PanAmSat Network Operations Center

Satellite Communications Basics

Working Together to Enhance Services

 Table of Contents

Table of Contents 2

Introduction 3

Radio Frequency 4
C-band 6

Ku-band 6

Polarization 6

Earth Station 8
Antenna 8

The Uplink 8

The Downlink 9

Satellites 10
Bus 10

Payload 10

Transponders 12

Footprint 13

Orbit 14

Power 15

Carriers 16

Link Budgets 17

Conclusion 18

Recommended Reading 19
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 Introduction

In 1945, Arthur C. Clarke provided what most consider the initial principles for
Satellite Communications. In a technical paper published in a United Kingdom
periodical magazine, he stated that a space-station orbiting 42,000 km above the
equator could act as a repeater to relay transmissions between any two points on
the hemisphere beneath it. It was not until the early 1960s that the first workable
communications satellite was built and launched.

PanAmSat, the first commercial satellite operator in the world, was established
in 1984 by the late Rene Anselmo. Fed up with the high cost and poor service
by the government-run providers, Rene Anselmo broke the government
monopoly on satellite communications and launched PAS-1. By 1992, PAS-1
was effectively sold out and PanAmSat was on its way to become one of the
largest satellite providers in the world with a global satellite fleet.

Arthur C. Clarke and Rene Anselmo were bold men who saw growth and
potential where many did not. This document was created to provide the basic
concepts of satellite communications and how we use it today. The document
will give you a better understanding of Radio Frequencies, the earth station
components (antennas and amplifiers), PanAmSat satellite components, the two
basic carrier types, and link budgets.

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 Radio Frequency

Satellite communications utilizes electromagnetic waves to carry information

from the ground to space and back. An electromagnetic wave consists of an
electric field and a magnetic field that are perpendicular to each other and to the
direction of propagation (figure 1).

Figure 1: Electromagnetic wave

The frequency of an electromagnetic wave is defined as the number of times it

cycles in one second and is measured in Hertz (Hz).

1 Hertz = 1Hz (one hertz)

1,000 Hertz = 1kHz (one kilohertz)

1,000,000 Hertz = 1MHz (one megahertz)

1,000,000,000 Hertz = 1GHz (one gigahertz)

The distance between two similar points on a given wave determines the
wavelength of an electromagnetic wave. It is proportional to its frequency and is
measured in meters. Every electromagnetic wave exhibits a unique frequency
and wavelength (figure 2).

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R A D I O F R E Q U E N C Y ( R F )

Figure 2: Frequency and wavelength

A particular range of frequencies is called a frequency band and the full range of
frequencies from zero to infinity is called the electromagnetic spectrum. The
radio frequency (RF) segment of the electromagnetic spectrum is the range from
3kHz up to 300GHz and is used by several communications devices including
satellites.

Figure 3: radio frequency spectrum

Radio Frequency bands are allocated for various purposes by the International
Telecommunication Union Radiocommunication sector (ITU-R), an agency
within the United Nations (UN). The Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) is a member of the ITU-R along with other similar agencies representing
their respective government. Their goal is to manage the finite resources of the
RF spectrum and satellite orbital positions. In doing so they have allocated sub
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R A D I O F R E Q U E N C Y ( R F )

bands of the RF spectrum for use in Satellite Communications. For the purpose
of this document we will only focus on two of these sub bands: “C” and “Ku”.
They are the most commonly used in commercial satellite communications.

C-BAND
The frequency range allocated for C-band is 3.7GHz – 6.425GHz. It is further
divided into separate halves, one for ground-to-space links (Uplink) and one for
space-to-ground links (downlink) as shown:

C-band Uplink Frequencies: 5.925GHz – 6.425GHz

C-Band Downlink Frequencies: 3.7GHz – 4.2GHz

KU-BAND
The frequency range allocated for Ku-band is 11.7GHz – 14.5GHz. Ku-band,
like C-band, is further divided into separate halves, one for ground-to-space
links (Uplink) and one for space-to-ground links (downlink) as shown:

Ku-Band Uplink Frequencies: 14GHz – 14.5GHz

Ku-Band Downlink Frequencies: 11.7GHz – 12.2GHz

Although the international satellite communication frequency bands are similar

to the U.S. frequency bands, there are some variances; specifically the use of
extended C and extended Ku bands that are in use by PanAmSat satellites as
well as others.

