3410 lines
178 KiB
Plaintext
3410 lines
178 KiB
Plaintext
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COMMUNICATIONS IN SPACE))EDITION 5.5
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THE LAST DXers GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
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George Wood January, 1994
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Introduction)Satellites...........................................1
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Part I: Satellite Broadcasting)TVRO
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North America..........................................2
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Latin America
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Europe and Astra......................................12
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Africa................................................26
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Middle Eastern Satellite Broadcasting
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Asia and the Pacific..................................29
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Global Satellite Channels.............................33
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Part II: Weather and other "Utility" Satellites
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Weather Satellites....................................36
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Amateur Radio in Space................................38
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Part III: Monitoring the Space Shuttle, MIR, and the Military
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The Shuttle and MIR...................................40
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Military Communications in Space......................43
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Part IV: Horizons.................................................44
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For More Information..............................................45
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Copyright 1994 Radio Sweden. Reproduction of this publication is
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permitted provided credit is given to Radio Sweden and
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"Communications in Space".
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Radio Sweden is not responsible for anything that might happen
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because of possible mistakes, inaccuracies, or out)of)date
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information.
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INTRODUCTION SATELLITES
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In the beginning, the Great Prophet Marconi cast his bread upon
the waves.
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Long, medium, even short wave))the ether was filled, and at
home listeners tuned
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the bands, and heard far away signals from
Bonaire, Motala, and Oakland.
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Then, on October 4, 1957, the world changed. The Soviet Union
launched the
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Sputnik satellite, and listeners around the world tuned in
to its signals just
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above 20 MHz. The Space Age had begun.
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What we find is this...the skies are filled with satellites that
can be
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monitored, some with simple equipment, some with more complex
and expensive
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gear. Weather pictures, satellite TV, astronauts and
cosmonauts, computer
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bulletin boards in the sky, are all there waiting.
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We used to call satellite DXing the shortwave listening of the
future. Well,
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the future is now. The signals are there, and more are
coming. This guide is
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intended to help you tune in to signals from
space. Equipment varies from USD
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2000 for C)Band TVRO dishes and
receivers to less than USD 200 for a scanner and
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discone antenna for
monitoring weather satellites.
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Communications satellites were first proposed by science fiction
writer Arthur
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C. Clarke in 1945. Clarke pointed out that if a satellite
was positioned high
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enough above the equator (36,000 kilometers or
23,000 miles), its orbit could be
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matched to the rotation of the Earth.
The satellite would appear to remain fixed
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in one particular spot in
the sky. Such a position would be ideal for relaying
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telephone, radio
and television communications. Three such satellites
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located
equidistant from each other could cover the entire Earth.
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It took technology a while to catch up with Clarke's idea. In 1957
the Soviet
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Union launched Sputnik, the world's first artificial
satellite. In 1962 the
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United States launched Telstar, the first
communications satellite. Today there
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are more than 100 commercial TV
and telecommunications satellites in
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geostationary orbit, and many more
are scheduled for launch before the end of
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the century.
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In addition, there are communications satellites in non*geostationary orbits
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(such as the former Soviet Molniya), weather and
other Earth resources
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satellites, amateur radio satellites, and
American and CIS space vehicles. All
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are accessible, if you have the
right equipment.
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The Third World AA
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In many ways, Third World countries have more to gain from
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satellite communications than do the developed nations. Arthur C.
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Clarke is today a citizen of Sri Lanka, and a dedicated advocate of
satellites
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for Third World development. As one of Sri Lanka's
representatives at a UNESCO
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conference in 1981, Clarke said:
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"To many developing countries, satellites are ESSENTIAL; they will
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make it unnecessary to build the elaborate and expensive ground systems
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required in the past. Indeed, to many countries, satellites could be a
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matter of life and death."
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\v\ PART I: SATELLITE BROADCASTING)TVRO
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Television Receive Only (TVRO) systems allow home monitors to tune
in to radio
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and television from geostationary satellites. There are
around 3.5 million TVRO
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installations in North America and more than 1
million in Europe. Numbers are
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rapidly increasing in India, China, and
other parts of Asia. Latin America and
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Africa are areas of expansion,
where satellites are generally used for relays to
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television stations
and cable networks, rather than direct to home (DTH).
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To tune in to broadcast satellites, you need a dish antenna and
receiver.
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Antennas vary from 20 centimeters for the strongest DBS
satellites to 3 meters
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or more for weak signals in the C)band. Antennas
can also be fixed in one
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position, for reception of just one satellite,
or motorised, to permit reception
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of many satellites. The signals are
picked up by Low Noise Block amplifiers
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(LNBs) and fed by low loss
cables to receivers. Fixed antennas can even have
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extra LNBs amounted
to pick up additional satellites.
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Different bands are used for satellite broadcasting. Some are more
common in
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different parts of the world. Higher frequency bands
generally require smaller
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dish antennas. The satellite TV bands are:
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S)Band 1700)3000 MHz
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C)Band 3700)4200 MHz
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Ku1)Band 10.9)11.75 GHz
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Ku2)Band 11.75)12.5 GHz (DBS)
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Ku3)Band 12.5)12.75 GHz
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Ka)Band 18.0)20.0 GHz
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I. North America
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Most North American TVRO still uses the C)Band, although Ku)band
use is
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increasing. C)band dish antennas are at least nine feet (3
meters) in diameter.
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Dishes and receiver prices start at around USD
1000 for motorized systems
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without decoders, and USD 1500 for systems
with decoders. There are also fixed
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dish systems available for the
Galaxy 5 satellite, which is currently the
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American "hot bird",
offering a wide variety of free and subscription
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programming (see
below). An antenna and receiver for Galaxy 5 is available for
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around
USD 800, with a decoder for an extra USD 375.
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Here are the North American C and Ku)Band downlink frequencies:
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Channel 1 = 3720/11730 MHz Channel 13 = 3960/12096 MHz
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Channel 2 = 3740/11743 Channel 14 = 3980/12109
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Channel 3 = 3760/11791 Channel 15 = 4000/12157
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Channel 4 = 3780/11804 Channel 16 = 4020/12170
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Channel 5 = 3800/11852 Channel 17 = 4040
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Channel 6 = 3820/11865 Channel 18 = 4060
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Channel 7 = 3840/11913 Channel 19 = 4080
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Channel 8 = 3860/11926 Channel 20 = 4100
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Channel 9 = 3880/11974 Channel 21 = 4120
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Channel 10 = 3900/11987 Channel 22 = 4140
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Channel 11 = 3920/12035 Channel 23 = 4160
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Channel 12 = 3940/12048 Channel 24 = 4180
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The Ku)Band frequencies are based on a 16 channel system. For the
32 channel
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format, half)spacing is used.\v\
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The 27 C and Ku)Band satellites above North America stretch from
69 degrees
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West longitude to 139 degrees West. They typically carry 24
transponders (each
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transponder can carry one analog TV channel and
several radio channels or many
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voice and data channels). The older
satellite transponders each transmit with 5
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to 8 watts of power. The
newer generation, such as Satcom C4 and Telstar 401,
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are 16 to 20 watts
output.
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American programmers, led by the pay)film channel Home Box Office,
began
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scrambling signals in 1986. On April 27, 1986 a "video hacker"
calling himself
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Captain Midnight (the hi)tech hero of a 1960's TV
series) interrupted Home Box
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Office's broadcast of the film "Falcon and
the Snowman". He transmitted a
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message over the satellite link,
overpowering HBO's uplink to the Galaxy 1
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satellite. The message was a
protest against HBO's scrambling. (The choice of
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the film was apt, as
it concerns military spy satellites.)
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John McDougal, who called himself Captain Midnight. was traced to
a Florida
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uplink station where he worked part)time. He was fined USD
5000.
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Many popular American satellite channels now scramble their
signals, using the
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VC II or VC II+ systems. Modern satellite receivers
come equipped with decoders,
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and TVRO enthusiasts can subscribe to the
coded channels, either by monthly
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payment to the stations directly, or
to organizations offering special packages.
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The company manufacturing VC II decoders, General Instruments, has
a market
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monopoly. Separate decoders for receivers lacking them are
extremely difficult
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to find, and can cost between USD 600 and 800.
There is a lively underground of
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enthusiasts hacking decoders, hardware
and software, in order to view pay
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channels for free. A digital
compression system allowing up to 10 channels on a
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single transponder,
General Instrument's, DigiCipher, is gradually being
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introduced.
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American satellites have recently introduced a new system using
only 2 degree
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spacing, which may result in interference from adjacent
satellites with smaller
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dishes. Here are the satellites above North
America, and some of the more
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interesting satellite channels (C)band
and uncoded unless otherwise indicated):
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Satcom C5 (139 degrees): Also known as Aurora II, it has reached
its projected
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end)of)life, and is primarily used for non)video
purposes. Alaska Satellite TV
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is on transponder 24.
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Satcom C1 (137 degrees): Mainly the western coded feeds of network
affiliates
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from Denver. The Fox Network is on transponder 19, with the
Jade Channel in
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Chinese on transponder 5 and TV Japan, the NHK feed to
United States, is on
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transponder 17. NBC, which otherwise uses Ku)band
on the K)2 satellite, has its
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eastern feed on transponder 8, which is
sometimes in the clear.
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Satcom C4 (135 degrees): This high)powered satellite was launched
on August 31,
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1992. Deutsche Welle is on transponder 5, Italy's RAI on
7, shopping channels on
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9 and 10, music channel The Box on 11, the
Travel Channel on 13, the Cable
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Health Club on 14, and C)SPAN2 from the
U.S. Senate on 19. Viacom uses this
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satellite for its eastern coded
services, including MTV, VH)1, Nickelodeon, and
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the new digitally*encrypted MTV Latino in Spanish.\v\
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Galaxy 1 (133 degrees): This satellite includes several popular
coded services,
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including the Disney Channel (West), Comedy Central
(West), The Cartoon Network,
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Cinemax (East), HBO (East), Showtime 2,
and the Discovery Channel. Uncoded
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services include the TV Food
Network, the Nostalgia Channel, shopping,
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religious, and Spanish
language services Univision and Galavision. Other
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services have moved
to Galaxy 5.
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Satcom C3 (131 degrees): This powerful new satellite was launched
on September
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10, 1992. It carries many popular coded services,
including the Family Channel,
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Lifetime, Arts and Entertainment,
Showtime, and Nickelodeon. Uncoded services
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include the Learning
Channel, Courtroom)TV, C)SPAN1, two shopping channels, and
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E!
Entertainment.
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ASC)1 (128 degrees): 18 C)band and 6 Ku)band transponders. On C*band, the Home
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Dish Market Channel is on transponder 7, religious
programming on transponder
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12, Channel America on 20, and SCOLA, which
carries news from TV stations around
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the world, in on 23. (News from
Sweden's TV4 is now carried Monday to Friday at
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7:30 AM Eastern time,
and on Saturdays at 6:00 AM Eastern.) There are occasional
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transponders
on Ku)band channels 23 and 24.
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G)Star 2 (125 degrees) Ku)band only: Turner's Airport Channel is
on transponder
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20.
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Galaxy 5 (125 degrees): This new satellite is the first of a new
generation of
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high)powered satellites, and is somewhat similar to
Europe's Astra as a
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"hotbird" target for fixed systems. It includes
many popular coded services,
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including: the Disney Channel (transponder
1), Playboy (2), CNN (5), Turner
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Broadcasting (6), WGN (7), Home Box
Office (8 and 15), ESPN (9), The Family
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Channel (11), the Discovery
Channel (12), CNBC (13), the new ESPN 2 (14, and
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initially in the
clear), Cinemax (16), TNT (17), The Nashville Network (18), the
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USA
Network (19), CNN Headline News (22), and Arts and Entertainment
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(23).
Uncoded services include a religious broadcaster (3), the Science
Fiction
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Channel (4), a music channel (10), Black Entertainment TV (20),
and Mind
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Extension University (21). Viacom is carrying out digital
compression tests on
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transponder 24.
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Telstar 303 (123 degrees): Carries mainly TVN pay)per)view
programming. Fox
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(East) is on transponder 18, Fox (West) on transponder
23.
