Satellite Communication - Launching

Satellites stay in space for most of their life time. We know that the environment of weightlessness is
present in the space. That’s why satellites don’t require additional strong frames in space. But, those
are required during launching process. Because in that process satellite shakes violently, till the
satellite has been placed in a proper orbit.
The design of satellites should be compatible with one or more launch vehicles in order to place the
satellite in an orbit.

We know that the period of revolution will be more for higher apogee altitude according to Kepler’s
second law. The period of geostationary transfer orbit is nearly equal to 16 hours. If perigee is
increased to GEO altitude (around 36,000 km), then the period of revolution will increase to 24 hours.

Launching of Satellites
The process of placing the satellite in a proper orbit is known as launching process. During this
process, from earth stations we can control the operation of satellite. Mainly, there are four stages in
launching a satellite.

First Stage − The first stage of launch vehicle contains rockets and fuel for lifting the satellite
along with launch vehicle from ground.
Second Stage − The second stage of launch vehicle contains smaller rockets. These are
ignited after completion of first stage. They have their own fuel tanks in order to send the
satellite into space.
Third Stage − The third (upper) stage of the launch vehicle is connected to the satellite
fairing. This fairing is a metal shield, which contains the satellite and it protects the satellite.

Fourth Stage − Satellite gets separated from the upper stage of launch vehicle, when it has
been reached to out of Earth's atmosphere. Then, the satellite will go to a “transfer orbit”. This
orbit sends the satellite higher into space.

When the satellite reached to the desired height of the orbit, its subsystems like solar panels and
communication antennas gets unfurled. Then the satellite takes its position in the orbit with other
satellites. Now, the satellite is ready to provide services to the public.

Satellite Launch Vehicles

Satellite launch vehicles launch the satellites into a particular orbit based on the requirement. Satellite
launch vehicles are nothing but multi stage rockets. Following are the two types of satellite launch
vehicles.
Expendable Launch Vehicles (ELV)
Reusable Launch Vehicles (RLV)

Expendable Launch Vehicles

Expendable launch vehicles (ELV) get destroyed after leaving the satellites in space. The following
image shows how an ELV looks.
The ELV contains three stages. First and second stages of ELV raise the satellite to an about 50 miles
and 100 miles. Third stage of ELV places the satellite in transfer orbit. The task of ELV will be
completed and its spare parts will be fallen to earth, when the satellite reached to transfer orbit.

Reusable Launch Vehicles

Reusable launch vehicles (RLV) can be used multiple times for launching satellites. Generally, this
type of launch vehicles will return back to earth after leaving the satellite in space.
The following image shows a reusable launch vehicle. It is also known as space shuttle.

The functions of space shuttle are similar to the functions of first and second stages of ELV. Satellite
along with the third stage of space shuttle are mounted in the cargo bay. It is ejected from the cargo
bay when the space shuttle reaches to an elevation of 150 to 200 miles.
Then, the third stage of space shuttle gets fired and places the satellite into a transfer orbit. After this,
the space shuttle will return back to earth for reuse.
Scanned by CamScanner
Scanned by CamScanner
Scanned by CamScanner
Scanned by CamScanner
 Pictures and explanation of a complex
How to make inclinometer
C band feed

Satellite Finding dish offset angle

Multi-LNB dish configurations
Internet
Guide about the orientation of elliptical dishes
Circular polarisation set-up
Using a compass
How to point an offset dish
VSAT index
Inclined orbit operation
Use of rear side struts

Satellite station-keeping
Geostationary satellites are in orbit above the equator and go around the earth in the same direction
as the earth rotates and at the same angular speed. They appear stationary in the sky, so you
satellite dish can see the satellite all of the time.

The satellites are not fixed to anything and float in space and their orbit is affected by small forces
from the distant sun and also the earth's gravitational pull which is not perfectly spherical. Satellites
have a supply of fuel allocated for station keeping and this fuel is used gradually over a planned
lifetime period of 7 to 15 years to keep the satellite within typically +/- 0.15 deg east west and +/-0.15
deg north/south of its nominal orbit position.

North - South station keeping

The most significant effect is the pull of the sun which causes the inclination of the satellites orbit to
increase at the rate of about 0.8 deg per year. If a satellite was left alone, after one year it would be
going up and down daily in a north south direction with an inclination amplitude of +/- 0.8 deg. This
would cause the satellite to move well outside the beam width pointing of virtually all, except the
smallest, fixed pointing satellites dishes.

To keep a satellite's inclination down to a maximum of about 0.15 deg it is necessary to use fuel to
fire its north/south thrusters every few weeks. About 90% of the station keeping fuel is allocated to
correct this.