POLARIZATION
Polarization is another property of electromagnetic waves. It can be manipulated
into two types of polarization: Linear (Vertical and Horizontal) and Circular
(Right-Hand and Left-Hand) polarizations. Linear polarization is commonly
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R A D I O F R E Q U E N C Y ( R F )

used on PanAmSat satellites. Figure 3 shows the orientation that the electric
field of an electromagnetic wave would take depending on the capabilities and
orientation of an antenna.
Vertical

Right-hand
circular

Horizontal

Figure 4 Polarizations

The most important application of polarization is in frequency reuse. This is

where two electromagnetic waves, one traveling on the vertical plane and the
other in the horizontal plane, are using the same frequency without impacting
one another. This gives the ability to essentially double the amount of
frequencies available for use.

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 Earth Station

Earth Station is the internationally accepted term that includes satellite

communications stations located on the ground. They can be configured and
utilized in a number of ways but in order for an earth station to transmit or
receive a signal it will require uplink and/or downlink equipment.

ANTENNA
The antenna provides both the means to transmit the RF signal to the satellite
and receive a signal from the satellite. Its design helps minimize Radio
Frequency interference (RFI) by using its reflectors to focus the RF signal on to
a single satellite. Its feed, or feed horn, is used to isolate a single polarization for
reception or transmission. In order to isolate a single polarization, the antenna
and feed must be properly aligned with the satellite’s antenna. For example, a
vertically polarized antenna will receive the signal transmitted on the vertical
polarization by the satellite. In the case where the antenna is rotated 90 degrees
and is oriented horizontally, versus vertically, there will be very little to no
reception of the signal. This misalignment of the antenna in respect to the
polarization is called “Cross-polarization”.

Properly aligning your antenna to the appropriate satellite and polarization is

crucial to the completion of a satellite link. PanAmSat requires an antenna
pattern test, or the antenna manufacture’s pattern test, to ensure the antenna’s
reflectors will focus the RF energy appropriately and will not interfere with
other satellite signals during a transmission. PanAmSat has also required that all
transmitting earth stations contact the PanAmSat Network Operations Center
(NOC) prior to transmitting to a PanAmSat satellite to ensure the antenna will
be aligned to the appropriate polarization and satellite before transmitting.

THE UPLINK
The other major components of a typical earth station uplink are the modem,
upconverter, and high-powered amplifier. The following is a brief description of
each.

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E A R T H S T A T I O N

Modem: Modulates a baseband signal to an Intermediate Frequency (IF).

Usually 70MHz or 140MHz.

Upconverter: Converts IF to RF.

High Power Amplifier (HPA): Increases the power of the RF signal to achieve
satisfactory uplink operations.

THE DOWNLINK
On the downlink side you would typically have a low noise amplifier,
downconverter, and modem. A low noise block downconverter can be used in
place of a low noise amplifier and downconverter. The following is a brief
description of each.

Low Noise Amplifier (LNA): Amplifies the RF signal received from the
satellite.

Downconverter: Converts the RF into IF that is then sent to the modem.

Low Noise Block Downconverter (LNB): Amplifies and converts the RF

signal from the satellite into IF. Essentially it is a Low Noise Amplifier (LNA)
and downconverter that have been incorporated into a single unit

Modem: Demodulates the IF signal and extracts the data for use.

Keep in mind that depending on several factors, earth stations may use
additional equipment that is not listed here.

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 Satellites

The satellite is a very complex communication device and continues to grow in

complexity. The following section will cover the very basic components of a
satellite and the basic operations of each. It should be noted that any figures
used are not a detailed representation but a basic diagram to complement the
text within this document.

Every manufactured satellite consists of many different parts, including some

that are very specific to its function; the following two components are common
to all satellites:

• Bus

• Payload

BUS
The bus is the platform that supports the payload from launch through the end of
its life. The bus is made up of the frame and the bus subsystems which include
attitude control, power system, orbital control, thermal control and the TT&C
(Tracking, Telemetry and Command) system.

PAYLOAD
The payload of a satellite is all the specialized equipment needed to perform its
designed function.

A communications payload, like the ones installed on PanAmSat satellites, act

like a communications repeater. RF signals to the satellite are received,
converted, amplified, and transmitted back to Earth.