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SBS)5 (123 degrees) Ku)band only: mostly college and pro sports
feeds.
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Morelos 1 (113.5 degrees) and Morelos 2 (116.8 degrees): Mexico's
Morelos 1
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offers a number of local stations and sports feeds, some
coded and not available
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to the US market. Morales 2 is less active, but
Turner Broadcasting's TNT Latin
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America, coded and not available for
the US market, is on transponder 12.
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Anik E1 (111.1 degrees): Canadian channels and feeds. The TV
Northern Canada
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service for Native Americans is on transponder 19, and
TV5 Quebec is on
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transponder 17. Occasional transmissions of news and
sports on Ku)band.
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\v\ Anik E2 (107.3 degrees): Canadian stations including weather on
transponder
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1 and relays of the Canadian House of Commons on
transponder 24, with sound in
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English and French on separate
subcarriers. The CBC uses transponder 11
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(Pacific), 15 (French), and 19
(Atlantic), and other transponders for feeds. CBC
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Newsworld on
transponder 16 relays BBC World Service Television, but is coded in
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the
Oak system, as are several other transponders. Visnews/London
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uses
transponder 17. There are BBC feeds on transponder 7, including the
final
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10 minutes of BBC "Breakfast News" weekdays at 3:00 AM Eastern
Time. Many
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Canadian Channels on Ku)band as well.
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G)Star 4 (105 degrees) Ku)band only: News and sports feeds (CNN on
transponders
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21, 26, and 28), The Classroom Channel on transponders 31
and 32.
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Galaxy 6 (103 degrees): Moved from 99 degrees, sports feeds, with
the NHK feed
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to Tokyo on transponder 22.
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G)Star 1 (103 degrees) Ku)band only: news and sports feeds.
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Spacenet 4 (101 degrees): PBS uses transponders 4, 6, 8, 10, and
12. Newscasts
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from Britain's ITN can be found around 17:30 Eastern Time
via PBS on transponder
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10. There's a religious broadcaster on
transponder 9. Three of the six Ku-band
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transponders have gone bad and
are considered unusable.
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Galaxy 4 (99 degrees): Has replaced Galaxy 6 and Westar 4 at this
position. CBS
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makes extensive use of this satellite and Galaxy 7, with
occasional transponders
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in the clear, especially relays of the "CBS
Evening News" and sports feeds. CBS
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uses transponders 16, 17, 18, 19,
20, 21 and 24. Religious broadcasters on
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transponders 6, 15, and 23,
Spanish on 8, 13, and 14. On Ku)band, NASA Select
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uses transponder 18,
and the National Weather Net is on transponder 12. There
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are also many
news and sports feeds.
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|
|||
|
|
SBS)2 (97 degrees) Ku)band only: NBC News Channel is on
transponder 8, NBC
|
|||
|
|
feeds on transponders 3 and 9.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
SBS)6 (95 degrees) Ku)band only: CONUS News feeds on transponders
12 and 13,
|
|||
|
|
Asia Net (coded) on transponder 14.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BB Galaxy 3 (93.5 degrees): The Caribbean Satellite Network is on
transponder
|
|||
|
|
14, ABC is occasionally in the clear on transponder 18, as
is TV Asia (Hindi) on
|
|||
|
|
transponder 7. Other coded channels are Empire
Sports Network (2) and Radio
|
|||
|
|
Television Portugal (5). There are
religious broadcasters on transponders 11, 12
|
|||
|
|
and 21, shopping channels
on 10, 13, 15, and 17. The entertainment channel
|
|||
|
|
Showcase America is on
transponder 22.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
G)Star 3 (93 degrees): Ku)band only, in inclined orbit, only
occasional
|
|||
|
|
reception is possible.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Galaxy 7 (91 degrees): This new high)powered satellite carries 24
transponders
|
|||
|
|
in the C)band (16 watts each), and 24 in the Ku)band (50
watts each). CBS is a
|
|||
|
|
major user on C)band, sometimes in the clear,
with the Western network feed on
|
|||
|
|
transponder 2 and the Eastern feed on
19, and newsfeeds on 18. Many channels
|
|||
|
|
used for feeds, with the Fammily
Network on transponder 14. On Ku)band, there
|
|||
|
|
are many college and pro
sports feeds, the Asia)American Satellite Network in
|
|||
|
|
Chinese (12), The
Asia Net in Korean (15), and the Fire and Emergency TV Network
|
|||
|
|
(17). \v\
|
|||
|
|
On December 6, 1993 Emirates Dubai TV began broadcasts on Galaxy 7
in Arabic
|
|||
|
|
and English.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 3 (87 degrees): Nebraska Educational Television is on
transponders 2
|
|||
|
|
and 4. There are coded relays of local TV stations in
Dallas, New York, and Los
|
|||
|
|
Angeles and several sports channels. CNN
International and TNT Latin America is
|
|||
|
|
coded, not for the U.S. market,
on transponder 16. CNN newsfeeds in Spanish, not
|
|||
|
|
coded, are on
transponder 11. On Ku)band, there are sports feeds on transponders
|
|||
|
|
6
and 10.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom K)1 (85 degrees) Ku)band only: PrimeStar DBS pay channels
in B)MAC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Telstar 302 (85 degrees): Has taken over from Telstar 301 as a
major feed
|
|||
|
|
satellite. Paramount uplinks such programs as "Star Trek:
The Next Generation"
|
|||
|
|
and "Deep Space Nine" on transponder 3. Several
coded services, including HBO 2
|
|||
|
|
and 3, and Cinemax 2. The ABC Eastern
feed on transponder 10 is sometimes in the
|
|||
|
|
clear.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom K)2 (81 degrees) Ku)band only: NBC uses transponders 3
(East), 7
|
|||
|
|
(Pacific), 10 (sports), 15 (news and sports), 19 (Central),
23 (newsfeeds), and
|
|||
|
|
27 (newsfeeds). The North American Chinese
Television Network is on transponder
|
|||
|
|
28.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
SBS)4 (77 degrees) Ku)band only: NBC has acquired the entire
capacity of this
|
|||
|
|
satellite, the first time a broadcast network has
arranged to be the sole user
|
|||
|
|
of a satellite. The network will have
access for occasional use until February,
|
|||
|
|
1994, when it will have full*time access to all transponders. Hughes has allowed
|
|||
|
|
the satellite to
move into an inclined orbit, which will mean NBC affiliates
|
|||
|
|
must have
special tracking equipment, but the expected lifetime of the
|
|||
|
|
satellite
has been extended by as much as ten years, until well into the
|
|||
|
|
next
century.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Galaxy 2 (74 degrees): CNN feeds can be found on transponder 9,
sports feeds on
|
|||
|
|
many others.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom 2R (72 degrees): NASA Select TV, including live video from
space shuttle
|
|||
|
|
missions, is on transponder 13. Programming is in four
hour blocks, repeated
|
|||
|
|
during the broadcast day. The Arab Network of
America on transponder 1 is a
|
|||
|
|
Saudi)financed channel seeking to reach
the one million Arabic)speaking
|
|||
|
|
Americans and expatriates in the U.S.
It hopes to broadcast 24 hours a day of
|
|||
|
|
news, entertainment and
religious programming. New England Cable News is on
|
|||
|
|
transponder 21, NBC
sports feeds on 20, the Outdoor Channel on 3, and shopping
|
|||
|
|
channels on
7 and 11.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 2 (69 degrees West): The United States Information
Agency's Worldnet
|
|||
|
|
uses transponder 3. There are Spanish feeds and
programming on transponders 2
|
|||
|
|
(GEMS TV), 4 (Canal SUR))coded), and 5
(NBC Canal de Noticias). Main Street TV
|
|||
|
|
is on transponder 7. On Ku)band
there are news and sports feeds on transponders
|
|||
|
|
4 and 10, educational
programming on transponder 5.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 513 (53 degrees): is also used to relay signals from
Europe to North
|
|||
|
|
America. Australia uses the satellite to relay TV
programs from London to Los
|
|||
|
|
Angeles. They are retransmitted to
Australia from there on Intelsat 508 over the
|
|||
|
|
Pacific.\v\
|
|||
|
|
Panamsat 1 (45 degrees): used to relay across the Atlantic, to
Latin America
|
|||
|
|
and the Caribbean on C)band and to North America and
Europe on Ku)band. RTV
|
|||
|
|
Beograd is on 11.760 GHz to North America, TV
Japan feeds on 11.920 GHz, and
|
|||
|
|
Peru's Canal Sur on 4.140 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 601 (27.5 degrees), generally a European satellite, also
carries NTSC
|
|||
|
|
transmissions to North America from Europe. During the
lead up to the Gulf War
|
|||
|
|
its predecessor Intelsat VI)F4 was used for
NTSC feeds from the United States,
|
|||
|
|
presumably programs for American
soldiers in the Gulf, on Ku)band 11.056 and
|
|||
|
|
11.090 GHz. BBC World
Service Television is being relayed uncoded to the CBC on
|
|||
|
|
C)band
transponder 4, presumably 3.780 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat)K (21.5 degrees): This Ku)band only satellite was
launched in June,
|
|||
|
|
1992, also to relay signals across the Atlantic. The
satellite carries 32
|
|||
|
|
high)powered television channels, which can be
directed to North America (as far
|
|||
|
|
as the Midwest), Europe (as far east
as Greece), and selected parts of South
|
|||
|
|
America. All beams will use
11.45-11.7 GHz, while 11.7-11.95 GHz will also be
|
|||
|
|
used to the Americas.
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle and Italy's RAI use this satellite to relay their
services to
|
|||
|
|
North America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Coming Channels and Satellites
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Rupert Murdoch's Fox Inc. says that it will formally launch its
long planned
|
|||
|
|
basic cable network on March 1, 1994, and it has already
signed agreements with
|
|||
|
|
one-third of US cable networks for its
distribution. The network, known as FX,
|
|||
|
|
will be a general
entertainment network. New networks from Paramount and Time
|
|||
|
|
Warner are
also planned.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Turner Broadcasting will introduce two new channels next year, a
domestic feed
|
|||
|
|
of CNN International, and Turner Classic Movies. Turner
Classic Movies will
|
|||
|
|
debut on April 14, 1994, the exact centennial
anniversary of the first public
|
|||
|
|
movie showing in New York City. It will
air hundreds of movies from the 1930's
|
|||
|
|
to the 1980's.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Time Warner and Spiegel Inc. have announced they will launch two
cable
|
|||
|
|
television home shopping channels next year, including an
interactive "video
|
|||
|
|
shopping mall". The joint venture makrs the first
attempt by either company to
|
|||
|
|
develop a home shopping business. The
channels will feature clothes,
|
|||
|
|
accessories, and home furnishing sfrom
Spiegel's catalog and from its Eddie
|
|||
|
|
Bauer and other speciality
divisions.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The interactive channel will make its debut next April on an
experimental cable
|
|||
|
|
network Time Warner is building in Orlanda, Florida.