When initially positioned in orbit a satellite might have an inclination perhaps -0.5 degrees and this
will be allowed to decrease to zero and increase to +0.15 deg before station-keeping fuel is used.
Towards end of life north - soputh station keeping is be abandoned and inclination is allowed to
increase to say 4 degrees over a period 5 years while keeping the east west position within +/- 0.15
deg. This allows the satellite to be retained in use for tracking antennas.

East - West station keeping

The strength of the earth's gravitational field had three slight bumps around the equator with dips in
between. This "triaxialty" causes satellites to drift slowly sideways towards where gravity pulls the
most. This needs regular sideways thruster firings, just before the satellite is about to leave its
station keeping box. Basically you give it a good kick back the other way and if you judge it just right
it gradually goes across, stops just before it leaves the far side and then falls back sideways over the
next few weeks, ready for the next thruster firing.
The diagram above shows the central horizontal equator line of the geostationary orbit with the
nominal satellite [position and a 0.3 deg square size station keeping box. The daily movement of the
satellite is shown by the red line. Each loop cycle represents one day. The satellite crosses the
equator twice a day. The shape of the curve is two sine waves plus sideways drifts and gradual
increases or decreases in the amplitudes. Thruster firings have dramatic sudden effects and the
smooth pattern restarts and needs to be relearned. Elliptical, near circular or figure of eight patterns
are possible.

Superimposed on the above diagram is a dot which represents the pointing of an earth station dish
antenna, with its beam width represented by the circle. As pointed it will receive a good signal while
the satellite is in the lower right corner of the square buit service will fail for about 50% of the time
when the satellite is inthe upper left. This dish needs re-pointing about 0.1 deg up and 0.1 deg to the
left so its beam width includes all of the satellites daily movement range. The best time to do this
adjustment is when the satellite goes through the exact centre of the station keeping box. This may
happen only once ever few weeks.

Important: Many small dish antenna will have a beam width larger than the station keeping box and
all these dishes may be fixed.

Higher gain larger dishes with beam widths comparable to the size of the station keeping box require
accurate alignment with the centre of the box.

Even higher gain antennas require active tracking systems that will typically make multiple
measurements with small movements up/down/left/right every 15 minutes or so and work out what is
best. Tracking systems are quite clever and can learn the satellite orbit to minimise motor wear and
to keep the antenna on track during rain fades etc. Tracking does increase unreliability however, so
fixed pointing with accurate alignment to the centre of the box should be considered for intermediate
sized antennas. Poor tracking is often due to lack of skill and understanding in setting up the very
many parameters for a tracking control system. Lubrication, back lash, step size, motor run time,
stopping distances, angle calibration, mechanical and electrical non-linearity, volts per dB, are
examples.

Narrow beam widths are the result or large diameter antennas, or high frequencies, or both. Use this
antenna gain and beamwidth calculator to determine beamwidth for your dish size and frequency.

► Page created 2006, amended 20 Jan 2019 HTML5. 25 Jan 2020.

Satellite Signals Limited � 2005 all rights reserved.
 Time Division Multiple Access
Time-division multiple access (TDMA) is a channel access method for shared-medium networks. It allows
several users to share the same frequency channel by dividing the signal into different time slots. The users
transmit in rapid succession, one after the other, each using its own time slot. This allows multiple stations to
share the same transmission medium (e.g. radio frequency channel) while using only a part of its channel
capacity.

TDMA was first used in satellite communication systems by Western Union in its Westar 3 communications
satellite in 1979. It is now used extensively in satellite communications.

Explanation:
TDMA is characterized by access to the channel during a time slot. Figure 1 shows the operation of a network
according to the principle of TDMA. As an illustration, the uplink earth stations, ESi , transmit bursts Ii
occupying all of the channel bandwidth during a specified time Tbi. A burst corresponds to the transfer of traffic
from each uplink station. A burst transmission is inserted within a longer time structure of duration Ts called a
frame period—a periodic structure within which all uplink stations must transmit. A frame is formed at satellite
level. A typical structure of a frame is shown in Figure 2.

Figure 1: Operational concept of the TDMA system. Each station ESi transmits data Ii at assigned time Tbi within frame time Ts at the same
frequency, where i = 1, 2, …, n.

Figure 2: TDMA frame format

 VSAT information Find your lat and long

List of satellites Satellite dish pointing and range calculation

Reducing interference into satellite antennas Spectrum of DVB-S carrier

home page
Andrew VSAT installations Eb/No calculator

VSAT equipment for sale PCMA and CRMA explanation

What is TDMA ? An explanation of TDMA

Time Division Multiple Access or TDMA is a method used to enable multiple earth stations or VSAT terminals to transmit intermittently on the
same frequency, but with the timing of their transmissions so arranged that the bursts do not overlay when they arrive at the satellite but
arrive in sequence and thus are all successfully received by the teleport hub modem burst demodulator.

