Communications Satellites
Orbits
Mobile Satellite Service Orbits
The MSS sector was created to address a specific market that was underserved by FSS: maritime voice and data, enabling emergency communications for ships at sea. Subsequent MSS systems tried to create ubiquitous coverage for land and sea customers, especially in areas that were underserved by terrestrial mobile telephony. For years, MSS systems were designed using satellites in GEO or LEO that were able to transmit low-data rate information to mobile receiving systems, such as satellite telephones or receiving stations on ships.
Fixed Satellite Service Orbits
GEO satellites can broadcast a signal to one-third of the Earth’s surface. They are ideal for FSS operators, who broadcast to antennas spread across several continents. Of the ## communications satellites active at the end of 2013, ## were located in GEO and were primarily used for FSS. The dominant players in satellite communications have been Intelsat, SES, Eutelsat, and Telesat. These four companies have expanded their respective fleets through construction and launch as well as consolidation and acquisition of competitors’ satellites.
Orbits
Telecommunications satellites include all spacecraft whose main mission is to collect, relay, or broadcast data, which may include voice, video, and other information. Depending on the type of system, communications satellites range from very small to very large satellites and can operate from all Earth orbits. The vast majority fall into one of two categories: geosynchronous orbiting (GEO) satellites and large constellations located in Low Earth Orbit (LEO)/Medium Earth Orbit (MEO).
2013 – Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) Space Activities
Another MSS industry leader is Iridium, which operates a LEO constellation of ## active satellites to provide global coverage. The Iridium constellation uses intersatellite links to route network traffic directly between spacecraft, avoiding the need for multiple hops between space and ground to relay signals around the world. Like Inmarsat, Iridium is significantly upgrading its network to reach new customer bases with new technology.
2013 – Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) Space Activities
The number of FSS satellites has grown tremendously over the past five years in response to increased demand. Deregulation of international markets has sparked the rise of new companies providing content to customers via satellite. Harmonization of digital transmission standards has helped manufacturers, allowing for economies of scale and more cost-effective distribution.
2012 – Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) Space Activities
One MSS industry leader, Iridium, is implementing a major network upgrade. In June 2010, Iridium selected France’s Thales Alenia Space as prime contractor for its second-generation satellite constellation, named Iridium NEXT. The upgraded network will consist of ## active and ## spare satellites, scheduled for launch between 2015 and 2017.[
2012 – Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) Space Activities
GEO satellites can allow a signal to be beamed over a wide fixed coverage area, with the potential to reach a third of the Earth’s surface. They are thus ideal for FSS operators, who often use them to send a single data stream to many stationary antennas in one or more continents. FSS satellites provide DTH video or internet services, corporate network connectivity, broadcast video distribution, and secure communications for the military. Of the ## total active satellites in 2012, ## are communications satellites.
2011 – Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) Space Activities
Iridium’s LEO constellation of ## active and ## spare satellites relay signals to each other directly, unlike other systems that require multiple hops between space and the ground to send signals around the world. In June 2010, the company named France’s Thales Alenia Space as prime contractor to construct the communications payload for Iridium’s second-generation, ##-satellite constellation Iridium NEXT.
2011 – Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) Space Activities
GEO satellites provide a wide fixed coverage area, making them ideal for sending one signal to a large number of stationary antennas. There were ## fixed satellite services (FSS) satellites in orbit during 2011, providing DTH video, satellite radio, broadband internet, broadcast video distribution, and corporate network connectivity. The dominant providers of international FSS are Intelsat (## satellites), SES (##), Eutelsat (##), and Telesat (##).
2010 – Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) Space Activities – Snapshot
The dominant providers of international fixed satellite services (FSS) are Intelsat, SES, Eutelsat, and Telesat. These four companies collectively own nearly half of all GEO commercial communications satellites (125 satellites, or 47% of the total), and represented 49% of total FSS market revenues in 2010.