"The interactive channel
|
|||
|
|
will, in effect, be a video shopping mall,"
say the two companies. "Cable
|
|||
|
|
customers will be able to enter any
catalog 'store' at any time, view a variety
|
|||
|
|
of merchandise in full
motion video and make purchases on demand."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A more conventional home shopping channel with a working title of
"The Catalog
|
|||
|
|
Channel" will start in the first quarter of next year on
Time Warner's cable
|
|||
|
|
systems, the second largest in the US, with 7.1
million subscribers in 36
|
|||
|
|
states. The channel will later be offered to
other cable operators. \v\
|
|||
|
|
ValueVision International Inc., a TV home shopping network, has
signed up for a
|
|||
|
|
C-band transponder on Hughes Communications'
next-generation Galaxy 1-R
|
|||
|
|
satellite, set to be located at 133 degrees
west longitude.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The video game company Sega is planning to launch The Sega Channel
in 1994.
|
|||
|
|
Initially, viewers in 13 American cities will be offered a
chance to download
|
|||
|
|
games for Sega's Genesis megadrive games machine,
using a special decoder,
|
|||
|
|
before the service launches nationally in the
United States. Sega has joined
|
|||
|
|
forces with Time Warner and the giant
cable operator TCI to form the network.
|
|||
|
|
The 24)hour broadcast service
will feature specially)engineered play games,
|
|||
|
|
previews, hints and tips.
|
|||
|
|
Users will supply their own video games machine and rent the decoder
interface
|
|||
|
|
which enables them to utilise the programming carried by The
Sega Channel. Sega
|
|||
|
|
is rumored to be seeking access to a transponder on
Astra, for a European
|
|||
|
|
service next year.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Public Broadcasting System, PBS, together with WGBH in Boston
and WNET in
|
|||
|
|
New York, are planning to launch a channel devoted
exclusively to cultural
|
|||
|
|
programming. The new channel, called Horizons
TV, is expected to be running by
|
|||
|
|
the end of 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
PBS is expanding enormously when it moves to the Telstar 401
satellite, which
|
|||
|
|
was launched on December 15, 1993. The satellite is to
begin regular operation
|
|||
|
|
in February, 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
PBS intends to move to 6 Ku)band transponders on the new
satellite, 3 digital
|
|||
|
|
and 3 analog. C)band transmissions on Spacenet 4
transponder 4 would remain
|
|||
|
|
analog for dish owners.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
On Telstar 401 PBS will be using DigiCipher digital compression
techniques to
|
|||
|
|
squeeze 8 to 10 channels into each transponder. PBS plans
to provide a total of
|
|||
|
|
more than 40 Ku)band channels, creating what is
being described as an "education
|
|||
|
|
neighborhood". Most of these new
channels will be used for educational
|
|||
|
|
programming to schools. The plans
include two way contact, in which
|
|||
|
|
participating classes would interact
with the programming, sending data from
|
|||
|
|
computers over the telephone to
the closest PBS station, which would relay
|
|||
|
|
signals to the satellite.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
One transponder would carry the PBS national schedule A and B
programs, along
|
|||
|
|
with a high definition television program. While HBO
and other programmers will
|
|||
|
|
be using the General Instrument's DigiCipher
II technology, PBS will be using
|
|||
|
|
the non)consumer DigiCipher I
technology and those digital signals are not
|
|||
|
|
compatable with the other
system.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other users of Telstar 401 will include ABC and Paramount, for
relays of such
|
|||
|
|
programs as " Star Trek" and Entertainment Tonight".
|
|||
|
|
A second satellite is to launched in early 1994, and a third (to be
used as a
|
|||
|
|
spare) is scheduled for orbit in late 1994 or early 1995.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The NBC Network has acquired the entire capacity of the Ku)band
SBS)4
|
|||
|
|
satellite. NBC will use the satellite on an occasional)use basis
until
|
|||
|
|
September, 1994, when the network will have full)time access.
SBS-4 was launched
|
|||
|
|
in 1984 and carries ten 20-watt Ku-band
|
|||
|
|
transponders at 77 degrees west longitude. Hughes operates the
|
|||
|
|
satellite in an inclined geosynchronous orbit, enabling it to use
|
|||
|
|
less fuel with north-south station keeping. SBS-4 is expected to
|
|||
|
|
provide service until 2004. \v\
|
|||
|
|
NBC has also signed an agreement with GE Americom Communications
for Ku-band
|
|||
|
|
satellite capacity aboard its GE-1 satellite. Capacity
will be used from 1996.
|
|||
|
|
Like the SBS-4 transponders, NBC will use GE-1
transponders for feeds and
|
|||
|
|
program distribution.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
NBC has also increased its interest in American Television
|
|||
|
|
Network, a partnership that produces health and medical programmes
|
|||
|
|
aimed at consumers and physicians. NBC plans to transform the
|
|||
|
|
network into a 24-hour cable channel at a later stage.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Non)Video Signals
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Communications satellites carry much more than TV signals. There
are also
|
|||
|
|
telephone channels, transmissions by international news
agencies, stock market
|
|||
|
|
reports, commodity news, and hundreds of radio
network relays.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are two main kinds of audio signals. Audio subcarriers are
extra signals
|
|||
|
|
transmitted along with the video signal. The video
information on a satellite
|
|||
|
|
transponder typically occupies the space 0*4.2 MHz. Subcarriers are added at
|
|||
|
|
frequencies higher than the video.
Usually they will be on 6.2 or 6.8 MHz, but
|
|||
|
|
any frequency between 5 and
8 MHz can be used.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are more than 70 audio only signals available on North
American
|
|||
|
|
satellites. Here are a sample:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satellite/Channel Program Frequency(ies)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 2/3 Voice of America 5.92 MHz
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 2/4 SUR Radio (Spanish) 5.8
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 2/7 Spanish Christian Radio 5.94
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 2/20 AFRTS Radio 7.4
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom 2R/1 ANA Arab Net 6.8
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom 2R/7 Project Saturn Global 5.8
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom 2R/18 Radio Tropical (French) 7.6
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom 2R/23 Christian Music Network 6.2 7.6
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 3/2 Nebraska Public Radio 5.76 5.94
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 3/9 Modern Country 5.76 5.94
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 3/15 KLON)FM (Jazz/NPR) 5.58 5.76
|
|||
|
|
Radio Sedeye Iran 6.17
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 3/21 Let's Talk Radio 5.8
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Galaxy 3/22 KGAY Denver 7.46
|
|||
|
|
(off the air, Sept, 1993)
|
|||
|
|
\v\ Galaxy 4/8 Hispanic Radio Broad. Net. 7.75 7.93
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Galaxy 4/20 WCBS New York 7.4
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Anik E2/16 CBC Radio East 5.76 5.94
|
|||
|
|
CBC Radio Atlantic 6.12 6.3
|
|||
|
|
Voice Print)Reading Service 7.44
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Anik E2/20 CBC Radio East French 5.4 5.58
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Anik E2/22 CBC Radio Pacific 5.76 5.94
|
|||
|
|
CFMI)FM 6.8
|
|||
|
|
CBC Radio News B.C. 7.36
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Anik E1/17 Radio France International 5.41 6.12
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Galaxy 5/18 WSM Nashville 7.38 7.56
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Galaxy 5/22 CNN Headline News 7.56
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satcom C5/24 KSKA)FM Anchorage/NPR 7.38 7.56
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"Let's Talk Radio" is a program about radio and television on
Spacenet 3
|
|||
|
|
transponder 21, using the 6.2 MHz subcarrier (daily at 6:00
PM)1:00 AM Eastern
|
|||
|
|
Time). There are programs about satellites, amateur
radio, shortwave listening,
|
|||
|
|
and computers.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The satellite and cable station C)Span carries broadcasts from the
American
|
|||
|
|
Congress. C)Span also has two special audio channels. One
rebroadcasts BBC World
|
|||
|
|
Service 24 hours a day, the other carries a
variety of international
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters, including Deutsche Welle, Radio
Japan, "As It Happens" from the
|
|||
|
|
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and
Radio Sweden's program "Sweden Today".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"Sweden Today" is carried on Saturdays at 9:30 AM Eastern Time.
Other
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters are the Voice of America daily at 1:00)8:00 PM,
Radio Havana Cuba
|
|||
|
|
at 8:00 and 11:00 PM, Deutsche Welle during the week
and Radio Japan weekends at
|
|||
|
|
10:00 PM, and China Radio International at
midnight. Radio Japan is carried
|
|||
|
|
weekdays at 6:00 AM, and programs from
the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation are
|
|||
|
|
at 8:00 AM.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
C)Span has been on transponder 24 on the Galaxy 3 satellite at
93.5 degrees
|
|||
|
|
West. BBC World Service uses the subcarrier at 5.4 MHz.
The international
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters are on 5.22 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
KGAY, a new radio network for gays and lesbians, moved from
Spacenet 3R to
|
|||
|
|
Galaxy 6, transponder 17, using the audio subcarrier at
7.48 MHz. However it
|
|||
|
|
stopped satellite relays in September, 1993, and
it is uncertain if it will
|
|||
|
|
return.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Becker Satellite Network provides a common channel to a
variety of
|
|||
|
|
eccentric programmers. According to "Popular Communications"
magazine, it's a
|
|||
|
|
place where would)be pirate broadcasters can reach
listeners legally. Among the
|
|||
|
|
programmers are the former pirate Radio
New York International, the Satellite
|
|||
|
|
Information Service, the Johnny
Lightning Show, the World Jazz Federation, and
|
|||
|
|
DBI Satellite Radio
Talk. The Becker Satellite Network is on Spacenet 2,
|
|||
|
|
transponder 7,\v\audio 7.5 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Project Saturn Global is to be the world's first all educational
24 hour
|
|||
|
|
international satellite radio network. Regular broadcasts to
North America were
|
|||
|
|
due to begin in January, using the Galaxy 5
satellite, transponder 7, audio
|
|||
|
|
subcarrier 5.80 MHz. Programs will
originate from Los Angeles at 16:00 hrs
|
|||
|
|
daily.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Worldwide coverage is planned for April, 1993. The daily
programming is drawn
|
|||
|
|
from an audio library of more than 2000 programs,
aimed at all ages, with
|
|||
|
|
subjects ranging from fairy tales to computer
technology. Programs are to be
|
|||
|
|
repeated every eight hours to
accommodate global time zones, and will include
|
|||
|
|
hourly educational
news.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The World Radio Network, which carries programs from NPR and many
international
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters over an Astra transponder to Europe, is
starting a similar
|
|||
|
|
multi)lingual service to North America. The service
will be on an audio
|
|||
|
|
subcarrier of SCOLA on ASC)1, transponder 23.
Broadcasts are to officially begin
|
|||
|
|
on January 1, 1994, but test
transmissions may start on December 15, 1993. Radio
|
|||
|
|
Sweden will be
among the international broadcasters relayed to North America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are several digital satellite radio services in the United
States:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Digital Cable Radio transmits to American and Mexican subscribers
and cable
|
|||
|
|
systems on Satcom C3, transponder 9. Launched in May, 1990,
DCR was the first
|
|||
|
|
digital cable audio service marketed in the United
States. DCR currently
|
|||
|
|
provides 28 CD)quality radio channels. On May 1st
this is increasing to 56. DCR
|
|||
|
|
says that additional music, information,
news, talk and foreign language
|
|||
|
|
channels are set to be introduced,
along side additional commercial formats
|
|||
|
|
(background music) for
business users. DCR hopes to provide 250 channels within
|
|||
|
|
a few years.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
AA DCR plans to expand into Canada and is currently seeking
regulatory approval.
|
|||
|
|
DCR has long)term plans to launch the service in
Europe, the Far East and parts
|
|||
|
|
of Latin America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Another service called Digital Music Express, or DMX, is available
to more than
|
|||
|
|
10 million cable subscribers in the United States. It
offers themed channels of
|
|||
|
|
various types of music without the need for
DJs, jingles, or commercials. The
|
|||
|
|
DMX decoder, manufactured by
Scientific Atlanta, displays information on the
|
|||
|
|
music being played,
such as the name of the artist, song and album title,
|
|||
|
|
composer, and
chart position.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
International Cablecasting Technologies Inc. has signed a USD 20
million
|
|||
|
|
contract with Spar Communications Group for the supply of
digital audio
|
|||
|
|
receivers that will receive DMX's coming 120 channel
service by DBS satellite.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
DMX initially started with a 30 channel offering, but the company
is in the
|
|||
|
|
middle of an aggressive service and geographical expansion
programme. With the
|
|||
|
|
new receivers, customers can tune into 120 20Khz
CD-quality music channels at
|
|||
|
|
the touch of a button. The new offering
will be initially restricted to the
|
|||
|
|
North American marketplace, and it
will enable the company to expand its
|
|||
|
|
business music offering, DMX for
Business, which provides commercial-free,
|
|||
|
|
DJ-free music to stores,
offices and factories.\v\
|
|||
|
|
A 75 cm antenna will be used to receive broadcasts throughout the
USA and North
|
|||
|
|
America from the SBS-5 satellite. Each receiver is fully
addressable, enabling
|
|||
|
|
special broadcasts to be sent to subscribers.