The operation of TDMA requires an outlink control to all the remote sites which contains some control information. This outlink carrier also
had a frame structure that provides accurate timing information for all the remote sites. The teleport hub equipment computer tells each
VSAT site what particular time slot to use in the TDMA frame and this time plan information is broadcast to all sites periodically. The burst
time plan may be fixed, so as to allocate each site a particular proportion of the total TDMA frame time or is may be dynamic, whereby the
time slot allocated is adjusted in response to the traffic needs of each site.

TDMA Frame

This image below shows a sequence of two successive TDMA frames passing through the satellite. The carrier bit rate is 250 kbit/s

Explanation: Site 1 transmits a burst, starting at the beginning of each TDMA frame. The burst lasts 180 mS, so at a rate of 250kbit/s site 1
sends 45,000 bits per burst, or 45,000 bits per second. Site 2 transmits a burst, timed to arrive at the satellite just after the end of burst 1.
The red, second, burst lasts 80 mS, so at a rate of 250kbit/s, site 2 sends 20,000 bits per burst, or 20,000 bits per second. The diagram
shows a fixed time plan, where each VSAT has been allocated a predetermined portion of the total time.

There is designed in 20mS guard period between each burst. This allows for slight mistiming in the transmission of the bursts. Severe
mistiming would cause bursts to arrive overlapping or on top of each other, causing loss of service to both sites involved in the mutual
interference. The long 20mS guard period is illustrative only, so you can see the white space in the figure above. In actual TDMA systems
the guard band may be very much less and there may be very many more bursts per frame.

The above is just an example. TDMA frame length may be as short as 2000 microseconds or as long as 1 second, as in the example
above. The shortest TDMA frame periods are associated with the highest speed TDMA systems, operating at say 120.832 Mbit/s. On low
speed 250kbit/s VSAT return links, with perhaps 2 to 50 sites sharing, and used for internet browsing and emails, the TDMA frame period is
typically 500mS.

TDMA burst time plan.

The allocation of bursts to time slots within the TDMA frame is the burst time plan. As shown above the plan is:

VSAT site 1 start 0 mS, time allocated 180 mS

VSAT site 2 start 200 mS, time allocated 80 mS
VSAT site 3 start 300 mS, time allocated 180 mS
VSAT site 4 start 500 mS, time allocated 280 mS
VSAT site 5 start 800 mS, time allocated 180 mS

This information is broadcast to all sites, which then follow the timing instructions. This burst time plan might be applied unchanged for
several days or weeks or it might be changed every few seconds or minutes according to the traffic demand.

Burst timing

The time of arrival of each burst at the satellite is critical and to get this right each site
is told when to transmit.

This instruction is based on the burst time plan start time value plus also a time delay
based on the range of VSAT site to the satellite. The range is initially calculated based
on the latitude and longitude of the earth station and the orbital position of the satellite.
The amount of time to allow for, due to range, is calculated using the speed of light,
which is 300m per microsecond.

For a new site to be introduced into the burst time plan, a slot is prepared for it by the
hub staff. Using the site lat and long, an approximate timing value is estimated. When
the site is activated the burst should appear in the correct place. Fine burst timing
adjustment may then be possible to fit the burst exactly without wasting too much
 space in the guard times either side. Time wasted in the guard times is effectively
capacity lost out of the total 250kbit/s available.

VSAT terminals further away from the satellite, like site 1 on the left, need to transmit
earlier than site 2 which is already nearer the satellite.

This is an explanation why you need to tell the VSAT hub what is your latitude and
longitude before starting first transmissions to the teleport hub.

TDMA burst format.

This image represents a burst, whose time length may be 180 mS. At the start of the burst the bit sequence follows a predetermined burst
preamble or header designed to help the hub receiver demodulator lock onto the carrier. This is described as the "carrier and bit timing
recovery sequence and unique word". A brief period of un-modulated CW carrier is a good start. This helps the demodulator automatic
frequency control (AFC) adjust its centre frequency and also get the automatic gain control (AGC) so that the level of the carrier is made
nominal. Next a period of alternate ones and zeros helps the demodulator to set the exact bit rate e.g. 249,999 bit/sec. Following this is the
unique word. This is a pre-selected complex sequence of ones and zeros which the receiver attempts to match against two opposite
matching patterns. When a hit is obtained the demodulator knows two things. It can now distinguish a one from a zero and it know its exact
position in the burst. At the end of the unique word the User data message starts. Right at the end may be a cyclic redundancy (CRC)
checksum to check if there have been any errors during the burst. Additional bits for Forward Error Correction (FEC) are normally added
also. These may be distributed along the packet or added as a extra group of bits at the end. The CRC checksum simply detects if there
have been any errors. FEC will put right and repair errors, provided there are not too many.

