to
reach geosynchronous orbit, where the
Transfer Orbit
apogee is the same altitude as the final
operating orbit.
The circuitry on a satellite that
receives the uplink signal, amplifies it,
Transponder
then retransmits it as the downlink
signal.
Traveling Wave Tube Amplifier. Satellite
TWTA electronic components that provide
power for the transponders (in watts).
Equipment that performs frequency
U/C (Up converter)
conversion to a higher (RF) band.
Transmission of information from an
Uplink earth station to a geostationary
communications satellite.
A small earth station, usually less than
VSAT (Very Small Aperture
2.4 meters, used for satellite
Terminal)
communications.
Protocol; a set of packet switching
X.25
standards.