There is also the capability to
|
|||
|
|
offer generic corporate programming
|
|||
|
|
broadcasts on under-utilised channels, switching in receivers as
required.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The second system of sending audio by satellite is SCPC (single
channel per
|
|||
|
|
carrier). This involves dividing up an entire transponder
into individual
|
|||
|
|
non)video channels. There is both FM and single side
band (SSB) SCPC. Most of
|
|||
|
|
the high quality audio (and data) services
today use FM/SCPC. It is typically
|
|||
|
|
used for network relays.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American non)commercial radio network National Public Radio
has 16 audio
|
|||
|
|
channels on Galaxy 6, on transponders 2, 3, and 4 (which
are used for many other
|
|||
|
|
SCPC services as well, such as NPR's rival,
American Public Radio. The BBC World
|
|||
|
|
Service is carried for some 8
hours a day on an APR SCPC channel.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are special SCPC receivers, but SCPC can be monitored with a
satellite)TV
|
|||
|
|
receiver and a continuous coverage scanner or VHF)UHF
communications receiver,
|
|||
|
|
although the quality may be less than with a
dedicated SCPC receiver. Some
|
|||
|
|
(older) TVRO receivers have intermediate
or downblock frequencies at 70 or 134
|
|||
|
|
MHz. If this signal is available,
a scanner or VHF)UHF receiver can be used to
|
|||
|
|
monitor the frequencies 18
MHz to either side of these channels on appropriate
|
|||
|
|
transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
On more modern TVRO set)ups, a splitter can be installed in the
cable from the
|
|||
|
|
LNB to the satellite receiver, and the extra output can
be fed through a DC
|
|||
|
|
block to an FM scanner that covers the LNB's 950*1450 MHz range.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Universal Electronics has developed the first consumer)priced SCPC
decoder,
|
|||
|
|
which can be attached easily to an ordinary satellite
receiver. Universal sells
|
|||
|
|
the SCPC)100 for USD 400, plus shipping. More
details from: Universal Radio,
|
|||
|
|
6830 Americana Parkway, Reynoldsburg,
Ohio, 43068, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
SSB/SCPC includes many digital services offering news or business
information.
|
|||
|
|
Fine tuning will reveal many radioteletype (RTTY) signals
which can be monitored
|
|||
|
|
with the proper RTTY interface.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Many satellites carry telephone services, One single transponder
can hold 9000
|
|||
|
|
telephone channels. These services can be monitored by
hooking an SSB
|
|||
|
|
communications receiver to the 0)4.2 MHz output of a
TVRO receiver, if this is
|
|||
|
|
available. The telephone services, on
satellites such as Satcom 5 and Galaxy 2,
|
|||
|
|
can usually be found by
tuning the SSB receiver between 3720 and 4180 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radio Netherlands is using PanAmSat (PAS)1) to broadcast to Latin
America and
|
|||
|
|
the Caribbean, but this is a digital audio signal (64 kb/s
in a 10 kHz audio
|
|||
|
|
channel). This Ku)band signal is downlinked in
Florida and uplinked on C)band to
|
|||
|
|
receiving stations in the Caribbean.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
IBM, NBC, and a company called NuMedia are to test a system of
"news on demand"
|
|||
|
|
delivered via satellite. The system, which would be
called NBC Desktop News,
|
|||
|
|
would allow people to scan lists of headlines
using personal computers and
|
|||
|
|
recall the stories that interest them. It
involves text, graphics, video and
|
|||
|
|
sound extracts in a multimedia PC\v\system.
|
|||
|
|
AA
|
|||
|
|
AA
|
|||
|
|
\\ North American DBS
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Most North American satellite television has been in the C)Band,
which is
|
|||
|
|
really intended for professional relays and not for home
viewing. Many American
|
|||
|
|
TVRO enthusiasts have added extra low noise
block amplifiers for Ku)Band,
|
|||
|
|
however. The NBC network, for example,
has stopped using C)Band, and can be
|
|||
|
|
found only in the Ku)Band, on the
K)2 satellite.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are also several plans for European)style direct broadcast
satellites
|
|||
|
|
(DBS) to North America, using the Ku)band. The first
proposals came in early
|
|||
|
|
1990, when General Electric announced a joint
venture with 9 major cable
|
|||
|
|
operators to deliver 10 channels of
programming using medium power in the
|
|||
|
|
Ku)band.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The service, called PrimeStar, began in November, 1990, using the
K)1 satellite
|
|||
|
|
stationed at 85 degrees West. It now uses 12 transponders
on the satellite.
|
|||
|
|
Three of the channels are pay per view, the others
so)called Super Stations, and
|
|||
|
|
include the Family Channel, the Nashville
Network, and Japan's NHK. Other
|
|||
|
|
services include PrimeAudio (digital
|
|||
|
|
audio and radio) and a range of news services delivered as data to
|
|||
|
|
the desktop including X*Press X*Change and X*Press X*Press
|
|||
|
|
Executive, provided by X*Press Corp.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
General Instrument Corp. has signed an agreement with Primestar to
|
|||
|
|
upgrade the DBS service with GI's DigiCipher digital video
|
|||
|
|
compression technology for all channels carried on the satellite.
|
|||
|
|
Up to 70 channels may be included by the end of 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Primestar Partners is a joint venture between many US cable
|
|||
|
|
companies, including TCI, Time Warner, Cox and Comcast, and GE
|
|||
|
|
American Communications.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Hughes Communications and United States Satellite Broadcasting are
starting a
|
|||
|
|
DBS system, called DirecTV. Two satellites would be able to
carry up to 150
|
|||
|
|
channels, including regular cable channels,
pay-per-view networks, and high
|
|||
|
|
definition television services.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The first DirecTV satellite, DBS)1, was launched from French
Guiana on December
|
|||
|
|
17, 1993. Tests will begin in January, 1994 and
receiving equipment going on
|
|||
|
|
sale in April. A second satellite will be
launched in June, 1994. There will be
|
|||
|
|
separate services from USSB and
Hughes' DirecTV. Together they will offer 100
|
|||
|
|
subscription channels and
50 more pay)per)view channels, using digital
|
|||
|
|
compression techniques.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Both satellites will be located at 101 degrees West, and will
deliver news,
|
|||
|
|
sports, movies, and other programming to American homes
equipped with 45 cm (18
|
|||
|
|
inch) antennas. Receiving systems will cost USD
700 plus installation. The cost
|
|||
|
|
of subscribing to 100 channels will be
around USD 50 a month.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Among the broadcasters lined up for DirecTV are several channels
from Turner
|
|||
|
|
Broadcasting: CNN International, CNN, Headline News, TNT,
Cartoon Network,
|
|||
|
|
Superstation TBS, and Turner Classic Movies. Other
broadcasters signed up
|
|||
|
|
include the USA Network, the Sci)Fi Channel, the
Nashville Network, Country
|
|||
|
|
Music Television, Discovery, the Learning
Channel, E! Entertainment, the Family
|
|||
|
|
Channel, Courtroom Television
Network, The Weather Channel, Playboy TV, The Golf
|
|||
|
|
Channel and The
Travel Channel.
|
|||
|
|
\v\ There are pay)per)view agreements with Paramount, Sony, MGM,
Disney, and
|
|||
|
|
Columbia Tristar. Around 50 PPV films will be carried on
the 150 channel system
|
|||
|
|
once launched.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
USSB has announced that their programming lineup contains 14
premium feeds
|
|||
|
|
(HBO 1, 2, and 3, Cinemax 1 and 2, and Showtime 1 and 2,
East and West in all
|
|||
|
|
cases) and six or seven basic channels (MTV, VH)1,
Nickelodeon, Comedy Central,
|
|||
|
|
E! Entertainment, All News Channel).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Federal Communications Commission has awarded direct broadcast
satellite
|
|||
|
|
orbital slot assignments and channel frequencies to two
companies called Direct
|
|||
|
|
Broadcasting Satellite Corporation and
Directsat. DSBC has been assigned 11
|
|||
|
|
transponders at both the 61.5
degrees and 175 degrees West orbital slots, with
|
|||
|
|
DSAT receiving 10
transponders at 119 degrees West, one at 110 degrees West and
|
|||
|
|
11 at 175
degrees West. Final launch approval is to be granted by the FCC
|
|||
|
|
by
March, 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The FCC hopes competition from DirecTV and other DBS ventures will
provide
|
|||
|
|
much)needed rivalry for cable systems, nearly all of which
operate as local
|
|||
|
|
monopolies. The cable companies are concerned about
the potential competition.
|
|||
|
|
There are fears of a different kind in
Canada, where the intrusion of 150
|
|||
|
|
channels of south)of)the)border
cultural imperialism has led to DirecTV being
|
|||
|
|
dubbed "The Death Star",
referring to the "Star Wars" films. There will be two
|
|||
|
|
Canadian channels
on DirecTV, however. The CBC is providing an international
|
|||
|
|
version of
its Newsworld service, while the privately)owned Power
|
|||
|
|
Broadcasting
will provide the Northstar Channel, a compilation of the best
|
|||
|
|
of
Canadian drama, arts, and entertainment.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other observers have asked what people will do with 150 or 500
channels. Large
|
|||
|
|
chunks, of course, will be allocated to pay)per)view
blockbuster movies, with
|
|||
|
|
the same film starting every 20 or 30 minutes
so viewers will never have to wait
|
|||
|
|
longer than that. One DBS expert has
pointed to the proliferation of magazines
|
|||
|
|
on store racks, and suggested
that the magazine racks of the future will be
|
|||
|
|
satellites offering
scores, or even hundreds, of narrow channels appealing to
|
|||
|
|
various
interests. There are already cable systems in the United States
offering
|
|||
|
|
500 video channels.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The cable giant TCI has ordered two Tempo DBS satellites, to be
launched in
|
|||
|
|
June and October 1996. Each will feature 32 high)powered
transponders at 107
|
|||
|
|
watts, switchable to 16 transponders at 200+ watts.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\Z\ II. Latin America and the Caribbean
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Latin American signals can be found on a number of satellites,
such as
|
|||
|
|
Intelsats K, 601, and 513. There are extensive relays from
Europe as well on
|
|||
|
|
Panamsat and more planned on Hispasat. Many Latin
American services from North
|
|||
|
|
America are on Spacenet 2 (the women's
channel GEMS TV on transponder 2, Canal
|
|||
|
|
SUR on transponder 4, and Canal
de Noticias NBC on transponder 5), and Galaxy 4
|
|||
|
|
(Telemundo on
transponders 8 and 14).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Mexico's Galavision is on Galaxy 1 transponder 20, and Univision
on transponder
|
|||
|
|
6.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Canal SUR (Sistema Unida de Retransmision) is a coded satellite
service in
|
|||
|
|
Spanish and Portuguese from Latin America to North America.
It includes
|
|||
|
|
broadcasts from stations in Argentina, Brazil, Chile,
Colombia, Ecuador, and
|
|||
|
|
Peru.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are two new services to Spanish)speaking people in the
United States,
|
|||
|
|
both using the DigiCipher digital compression system.
|
|||
|
|
MTV started its MTV Latino service in October, 1993 from Miami.
Initially MTV
|
|||
|
|
Latino is reaching 1.9 million homes in 10 Latin American
countries and some
|
|||
|
|
parts of the United States, but hopes to eventually
reach 3 to 5 million homes.
|
|||
|
|
MTV Latino is on the Satcom C3 satellite.
MTV hopes its sister channels, VH)1
|
|||
|
|
and Nickelodeon, will follow into
Latin America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American pay)film channel Home Box Office has also launched
|
|||
|
|
a
Spanish)language version of its regular schedule of movies,
|
|||
|
|
original
programming, and sports to major Hispanic markets in the United
|
|||
|
|
States.