TDMA frame efficiency

Allowing for all the guard time slots between the bursts and the burst preambles the overall efficiency of use is typically 90%. The situation
improves for fewer, longer bursts and deteriorates for large numbers of short bursts.

In a random demand TDMA system the actual fill efficiency will fall to 0% when nobody is active, such as night. During busy times, efficiency
of fill may still need to be kept very low, such as 35% to avoid of burst collisions and congestion. Much effort has gone into the design of
demand assigned TDMA systems where earth stations are temporarily assigned to certain sequence time slots for the duration of
transmission of a large file for example. This improved the fill factor significantly.

Page started 20 Nov 2006, amended 9 June 2018 ECJ

 Block Diagram of a Communication Satellite

Fig: Block diagram of a Communication satellite

The figure is a general block diagram of a satellite. All the major subsystems are
illustrated. The solar panels supply the electric power for the spacecraft. They drive
regulators that distribute dc power to all other subsystems. And they charge the batteries
that operate the satellite during eclipse periods. And ac-to-dc converters and dc-to-ac
inverters are used to supply special voltages to some subsystems. Total power capability
runs from a few hundred watts in the smaller units to several kilowatts in the largest
systems.
The communication subsystem consists of multiple transponders. These receive the
uplink signals, amplify them, translate them in frequency, and amplify them again for
retransmission as downlink signals. The transponders share an antenna subsystem for
both reception and transmission.
The telemetry, tracking, and command (TT&C) subsystem monitors onboard conditions
such as temperature and battery voltage and transmits this data back to a ground
station for analysis. The ground station may then issue orders to the satellite by transmitting
a signal to the command subsystem, which then is used to control many spacecraft
functions such as firing the jet thrusters.

The jet thrusters and the apogee kick motor (AKM) are part of the propulsion subsystem.
They are controlled by commands from the ground.
The attitude control subsystem provides stabilization in orbit and senses changes in
orientation. It fires the jet thrusters to perform attitude adjustment and station-keeping
maneuvers that keep the satellite in its assigned orbital position.
 Frequency Reuse
One system for effectively doubling the bandwidth and information carrying capacity of a satellite is
known as frequency reuse.
In this system, a communication satellite is provided with two identical sets of 12
transponders. The first channel in one transponder operates on the same channel as the first
transponder in the other set, and so on. With this arrangement, the two sets of transponders transmit
in the same frequency spectrum and, therefore, appear to interfere with each other. However, this is
not the case. The two systems, although operating on exactly the same frequencies, are isolated from
each other by the use of special antenna techniques.
One technique for keeping transmissions separate is to use different antenna polarizations.
For example, a vertically polarized antenna will not respond to a horizontally polarized signal and vice
versa. Or a left-hand circularly polarized (LHCP) antenna will not respond to a right-hand circularly
polarized (RHCP) signal and vice versa.
Another technique is to use spatial isolation. By using narrow beam or spot beam antennas,
the area on the earth covered by the satellite can be divided up into smaller segments. Earth stations
in each segment may actually use the same frequency, but because of the very narrow beam widths
of the antennas, there is no interference between adjacent segments. This technique is referred to a
spatial-division multiple access (SDMA) in that access to the satellite depends on location and not
frequency.
BISHNUPUR PUBLIC INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING
1st Mock Internal Exam
Subject-ADVANCE COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING
Stream- ELECTRONICS AND TELECOMMUNICATION ENGINEERING
3rd Year (6th Semester)
Date :06/04/2020 FM: 20

1. Answer all questions from the following: 1x4=4

i. What is the up linking frequency in C band?
ii. Define station keeping.
iii. What are the names of the satellite launch vehicles?
iv. What are the functions of a transponder in a communication satellite?

2. Answer all the questions from the following: 8x2=16

i. Draw and explain the block diagram of a communication satellite. Explain Code Division
Multiple Access technique with necessary diagram. (4+4)
ii. Write short notes on:
a. Time Division Multiple Access Technique
b. Frequency Reuse (4+4)

Read the instructions carefully:

i. At first Go to the reply section of the given question paper and type “ok sir/got it sir/any
other formal words” so that I can record your attendance within 1 hour.
ii. It’s a pen-paper based test. So, keep your pen and paper ready with you and start writing.
iii. Please mention your Name, Year, Trade, Subject and other necessary details on the top of the
answer script.
iv. After having your examinations scan your answer script with your mobile/laptop by using
some applications (e.g. Cam scanner) and make a pdf of your answer script.
v. Finally you have to submit it in reply section of the given question within 1:00 pm.
vi. Sufficient time is given to you. Wish you all the best for this exam.