The payload includes the antenna, wide-band receivers, input and output
multiplexers, programmable attenuation devices, and amplifiers. Satellites
designed with a single payload are only able to operate with a single band of
frequencies, either C or Ku. Satellites with dual payloads, also known as Hybrid
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S A T E L L I T E S

Satellites, are able to operate with both C and Ku bands (1 band per payload).
Each payload has a set of components that operates with a specific band of

frequencies. What follows is an overview of each component and how it affects

the RF signal.

Figure 5:Major Components of a typical satellite payload

Receive/Transmit Antenna. Satellites very often use the same antenna to

receive and transmit RF signals. This idea is practical because the satellite
receives the uplink signal at a higher frequency and generally sends it back out
on the opposite polarization at a lower frequency. When receiving a signal, the
antenna routes the 500MHz RF to the appropriate wideband receiver determined
by the band and polarization. When transmitting, the satellites antenna feed horn
determines the polarization of the signal and directs it onto the antenna to be
reflected back to earth.

Wideband Receiver: Receives the full 500MHz RF uplink signal of its

assigned band and polarization. The wideband receiver uses a local oscillator
(also known as a frequency downconverter) to convert the signal to a downlink
frequency. The output signal is then sent to the input multiplexer (IMUX).
Typically there is a wide-band receiver for each polarization (horizontal and
vertical) on each payload (C and Ku).

Input Multiplexer: Takes the 500MHz set of frequencies and separates them
into individual channels (also known as transponders). These individual

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S A T E L L I T E S

transponder signals are then sent through a programmable attenuation device

(PAD) on its way to its assigned amplifier.

Programmable Attenuation Device (PAD): Adjusts the power of the signal

prior to the amplifier. It is used to lower the amount of “noise” being amplified
by the spacecraft’s amplifier. Amplifiers with higher attenuation require a
stronger signal from the earth station in order to achieve the satellite link.

Amplifiers: Increases the power of each signal sent to the satellite and routed
to an output multiplexer. PanAmSat satellites use solid-state-power amplifiers
(SSPA), traveling-wave-tube amplifiers (TWTA), or linear- traveling-wave-tube
amplifiers (LTWTA). Each amplifier type has distinct advantages. For example,
although the SSPA has a longer life expectancy, the TWTA has a simpler
design and is more efficient at higher power levels.

Output Multiplexer: Recombines all transponders into a 500MHz wide-band

configuration and is then routed through a wave-guide to the transmitting
antenna’s feed horn.

As mentioned earlier, the satellite and all its components simply act as a repeater
situated in space. Although many satellites contain only a single payload, some
satellites carry dual payloads.

TRANSPONDERS
The word “Transponder” is an actual contraction of “transmitter-responder.” It
is used to describe a single RF channel that is created at the input multiplexer
when it takes the 500MHz set of frequencies and separates them into individual
frequency channels. Each transponder is routed to an assigned PAD and
amplifier, and then recombined at the output multiplexer.

PanAmSat, along with coordination with the FCC and other satellite providers,
added an additional measure to ensure that interference between satellites is
minimized. Coordinating each satellite’s transponder frequency plan and the
orbital slot it will occupy helps reduce the amount of interference between
satellites.
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S A T E L L I T E S

Typically U.S. C-band satellites in operation, whether owned by PanAmSat or

any other satellite provider, are coordinated to have the same transponder format
as shown in figure 6. Each transponder has 36MHz of usable bandwidth with
2MHz of guard band filter on each side (guard band is an additional measure to
minimize interference between adjacent transponders), for a total of 40MHz
from the center frequency of one transponder to the center frequency of the
adjacent transponder. U.S. C-Band satellites have been coordinated to have 24
transponders for each payload, 12 transponders on each polarization.

H
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23
3700 4200
MHz MHz
2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24
V

500 MHz

Figure 6: Transponder Layout for a domestic C-band payload

Unfortunately, Ku-band satellites do not follow any standard. On Ku-Band

satellites, the number of transponders, assigned frequencies, and usable
bandwidth for each transponder may vary.

FOOTPRINT
The transmitting and receiving antennas on the satellite are designed to cover
specific regions of the earth’s surface. This is done for several reasons. First, it
concentrates the power radiated from the satellite into the desired region.
Second, it increases the sensitivity of its receiving antenna minimizing
interference with other adjacent satellite signals. The part of the earth’s surface
covered by a satellite is called the satellite’s footprint. The footprint may cover
one or more relatively localized regions of the earth or nearly a complete
hemisphere. Figure 7 is an example of a footprint for G11 Horizontal Ku-band.