"HBO en Espanol" will be available soon in San Francisco,
|
|||
|
|
Houston,
Albuquerque, El Paso, and San Diego.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
When consumer DigiCipher receivers become available in mid to late
1994, it is
|
|||
|
|
expected that these and other DigiCipher services will be
sold to home dish
|
|||
|
|
owners.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Caribbean Satellite Network went on the air in December,
|
|||
|
|
1992,
appropriately following the 500th anniversary of the arrival
|
|||
|
|
of
Christopher Columbus in that part of the world. Signals are uplinked
from
|
|||
|
|
Miami to the Galaxy 3 satellite, transponder 14. Programing
concentrates on
|
|||
|
|
music, but there will also be documentaries based on
life in the Caribbean,
|
|||
|
|
news, and situation comedies. European relays
are also planned.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Turner Television's Cartoon Network began broadcasts in May to
Latin America,
|
|||
|
|
transmitting to 300,000 subscribers mainly in Argentina.
The channel will
|
|||
|
|
eventually have three audio subcarriers for English,
Spanish, and Portuguese.
|
|||
|
|
CNN International and TNT Latin America
broadcast coded on Spacenet 3
|
|||
|
|
transponder 16.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Fox has recently launched a small cable channel to South America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Brazil has its own satellite, Brasilsat, which was launched in
1986 and is
|
|||
|
|
located at 70 degrees West. This C)band only satellite
carries a variety of
|
|||
|
|
Brazilian stations, all in M)PAL.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Mexico's two Morales satellites are listed above. Mexico is
following up with
|
|||
|
|
two new communications satellites called Solidaridad,
built by Hughes. Besides
|
|||
|
|
Mexico, they will have spot beams to cover the\v\southern United States, the
|
|||
|
|
Caribbean, and South America. The new
satellites will have three times the
|
|||
|
|
capacity of the two Morelos
satellites. Solidaridad)1 was launched on November
|
|||
|
|
19, 1993, and will
be placed at 109 degrees West. Solidaridad)2 is scheduled for
|
|||
|
|
launch in
1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radiotelevision Espanola's Canal Iberoamericano Television will
use Spain's
|
|||
|
|
Hispasat satellite to reach Latin America. 18 hours a day
of broadcasts from
|
|||
|
|
Valencia are to begin by the end of this year.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BBC World Service Television, Reuters, and Telemundo are
negotiating on
|
|||
|
|
creating a 24 hour Spanish)language news service for
Latin America, Spain, and
|
|||
|
|
the United States. Telemundo currently
operates a Spanish language channel on
|
|||
|
|
the Spacenet 2 satellite which
by satellite and cable reaches 85 percent of the
|
|||
|
|
Hispanic households in
the United States. The new channel would broadcast from
|
|||
|
|
Miami by
satellite and cable, and would start later this year.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Grupo Televisa and the the largest cable operator in the US, TCI,
have agreed
|
|||
|
|
to form a joint venture to provide cable, pay)TV, and
multi)channel television
|
|||
|
|
to Mexico and other Latin American countries.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
AA Two major Christian shortwave broadcasters, HCJB in Ecuador, and
Trans World
|
|||
|
|
Radio, have announced they are launching a 24 hour Latin
American satellite
|
|||
|
|
radio network. The target date was November 20, 1993
and they'll be using
|
|||
|
|
digital technology to reach a network of affiliate
stations from the US)Mexican
|
|||
|
|
border to the southern tip of Chile.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\<\ III. Europe and Astra
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Soviet Union's Ghorizont was the first TV satellite over
Europe. While, the
|
|||
|
|
Ghorizont satellites operate mainly in the C)Band,
Western European satellites
|
|||
|
|
use several sections of the Ku)Band for
different purposes. The Ku1)Band
|
|||
|
|
10.9)11.75 GHz is, like the American
C)Band, intended for professional relays
|
|||
|
|
and not for home viewing. Home
reception was originally intended for the Ku2
|
|||
|
|
(DBS) Band 11.75)12.5
GHz. The Ku3)Band 12.5)12.75 GHz, or Telecom Band, is also
|
|||
|
|
not intended
for home viewing.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The first Western European satellites were from Eutelsat, which is
made up of
|
|||
|
|
the PTTs and Telecom administrations of Western European
countries. The
|
|||
|
|
intention was that individual countries would offer home
viewing to their own
|
|||
|
|
residents over high)powered DBS satellites
offering only a few channels. Astra,
|
|||
|
|
operated by Luxembourg's SES, has
changed all that.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Because Astra's several medium)powered satellites are at the same
spot in the
|
|||
|
|
sky, viewers with relatively small fixed antennas (60)90
cm) can tune into all
|
|||
|
|
available channels.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Here are the channels on Astra 1A, 1B, and 1C (as of Jan., 1994):
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Channel Transponder Frequency Language
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
1 RTL 2 11.214 GHz German
|
|||
|
|
2 RTL Plus 11.229 German
|
|||
|
|
3 TV3 Sweden (D2)MAC) 11.244 English/Swedish
|
|||
|
|
4 Eurosport 11.258 English/German/Dutch
|
|||
|
|
5 Vox 11.273 English/German
|
|||
|
|
6 SAT 1 11.288 German
|
|||
|
|
7 TV1000 (D2)MAC) 11.303 Swedish/English (pay)
|
|||
|
|
8 Sky One 11.317 English (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
9 Teleclub 11.332 German (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
10 3)SAT 11.347 German
|
|||
|
|
11 FilmNet+ (to Scandinavia) 11.362 English (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
12 Sky News 11.377 English
|
|||
|
|
13 RTL 4 11.391 Dutch
|
|||
|
|
14 Pro 7 11.406 German (partly pay)
|
|||
|
|
15 MTV Europe (northern Eur.) 11.421 English
|
|||
|
|
16 Sky Movies Plus 11.435 English (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
17 Premiere 11.464 German (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
18 The Movie Channel 11.479 English (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
19 ARD 11.493 German
|
|||
|
|
20 Sky Sports 11.509 English (pay)
|
|||
|
|
21 DSF (Sports) 11.523 German
|
|||
|
|
22 MTV Europe (southern Eur.) 11.538 English
|
|||
|
|
23 UK Gold 11.553 English (free)coded)
|
|||
|
|
24 JSTV 11.567 Japanese
|
|||
|
|
25 N3 11.582 German
|
|||
|
|
26 Sky Gold/TV Asia 11.597 English/Hindi (pay)
|
|||
|
|
27 TV3 Denmark (D2)MAC) 11.611 Danish
|
|||
|
|
28 CNN International 11.626 English
|
|||
|
|
29 n)tv (News) 11.641 German
|
|||
|
|
30 Cinemania 11.656 Spanish (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
31 TV3 Norway (D2)MAC) 11.670 English/Norwegian
|
|||
|
|
32 Documania 11.685 Spanish (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
33 ZDF 10.964 German
|
|||
|
|
34 UK Living 10.979 English (pay channel)\v\ 35 Children's/Family
|
|||
|
|
Channel 10.994 English (pay)
|
|||
|
|
36 Sogecable 11.009 Spanish (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
37 Cartoon Network/TNT 11.023 Eng/French/Swed/Nor.
|
|||
|
|
38 QVC (Shopping) 11.038 English (pay)
|
|||
|
|
39 West 3 11.053 German
|
|||
|
|
40 Sogecable 11.068 Spanish (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
41 Discovery/Country Music TV 11.082 English (pay)
|
|||
|
|
42 Bravo/Adult Channel 11.097 English (pay)
|
|||
|
|
43 MDR 11.112 German
|
|||
|
|
44 Galavision 11.127 Spanish (Mexico)
|
|||
|
|
45 BFS 3 11.186 German
|
|||
|
|
46 Nickelodeon 11.156 English (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
47 Sky Sports 2 11.171 coming (pay)
|
|||
|
|
48 SWF 3 11.186 German
|
|||
|
|
63 FilmNet Movies 10.921 English (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
64 RTL 5 10.936 Dutch (pay channel)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Odd)numbered transponders carry horizontal polarization, while the
even
|
|||
|
|
transponders are vertically polarized. All channels are PAL unless
D2)MAC is
|
|||
|
|
indicated. Pay channels use a variety of scrambling systems,
although the
|
|||
|
|
emerging standards seem to be Videocrypt for PAL channels
and Eurocrypt M for
|
|||
|
|
D2)MAC. The Sogecable Spanish transponders (30, 32,
36, and 40) use Nagravision.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Until Sky Sports 2 comes on the air, transponder 47 will be used
to provide
|
|||
|
|
Astra technical information. First reports said Sky Sports 2
would begin
|
|||
|
|
operation on February 1, 1994, but now it is said that
British Sky Broadcasting
|
|||
|
|
could wait for improved technology to launch
the channel on a pay)per)view
|
|||
|
|
basis.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
China News Europe uses transponder 35 during the night for uncoded
broadcasts
|
|||
|
|
from the Far East, in parallel with Eutelsat II)F1.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra uses the Ku1)Band for medium)powered signals, with 16)18
channels per
|
|||
|
|
satellite. Astra 1A, 1B, and 1C are currently in orbit at
19.2 degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
Astra 1A and 1B carry mono channel sound on 6.50
MHz, with many stations
|
|||
|
|
carrying stereo as well on 7.02/7.20. Most
Astra 1C outlets have stereo)only TV
|
|||
|
|
sound on 7.02/7.20. Astra 1C
carries two transponders, 63 and 64, which cannot
|
|||
|
|
be received on
ordinary receivers, although LNBs are being produced that will
|
|||
|
|
cover
these frequencies. They are part of the channel plan for later
satellites,
|
|||
|
|
using 10.7 to 10.95 GHz, and intended for cable systems
rather than home
|
|||
|
|
viewers.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
British Sky Broadcasting, the company formed by the merger of Sky
Television
|
|||
|
|
and British Satellite Broadcasting in 1990, is a major user
of the Astra
|
|||
|
|
satellites. BSkyB's channels are Sky News, the
entertainment channel Sky One,
|
|||
|
|
Sky Movies Plus, the Movie Channel, Sky
Movies Gold, and Sky Sports. Sky Sports
|
|||
|
|
2 is planned for transponder
47. Sky News is uncoded, while the other channels
|
|||
|
|
are videocrypt
encoded. A number of other channels are included in BSkyB's
|
|||
|
|
Multi*Channels Package: Discovery, Bravo, UK Gold, UK Living, CMT,
|
|||
|
|
QVC,
Children's Channel, Family Channel, and Nickelodeon.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
FilmNet is offering viewers in the Netherlands and Belgium the
chance to
|
|||
|
|
subscribe to a five-channel package of Astra channels,
scrambled in Videocrypt.
|
|||
|
|
The package, called "MultiChoice", will
consist initially of three "basic"
|
|||
|
|
channels and two premium channels.
Discovery, The Children's Channel and Country
|
|||
|
|
Music Television will\v\form the basic package, with The Adult Channel and
|
|||
|
|
FilmNet forming the
two premium channels. It is hoped that such channels as
|
|||
|
|
Nickelodeon,
Nick)at)Nite, TV Asia, and RTL)5 may join the package.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
FilmNet will utilise its out-of-band Astra transponder (10.920
GHz) for
|
|||
|
|
"FilmNet: The Complete Movie Channel" as part of the package.
|
|||
|
|
While the basic channels and The Adult Channel will continue using the
|
|||
|
|
conventional flavor of UK Videocrypt, FilmNet will broadcast in
Videocrypt
|
|||
|
|
Europe, also known as Videocrypt 2. Videocrypt 2 receivers
are compatible with
|
|||
|
|
existing Videocrypt broadcasts, although it is
understood that Videocrypt 2
|
|||
|
|
transmissions will not be decoded
|
|||
|
|
by existing (UK type) Videocrypt decoders, even with the correct
smartcard.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
By early 1994, the package is to be extended to Portugal, and
eventually will
|
|||
|
|
be available to other European countries, including the
Czech Republic,
|
|||
|
|
Slovakia, Hungary and Scandinavia. Larger European
countries such as Germany and
|
|||
|
|
France are expected to be catered for by
the soon-to-be-announced Sky/Pro7 deal.
|
|||
|
|
Rumors suggest that Sky could
soon begin selling its channels, including Movies
|
|||
|
|
and Sports, on a
Europe-wide basis.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Nickelodeon is owned by MTV's parent, Viacom. The Nick)at)Nite
service is due
|
|||
|
|
to share the transponder, beginning next year. MTV's
music channel for somewhat
|
|||
|
|
older audiences, VH)1 is expected to join
the Multi)Channels package in 1994,
|
|||
|
|
probably taking over MTV's
transponder 15. At that time, both MTV and VH)1 will
|
|||
|
|
probably encrypt.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eurosport has ceased providing a French audio soundtrack on its
Astra and
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat service. Viewers wishing to watch in French will
need to subscribe to
|
|||
|
|
the Canal Plus package to receive "TV Sport", the
French version of Eurosport.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Landmark Communications Inc, the US media conglomerate which owns
The Weather
|
|||
|
|
Channel and The Travel Channel, has confirmed that it is to
launch The Travel
|
|||
|
|
Channel in Europe in early 1994. The development
plans include Britain, the
|
|||
|
|
Benelux, and Scandinavia." There are reports
The Travel Channel may use Astra
|
|||
|
|
transponder 24 during the day and
early evening, before JSTV takes over the
|
|||
|
|
channel.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other Astra hopeful is the Afro)Caribbean Satellite Channel, which
wants to
|
|||
|
|
broadcast for 6 hours nightly after midnight, carrying films,
sports, general
|
|||
|
|
entertainment and news. This channel hopes to
eventually reach the emerging
|
|||
|
|
African cable market.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are a number of other Astra hopefuls, but the three
satellites are now
|
|||
|
|
completely filled. Now that NBC has bought and
revamped Super Channels, a move
|
|||
|
|
to Astra would be welcomed by many.
There are, however, reports that some
|
|||
|
|
current broadcasters could be
departing from the high)cost Astra transponders.
|
|||
|
|
Eurosport may leave
Astra to rely solely on Eutelsat, while the German channel
|
|||
|
|
Vox is in
danger of closing due to low viewership. The 4 Scansat channels,
|
|||
|
|
the
TV3 transmissions to Sweden, Norway, and Denmark and TV1000, might
leave
|
|||
|
|
Astra in favor of the Swedish Space Corporation's new Sirius
satellite (the
|
|||
|
|
former Marco Polo 1), to be positioned together with
Tele)X at 5 degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra 1D, with a further 18 channels, is due for launch in the
third quarter of
|
|||
|
|
1994. It will carry 18 more transponders in the Fixed
Satellite Service range.
|
|||
|
|
The 1D transponders and frequencies are:\v\
|
|||
|
|
49 10.714 GHz 57 10.832
|
|||
|
|
50 10.729 58 10.847
|
|||
|
|
51 10.744 59 10.852
|
|||
|
|
52 10.758 60 10.876
|
|||
|
|
53 10.773 61 10.891
|
|||
|
|
54 10.788 62 10.906
|
|||
|
|
55 10.803 63 10.921 (also on Astra 1C)
|
|||
|
|
56 10.817 64 10.935 (also on Astra 1C)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
As with the other Astra satellites, odd)numbered transponders have
horizontal
|
|||
|
|
polarization, while even transponders have vertical
polarization.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra 1D will also carry digital programming in the BSS band on
transponders 65
|
|||
|
|
to 82 between 11.720 and 12.051 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Thames Television has taken options on two transponders on Astra
1D. Thames
|
|||
|
|
hopes to launch another two themed channels on these
|
|||
|
|
transponders, although it has not yet announced any details. Germany's
|
|||
|
|
ZDF has also announced it has booked a transponder on Astra 1D. The
Chinese
|
|||
|
|
Channel, with programming aimed at the Chinese community in
Europe, hopes to
|
|||
|
|
offer a subscription service over Astra 1D.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D together will provide 64 channels of DTH
(direct to
|
|||
|
|
home) programming to viewers in Europe.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra 1E is to be launched early in 1995 and will carry 18
transponders with 85
|
|||
|
|
watts each (compared to 45 watts on Astra 1A). The
similar Astra 1F is to be
|
|||
|
|
launched in 1996. Astra 1E and 1F will
provide 40 transponders for digital
|
|||
|
|
broadcasting services. 1E will
operate in the 11.7 to 12.1 GHz range, while 1F
|
|||
|
|
will cover between 12.1
and 12.5 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The use of digital compression techniques will allow the
transmission of eight
|
|||
|
|
to ten channels per transponder, and British Sky
Broadcasting is reported to be
|
|||
|
|
planning to use several to transmit pay*per)view films, where a film would be
|
|||
|
|
starting every 20 minutes.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other European Ku1)Band satellites include:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 602 63 degrees East Italy/Iran
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 604 60 degrees 4 Turkish transponders
|
|||
|
|
Statsionar 5 53 degrees EBU Moscow
|
|||
|
|
DFS 2 Kopernikus 28.5 degrees German broadcasters
|
|||
|
|
DFS 3 Kopernikus 23.5 degrees German transponders
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat I)F5 21.5 degrees feeds
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F3 16 degrees Middle Eastern, Eastern Europe
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F1 13 degrees many European programs
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F2 10 degrees Italian, Iberian, Turkish
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F4 7 degrees Turkish/Greek/EBU
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 512 1 degree West Norwegian channels/Israel
|
|||
|
|
Statsionar 11 11 degrees WTN Moscow
|
|||
|
|
Statsionar 4 14 degrees Reuters TV
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 515 18 degrees Norwegian channels
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat K 21.5 degrees trans)Atlantic feeds
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 601 27.5 degrees European (BBC, CMT, Wire TV)
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 603 34.5 degrees EBU Sarajevo
|
|||
|
|
PAS 1 45 degrees mostly feeds (PAL and NTSC)
|
|||
|
|
\v\
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Eutelsat II satellites are higher)powered than their
predecessors, and
|
|||
|
|
approach Astra in strength. The most interesting
Eutelsat is II)F1 at 13 degrees
|
|||
|
|
East, which includes the following
transponders:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eurosport 10.970 GHz Sports
|
|||
|
|
Super Channel 10.987 Radio: BBC World Service
|
|||
|
|
Der Kabelkanal 11.052 D2)MAC, German
|
|||
|
|
Viva 11.006 German music videos
|
|||
|
|
TV5 Europe 11.080 French
|
|||
|
|
RTL 2 11.095 German
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche W/World N 11.161 Radio: DW, VOA
|
|||
|
|
TRT 11.181 Turkish
|
|||
|
|
MBC 11.554 Arabic, Radio: Vatican
|
|||
|
|
Euronews 11.575 Multi)lingual sound
|
|||
|
|
interStar 11.596 Turkish
|
|||
|
|
Emirates Dubai TV 11.638 Arabic, some English
|
|||
|
|
MTV Europe 11.658
|
|||
|
|
FilmNet (Holland) 11.678 Digital sound
|
|||
|
|
VisEurope 12.521 coded newsfeeds
|
|||
|
|
Maxat 12.560 newsfeeds
|
|||
|
|
France Telecom 12.585 HD)MAC tests
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Germany's international radio broadcaster, Deutsche Welle, has
taken over the
|
|||
|
|
facilities of the Berlin)based American TV station RIAS,
and is broadcasting on
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F1 with three two hour blocks after
16:00 hrs European time on
|
|||
|
|
11.161 GHz. The first 90 minutes of each
block is in German, followed by 30
|
|||
|
|
minutes in English. There are also
Spanish programs. Managing Director Dieter
|
|||
|
|
Weirich announced at the
Internationale Funkaustellung in Berlin on August 30,
|
|||
|
|
1993 that
Deutsche Welle TV will be expanding to 24 hour a day service from
|
|||
|
|
1994.
However, the expansion from 16 hours at present would only be possible
if
|
|||
|
|
ARD and ZDF agree to work together.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American government's World Net uses this same transponder
|
|||
|
|
at 10:00)15:30 hrs European time daily. The transponder also carries
radio
|
|||
|
|
programs from both Deutsche Welle and VOA Europe. It's hard to
say what will
|
|||
|
|
happen to World Net if Deutsche Welle goes to 24 hours.
World Net was kicked off
|
|||
|
|
the French TV5 transponder for exactly the
same reason.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The European Broadcasting Union's all)news station, Euronews, went
on the air
|
|||
|
|
at 14:00 hrs on January 1, 1993 from Eutelsat II)F1 at
11.575 GHz. There are no
|
|||
|
|
presenters, instead the news footage is
accompanied by soundtracks in five
|
|||
|
|
languages on various audio
subcarriers: German on 6.65 Mhz, English on 7.02,
|
|||
|
|
French on 7.20,
Spanish on 7.38, Italian on 7.56, (and probably Arabic on 7.74)
|
|||
|
|
MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American TV network NBC has bought Super Channel, which was
started as a
|
|||
|
|
"Best of British TV" channel (as UK Gold later became),
but was forced to
|
|||
|
|
abandon this because of opposition from the British
Actors' Union. A controlling
|
|||
|
|
interest was bought by an Italian music
video company, and Super Channel has
|
|||
|
|
carried an unfocused mix of music
videos, B movies, and news programs. NBC has
|
|||
|
|
cut back on the videos,
and has added such programs as the "Today Show", the
|
|||
|
|
"NBC Nightly\v\News", "The Tonight Show", and other news programs from NBC and
|
|||
|
|
its
financial channel CNBC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Super Channel is carrying three hours of Far Eastern programming
every night,
|
|||
|
|
at 2:00)5:00 AM European time. Called Europe)China
Satellite TV, as well as
|
|||
|
|
China News Europe, this brings together
reports from Hong Kong, China, and
|
|||
|
|
Taiwan, in English, Cantonese, and
Mandarin. The channel hopes to move to Astra,
|
|||
|
|
initially keeping the
same broadcast hours and times, and sharing with a UK
|
|||
|
|
Astra channel -
possibly The Family Channel or UK Living. The channel will will
|
|||
|
|
also
then change its name to "Chinese News and Entertainment".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Emirates Dubai TV is mostly in Arabic, but there are English
newscasts at 15:00
|
|||
|
|
and 18:00 hrs British time. It uses half the former
Filmnet transponder, and
|
|||
|
|
there are reports the other half, 11.678 GHz,
may be used to launch a European
|
|||
|
|
version of the Sci Fi Channel in early
1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Turning to the other Eutelsats:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
II)F3 (16 degrees East) carries largely programs from the Middle
East and
|
|||
|
|
Eastern Europe. Egypt's ESC is on 11.178 GHz, and that
country's new foreign
|
|||
|
|
language channel, Nile TV International, has been
testing with extremely low
|
|||
|
|
power on 11.146 GHz. Other Middle Eastern
broadcasters are RTV Marocaine on
|
|||
|
|
10.970, Turkey's TGRT on 11.090 and
HBB on 11.615, and TV7 Tunisie on 11.658.
|
|||
|
|
Telepace from Rome, which
carries daily programming from the Vatican, is on
|
|||
|
|
11.575 GHz. Albania's
TV Shqiptar uses this transponder between 17:30 and 20:30
|
|||
|
|
hrs British
time.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eastern European broadcasters include Croatia's HTV on 10.986 GHz
(shared with
|
|||
|
|
Eurostep), Polonia TV on 11.080, Hungary's Duna TV on
11.596, and Polsat on
|
|||
|
|
11.675.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F2 (10 degrees East) is a largely "Latin" or
Mediterranean
|
|||
|
|
satellite. Spain's TVE is at 11.149 GHz. Italy's RAI has
two transponders
|
|||
|
|
(10.972 and 11.095). The Portuguese RTP International
service is at 11.658 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
RTP also transmits to Africa on Ghorizont 12
at 40 degrees East, at 3.925 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
There are three private Turkish
stations: A)TV on 10.986, Show TV on 11.575, and
|
|||
|
|
interStar on 11.617.