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S A T E L L I L T E S

Figure 7: G11 Ku Horizontal footprint

ORBIT
Most communications satellites are in a geo-synchronous orbit. A satellite in
geo-synchronous orbit must be positioned 22,300 miles above the equator. At
this distance, it takes the satellite 24 hours to circle the Earth, which is the same
amount of time it takes for the earth to rotate one time hence the Earth and
satellite are in sync.

Achieving and maintaining a correct orbital attitude requires ongoing

coordination between ground tracking and command functions and the
satellite’s attitude control, telemetry, and orbital control subsystems.

The engineers at the PanAmSat Satellite Operations Control Center (OCC) are
responsible for guiding satellites to their orbital slots after launch and for
keeping the satellites within their orbital slot until the end of its life (usually
about 12 to 14 years). As mentioned earlier, The ITU-R coordinates who will

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S A T E L L I T E S

occupy each orbital slot. Each orbital slot corresponds to the longitudinal
position directly above the earth’s equator.

Once the satellite is in orbit, and throughout the satellite’s life span, periodic
adjustments must be made to keep the satellite within its assigned orbital
location, also known as “center of box”. These adjustments, or maneuvers, are
usually needed every two to three weeks. Some of the newer satellites calculate
their own position and fire thrusters numerous times each day. They are
considered to always be at “center of box”. Collectively, these adjustments are
called station keeping.

Because satellites have a limited amount of fuel, every maneuver must be

calculated precisely in terms of fuel consumption. A satellite’s life span depends
upon its fuel supply and its ability to be maneuvered. Once the fuel is almost
depleted, the satellite can no longer be maintained and must be taken out of orbit
by burning off the remaining fuel to push the satellite to a higher (super-sync)
orbit.

POWER
A communication satellite’s primary source of power is its solar array. Arrays
of solar cells convert sunlight to electrical energy. Batteries are used as back up
and during times of eclipse, which is when the satellite is in the earth’s shadow
and it is unable to utilize the sun for energy.

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 Carriers

An RF signal centered on a specific frequency is called a carrier. The carrier

may be a continuous wave (CW), also known as a clean carrier, or it may
contain modulation. The two general forms of modulation are Analog and
Digital. The information, whether it is video, data or voice, is carried within the
modulation of the carrier. Depending on the amount of information, the rate and
type of modulation, and the quality desired would determine how much
bandwidth the carrier will utilize or occupy.

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 Link Budgets

A link budget involves addition and subtraction of gains and losses within an
RF link. When these gains and losses of various components are determined and
summed, the result is an estimation of end-to-end system performance in the
real world. To arrive at an accurate answer, factors such as the uplink power
amplifier gain and noise factors, transmit antenna gain, slant angles and
corresponding atmospheric loss over distance, satellite transponder noise levels
and power gains, receive antenna and amplifier gains and noise factors, cable
losses, adjacent satellite interference levels, and climatic attenuation factors
must be taken into account.

Fortunately with the help of PanAmSat’s Customer Support Engineers (CSE)

and computer programs, a link budget can be calculated to help in the design of
your RF link.

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 Conclusion

All man made Satellites serve the same basic purpose: To communicate
information. The type of information usually determines the satellite's design
and orbit. Today, there are numerous satellites orbiting the earth at various
altitudes used for a wide range of specialized functions.

Communications satellites are primarily used as repeaters in space. An earth

station would transmit an RF carrier (video or data) to the satellite. The satellite
would then receive and transmit the RF signal back down to earth onto a
specific footprint where it may be received and demodulated by one or several
earth stations.

Today’s satellites are complex devices that are continuing to grow in their
complexity. This guide was intended to give you, our customer, a basic
understanding of satellite communications. We hope that it has been helpful and
look forward to continuing to provide you with excellent customer service.

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 Recommended Reading

Elbert, Bruce R. Introduction to Satellite Communications Second Edition

Norwood, MA: Artech House Inc., 1999

Roddey, Dennis Satellite Communications Second Edition New York, NY:

McGraw-Hill, 1996

Maral, Bousquet, Satellite Communications Systems: Systems, Techniques and

Technology Hobokon, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2002

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