The American AFRTS uses the B)MAC system for broadcasts on
|
|||
|
|
11.175.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F4 (7 degrees East) has Greece's ET1 on 11.174 GHz and
PIK from
|
|||
|
|
Cyprus at 11.141, Turkey's Kanal 6 at 11.162 and a new service
are on 11.578,
|
|||
|
|
with Serbia's RTS Sat Beograd at 11.536 GHz. There are
also EBU feeds using the
|
|||
|
|
sound)in)synch system on a number of
transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Greece's ERT has announced the establishment of a satellite
channel called ERT
|
|||
|
|
International. As it is to broadcast to Europe,
North Africa, and the Middle
|
|||
|
|
East, it will probably use Eutelsat.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The venerable Eutelsat I)F1 is being redeployed to improve
coverage of Russia
|
|||
|
|
and the CIS. Both 36 and 50 degrees East have been
mentioned as new locations.
|
|||
|
|
But Eutelsat II)F5 is due to be launched
soon, and is to be located at 36
|
|||
|
|
degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II-F6 is to be co-located with Eutelsat II-F1 at 13
degrees east, now
|
|||
|
|
dubbed the "Hot Bird" position. The satellite, due to
be launched in the second
|
|||
|
|
half of 1994, will be able to relay 16\v\additional high)powered television
|
|||
|
|
channels. Eutelsat is already taking
bookings on the satellite. According to a
|
|||
|
|
statement issued by Eutelsat,
in order to guarantee that the 13 degrees east
|
|||
|
|
position "can be
reinforced as Europe's principal slot for television for cable
|
|||
|
|
and
direct)to)home reception, the new satellite will only carry
entertainment
|
|||
|
|
services at prime)time (17:00-01:00 CET)."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat plans a third satellite for 13 degrees east, called "Hot
Bird Plus".
|
|||
|
|
It would be launched in early 1996, with either 14 or 20
110 watt transponders.
|
|||
|
|
This would mean reception in most of Europe with
40 cm antennas. "Hot Bird Plus"
|
|||
|
|
will enable Eutelsat to meet demands
for digital television, offering such
|
|||
|
|
future options as interactive
television, video)on)demand, pay)per)view, etc.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The problem for Eutelsat is "too little too late". Next year it
will have 29
|
|||
|
|
transponders at 13 degrees East. Today, Astra has 50 at
its position, and by the
|
|||
|
|
time the first "Hot Bird" launches, Astra will
already have the equivalent of
|
|||
|
|
"Hot Bird Plus" in orbit, the Astra 1D
satellite, which will be followed in 1995
|
|||
|
|
by Astra 1E, and the
following year by Astra 1F.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat's only chance is that it may be able to serve Eastern
Europe better
|
|||
|
|
than Astra, and there might be a greater demand for
satellite capacity than
|
|||
|
|
Astra can meet. Also, Eutelsat's transponders
have a wider bandwidth (36 MHz)
|
|||
|
|
than Astra (25 MHz). This means more
digital channels can be squeezed in.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Another interesting satellite (which may be virtually vacated by
the end of the
|
|||
|
|
year) is Intelsat 601 at 27.5 degrees West. This has
carried CNN, Discovery,
|
|||
|
|
Bravo, and the Children's Channel, all of which
have moved to Astra. What's left
|
|||
|
|
are broadcasts from the British
Parliament (11.095 GHz), Country Music
|
|||
|
|
Television Europe (24 hours on
11.509, using a weak half transponder), the
|
|||
|
|
shopping center
entertainment channel Wire TV (coded) and The Learning
|
|||
|
|
Channel
(uncoded) sharing a transponder (11.505), Sweden's D2)MAC coded
|
|||
|
|
FilmMax
(11.665), the SAVE coded British forces SSVC (11.563), and BBC
|
|||
|
|
World
Service Television (10.995).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In January, 1993 BBC World Service Television switched to D2)MAC,
encoded in
|
|||
|
|
Eurocrypt M. Subscriptions are available from TV Extra in
Motala, Sweden, at
|
|||
|
|
telephone number +46)141)355)12. The system uses the
same smartcards as Filmnet,
|
|||
|
|
and in Scandinavia and the Benelux, Filmnet
is handling subscriptions.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 603 was launched in 1990, but a mistake put it into a
useless orbit.
|
|||
|
|
In May, 1992 the American space shuttle Endeavour
successfully captured the
|
|||
|
|
satellite and relaunched it into its proper
orbit (34.5 degrees West). This
|
|||
|
|
carries C)band feeds to Greenland and
the Canary Islands. EBU feeds from
|
|||
|
|
Sarajevo are on 11.475 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat)K at 21.5 degrees West is intended to relay signals
across the
|
|||
|
|
Atlantic. Intelsat's first Ku)band only satellite, it
carries 32 high)powered
|
|||
|
|
transponders, which can be directed to North
America (as far as the Midwest),
|
|||
|
|
Europe (as far east as Greece), and
selected parts of South America. All beams
|
|||
|
|
use 11.45-11.7 GHz, while
11.7-11.95 GHz is also used to the Americas, and
|
|||
|
|
12.5-12.75 GHz to
Europe. \v\
|
|||
|
|
Feeds from North America to Europe can be found on 11.531, 11.558,
11.593,
|
|||
|
|
11.652, and 11.681 GHz, using both horizontal and vertical
polarization. The CBS
|
|||
|
|
"This Morning" program, for rebroadcast by Sky
News, is carried weekdays
|
|||
|
|
12:50)14:00 hrs European time on 11.558
vertical. When NBC took over Super
|
|||
|
|
Channel, relays of many shows,
including the "The Today Show" and programming
|
|||
|
|
from CNBC could be found
on 11.616 GHz, although this has recently disappeared.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
PanAmSat
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Alpha Lyracom, now known as Panamsat, has taken on the massive
Intelsat,
|
|||
|
|
seeking to provide an alternative international satellite
organization. PAS)1,
|
|||
|
|
launched in 1988, is located at 45 degrees West,
carries the American Galavision
|
|||
|
|
to Europe, along with several channels
for newsfeeds.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
PAS)2, to be launched in May, 1994, will be placed above the
Pacific. PAS)3, to
|
|||
|
|
be launched in late 1994, will complement PAS)1 from
43.5 degrees, reaching
|
|||
|
|
farther into Scandinavia and the Middle East.
Other parts of the world are to be
|
|||
|
|
covered by PAS)4 and 5 above the
PAS)4 will be placed over the Indian Ocean at
|
|||
|
|
72 degrees East in March,
1995. M)Net and the South African Broadcasting
|
|||
|
|
Corporation have already
booked transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eastern European Satellites
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A Soviet Ghorizont was the first television satellite over Europe.
However, the
|
|||
|
|
Soviets concentrated on the C)band, while European
satellite broadcasting has
|
|||
|
|
used the Ku)band. But there are in fact Ku*band transponders on the Ghorizont
|
|||
|
|
(or Statsionar) satellites used by
the former Soviet Union. Each of the
|
|||
|
|
Ghorizonts over Europe, at 53
degrees East, 14 degrees West and 11 degrees West,
|
|||
|
|
has a transponder at
11.525 GHz. The Ghorizont at 53 degrees East carries EBU
|
|||
|
|
feeds, 14
degrees carries Reuters TV (formerly Visnews), while 11 degrees
|
|||
|
|
has
WTN.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Russian satellite ZSSRD at 16 degrees West carries two very
interesting
|
|||
|
|
Ku)band transponders, using to relay signals from the MIR
space station. Data
|
|||
|
|
information is carried at 11.375 GHz, which can
often be seen as flashing lines
|
|||
|
|
on the screen. More interesting is the
transponder at 10.835 GHz, which carries
|
|||
|
|
video from MIR in clear SECAM.
Unfortunately this frequency is slightly below
|
|||
|
|
that covered by most
satellite receivers.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
MIR video has also been reported from the Ghorizont at 11 degrees
West on
|
|||
|
|
11.525 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
While the dishes used for Ku)band monitoring in Europe are
generally too small
|
|||
|
|
for C)band reception, the introduction of new
sensitive C)band LNBs has made it
|
|||
|
|
possible to receive the very strong
Russian C)band signals using dishes as small
|
|||
|
|
as 1.5 meters. The Russian
signals on 3.675 GHz at 40.5 degrees East and 14
|
|||
|
|
degrees West are
perhaps one hundred times stronger than other C)band signals in
|
|||
|
|
Europe.
|
|||
|
|
Molniya satellites use a highly elliptical orbit that makes it
possible to
|
|||
|
|
reach high latitudes out)of)reach of geostationary
satellites (which would be
|
|||
|
|
too low on the horizon). These carry\v\satellite broadcast television, relaying
|
|||
|
|
Double II (the East Siberian
version of the second TV program) on 3.875 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The first of Russia's new Ekspress satellites, which will replace
the current
|
|||
|
|
Ghorizonts, is to be in orbit at the end of the year. The
satellites will better
|
|||
|
|
be able to maintain the correct inclination in
orbit, and will carry 24
|
|||
|
|
channels, as well as four back)up
transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Antenna Hungaria, the Hungarian telecommunications company, says
that it plans
|
|||
|
|
to launch a 16-channel European satellite called
"Domestic" in 1996, offering
|
|||
|
|
Eastern Europe's first commercial
satellite service.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Telecom Band
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are 8 European satellites currently using the 12.5)12.75 GHz
Telecom
|
|||
|
|
band:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
DFS Kopernikus 2 28.5 degrees Germany
|
|||
|
|
DFS Kopernikus 3 23.5 degrees Germany
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F3 16 degrees European
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F1 13 degrees European
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F2 10 degrees European
|
|||
|
|
Telecom 1C 3 degrees France
|
|||
|
|
Telecom 2B 5 degrees West France
|
|||
|
|
Telecom 2A 8 degrees France
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
To Astra's disappointment, French TV broadcasters have not booked
any Astra
|
|||
|
|
channels. Instead, France is using its own Telecom 2A
satellite, at 8 degrees
|
|||
|
|
West, for direct to home broadcasting. The
French government having surrendered
|
|||
|
|
its demand for D2)MAC programming,
eleven channels are now using Telecom 2A.
|
|||
|
|
Eight are in coded SECAM, and
three in widescreen D2)MAC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The SECAM channels are coded in Nagravision: MCM on 12.543 GHz,
Paris 1:ere on
|
|||
|
|
12.564, Planete Cable on 12.585, Cine Cinefil on 12.626,
Canal Plus on 12.648,
|
|||
|
|
Cine Cinemas on 12.666, Eurosport France on
12.710, and Canal Jimmy on 12.732
|
|||
|
|
GHz. France 2 is broadcasting in D2*MAC on 12.606 GHz. Widescreen D2)MAC with
|
|||
|
|
Eurocrypt is being used by
Canal Plus on 12.522, Cine Cinefil on 12.564, and
|
|||
|
|
Cine Cinemas on
12.689 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Telecom 2B (5 degrees West) carries the following uncoded channels
in SECAM: M6
|
|||
|
|
(12.522), France 2 (12.564), Arte (12.606), Monte Carlo
TMC (12.658), and TF1
|
|||
|
|
(12.689). Cine Cinemas on 12.669 GHz uses
Eurocrypt and D2)MAC. Luxembourg's RTL
|
|||
|
|
Television began relays of its
French service in October, 1993 on 12.732 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Telecom 1C has now been moved to 3 degrees East, where it is used
for feeds in
|
|||
|
|
PAL, D2)MAC, and B)MAC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
France's TF1 is to launch a satellite and cable news channel
during the first
|
|||
|
|
half of 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Germany's DFS Kopernikus 3 has taken over from Kopernikus 1 at
23.5 degrees
|
|||
|
|
East. Kopernikus 1 has moved to 33.5 degrees East.
Kopernikus 2 is operating
|
|||
|
|
from 28.5 degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
\v\
|
|||
|
|
European DBS
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Direct Broadcast Satellites (DBS) are intended to beam a few (2)5)
high)powered
|
|||
|
|
signals directly to homes in a single country. Viewers
require dish antennas
|
|||
|
|
less than 30 cm in diameter. A number of DBS
satellites have been orbited above
|
|||
|
|
Europe:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Tele)X 5 degrees East Sweden
|
|||
|
|
Thor 0.8 degrees West Norway
|
|||
|
|
Olympus 18.8 degrees Western Europe (gone)
|
|||
|
|
TDF)1 and TDF)2 19 degrees France
|
|||
|
|
TV)SAT 2 19.2 degrees Germany
|
|||
|
|
Hispasat 1A and 1B 30 degrees Spain
|
|||
|
|
Marco Polo 1 31 degrees Britain (for sale)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra's hopes to attract Spanish customers are threatened by
Spain's two
|
|||
|
|
Hispasat direct broadcast satellites. Hispasat 1A was
launched on September 10,
|
|||
|
|
1992 and carries 5 DBS channels and 18
transponders in other parts of the
|
|||
|
|
Ku)band. Most will be directed
towards Spain and the Canary Islands, but two
|
|||
|
|
will be aimed at the
Americas.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
TVE International is in the clear on 12.160 GHz, with feeds and
sports on
|
|||
|
|
12.588. Tele 5 is coded in Nagravision on 12.631 GHz. The
three Spanish radio
|
|||
|
|
stations Antena Tres, Ole, and Serie Oro are also
on Hispasat.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
This satellite, however, has antenna problems, displacing the
footprint towards
|
|||
|
|
the north, which hopefully will be rectified now
following the launch of
|
|||
|
|
Hispasat 1B on July 22, 1993. Five new
television channels are to begin
|
|||
|
|
broadcasts. The first of these are to
go on the air in December, a cultural
|
|||
|
|
channel called Canal Clasico and
Teleporte with exclusively sports programs, to
|
|||
|
|
be operated RTVE in the
clear. Later they will be joined by Telesat 5, Antena 3
|
|||
|
|
Television Sat,
and an as yet unnamed outlet from Canal Plus, all of which will
|
|||
|
|
be
encrypted.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The European Space Agency announced August 26, 1993 that it has
terminated the
|
|||
|
|
four-year-old mission of its troubled Olympus satellite,
11 months ahead of
|
|||
|
|
schedule. The ESA says it sent the satellite to a
lower, non-operational orbit
|
|||
|
|
where it would not collide or interfere
with other satellites. Olympus had
|
|||
|
|
started spinning and did not have
enough fuel to return to its proper
|
|||
|
|
geostationary orbit. Olympus had
carried broadcasts from Italy, an Irish sports
|
|||
|
|
channel, and relays of
news from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and was
|
|||
|
|
also used to
test advanced communications technologies, including
|
|||
|
|
high-definition
television. Two years ago the satellite's position had to be
|
|||
|
|
corrected
after it went into an uncontrolled drift around the world.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A DBS war has been fought between Sweden and Norway. Both the
Swedish Space
|
|||
|
|
Corporation and Norwegian Telecom bid on Britain's Marco
Polo 2 satellite. The
|
|||
|
|
Norwegians won, and moved the satellite to 0.8
degrees West, renaming it Thor.
|
|||
|
|
They are offering a package of CNN
(11.785 GHz), Eurosport (11.862), Children's
|
|||
|
|
Channel/Discovery
(11.938), FilmNet (12.015), and MTV (12.092) to Scandinavian
|
|||
|
|
viewers,
with hopes of increasing to 15 channels by co)locating other
|
|||
|
|
DBS
satellites at that position. \v\
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 512 is already at this position, (with the entertainment
channel TV
|
|||
|
|
Norge in clear PAL on 11.016 GHz) and is to be replaced with
a stronger
|
|||
|
|
satellite, adding to the offerings at this position.
FilmNet, in fact, sold its
|
|||
|
|
85 percent ownership of Tele)X back to the
Swedish Space Corporation and moved
|
|||
|
|
its transmissions to Thor.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
However, having won the satellite battle, the Norwegians lost the
standards
|
|||
|
|
war. They chose two of Europe's most obscure standards, D*MAC and Eurocrypt S,
|
|||
|
|
available to few satellite viewers. (The exception
is FilmNet, which uses D2)MAC
|
|||
|
|
and Eurocrypt S.) Writing in the magazine
"Elektronikvaarlden", Sweden's
|
|||
|
|
satellite guru, Bertil Sundberg, referred
to the Thor coding as "Norwegian
|
|||
|
|
Harakiri". Finally, after several
months, on December 16, 1993 the Norwegians
|
|||
|
|
backed down and all Thor
channels now use D2)MAC (itself a doomed standard, if
|
|||
|
|
less obscure than
D)MAC). It is unclear if the Norwegians have also abandoned
|
|||
|
|
their
alligance to the even more obscure Eurocrypt S system.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The potential audience is in Finland and northern Norway and
Sweden, which are
|
|||
|
|
outside the main Astra footprint. FilmNet is
distributing subscription cards for
|
|||
|
|
Thor.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Norway's approach to satellite broadcasting has been eccentric.
|
|||
|
|
Initially, most of the country's satellite channels were on Intelsat
512 at 1
|
|||
|
|
degree West. Besides the Norwegian public broadcaster NRK,
these are the new
|
|||
|
|
Norwegian terrestrial commercial station TV 2, the
private TV Norge, and Swedish
|
|||
|
|
Television 1 and 2, which are uplinked
from Oslo for use by cable systems in
|
|||
|
|
Spitsbergen and on North Sea oil
platforms.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In late 1992, these channels cloned themselves onto Intelsat 515
at 18 degrees
|
|||
|
|
West. Moving away from 1 degree West was a bit strange,
since it happened at
|
|||
|
|
exactly the same time Norway was moving Marco Polo
2/Thor to that same position.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Bertil Sundberg in "Paa TV" magazine has pointed out that there are
now
|
|||
|
|
Norwegian programs on 5 satellites at 4 different positions. They
use a
|
|||
|
|
bewildering array of standards: PAL, D2)MAC in both Eurocrypt M
and Eurocrypt S,
|
|||
|
|
and D)MAC. This, he says, may explain why 80 percent
of satellite systems in
|
|||
|
|
Norway are motorized.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Norwegians are the traditional target of Swedish jokes. But
Norwegian
|
|||
|
|
satellite broadcasting seems to have become a Norwegian joke
in itself.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Sweden's Tele)X carries Sweden's TV4 (12.207 GHz) and TV5 Nordic
(12.475), both
|
|||
|
|
in clear PAL, and Norway's NRK (12.332) in D)MAC. Sweden
has fought back, and in
|
|||
|
|
December, 1993 NSAB, owned by the Swedish Space
Corporation and Swedish Telecom,
|
|||
|
|
succeeeded in buying the second Marco
Polo satellite, apparently after Norway
|
|||
|
|
tried to block the sale. The
satellite, renamed Sirius, is to be moved to
|
|||
|
|
Tele)X's position, where a
rival package to Scandinavia is to be marketed.
|
|||
|
|
Together the two
satellites should carry 7 channels. The first broadcasts are
|
|||
|
|
expected
to begin in March, 1994. The Sirius frequencies are identical to
|
|||
|
|
those
on Thor.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
At the instruction of the Nordic prime ministers, the public
service
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters of Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Iceland have
presented a proposal
|
|||
|
|
for a joint Nordic television channel. The
broadcasters say the Nordic satellite
|
|||
|
|
channel "Nordstjaarnan", or "North\v\Star", could be on the air by the end of
|
|||
|
|
1994 or early 1995 (however,
the Nordic Council's Ministerial Council has vetoed
|
|||
|
|
allocating funds to
the project). The fifth Nordic country, Denmark, is not
|
|||
|
|
participating
in the project because the channel would not be available to
|
|||
|
|
all
viewers. The Danes would prefer to strengthen the current
|
|||
|
|
Nordvision
co)operation.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Despite this Spanish/Nordic activity, the DBS idea seems to have
been made
|
|||
|
|
obsolete by improving technology. Viewers want more than 2)5
channels and they
|
|||
|
|
want channels from other countries (which is why both
Filmnet and Norwegian
|
|||
|
|
Telecom are now talking about co)locating several
DBS satellites). A 60 cm Astra
|
|||
|
|
dish that can deliver 16, 32, or 48
channels is more desireable than a 30 cm
|
|||
|
|
dish with access to only 3
stations.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
With the failure of the British BSB system on Marco Polo (it was
bought out by
|
|||
|
|
Sky in 1990), the decision of the French government not
to build a third direct
|
|||
|
|
broadcast satellite, to follow up the existing
TDF)1 and TDF)2 satellites (after
|
|||
|
|
the breakdown of TDF)1), and the
failure of Olympus, the DBS idea seems to be
|
|||
|
|
virtually dead. French
Minister for Post, Communications, and Space Paul Quiles
|
|||
|
|
has announced
the satellites will be replaced in due course by a new generation
|
|||
|
|
of
spacecraft. In the meantime, France is concentrating on its medium*powered
|
|||
|
|
Telecom satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Similarly, Germany's Kopernikus (and the German channels on Astra)
have proved
|
|||
|
|
to be more popular than TV)SAT.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat's answer to Astra was to be Europesat, a series of high*powered
|
|||
|
|
satellites being called "second generation DBS" all located at
19 degrees West.
|
|||
|
|
However, that project has been abandoned in May, 1993
in favor of the "Hot Bird"
|
|||
|
|
position at 13 degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
C)Band
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
New C)band LNBs have made possible C)band reception on smaller
dishes. However,
|
|||
|
|
over Europe just about the only signals that can be
picked up on standard
|
|||
|
|
Ku)band dishes of less that 1.5 meters are from
the Russian Ghorizonts, which
|
|||
|
|
are much stronger than other C)band
signals. The American TDRS A4 at 41 degrees
|
|||
|
|
West has recently begun
relaying a station from Denver, Gala Americana, in PAL
|
|||
|
|
on 3.920 GHz. A
radio station has been heard on 5.80 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
HDTV and Digital Technology
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The European Commission has abandoned its plans for the forced
introduction of
|
|||
|
|
the D2-MAC standard, as a step towards the future
introduction of a system
|
|||
|
|
called HD-MAC for high definition television.
Instead broadcasters are moving
|
|||
|
|
directly towards digital HDTV, after
years of conflict over D2)MAC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A memorandum of understanding to work together to find a common
standard for
|
|||
|
|
digital HDTV has been signed by a group of satellite
operators, broadcasters,
|
|||
|
|
manufacturers and regulators. The group, known
as the European Launching Group
|
|||
|
|
for Digital Video Broadcasting project,
comprises of 85 members including one
|
|||
|
|
Japanese electronics firm.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
NTL and Eutelsat have completed joint tests to prove the viability\v\of
|
|||
|
|
wideband satellite transponders for carrying both conventional
analog FM
|
|||
|
|
television signals and the new digitally compressed TV
signals of the NTL System
|
|||
|
|
2000. A single Eutelsat transponder was shown
to be able to carry simultaneously
|
|||
|
|
either a single FM channel and four
digitally compressed channels or a total of
|
|||
|
|
eight digital channels at
broadcast quality.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The compatibility, within one transponder, of a high power analog
transmission
|
|||
|
|
and lower power digitally compressed signals means that
operators can more
|
|||
|
|
easily migrate from analog to digital, with its
attractive cost reductions.
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat says that its wideband
transponders are especially attractive since the
|
|||
|
|
premium for the
additional bandwidth is much less than the extra cost of a
|
|||
|
|
whole
transponder.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radio
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are more than 100 radio channels on European satellites,
using audio
|
|||
|
|
subcarriers, slowly approaching the number in North
America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra is a radio pioneer, with many interesting stations, both new
channels and
|
|||
|
|
established international broadcasters. There are music
stations, such as Sky
|
|||
|
|
Radio, Super Gold, and Quality Europe FM. Sunrise
Radio is a commercial medium
|
|||
|
|
wave station in London for the Indian
community there, now on satellite as well.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radio Sweden is on the Sky Movies Gold transponder at 11.597 GHz,
audio
|
|||
|
|
subcarrier 7.74 MHz. Our satellite schedule is also transmitted
over the Tele)X
|
|||
|
|
direct broadcast satellite, using the TV4 transponder
at 12.207 GHz, audio
|
|||
|
|
subcarrier 7.38 MHz. Radio Sweden is also part of
the World Radio Network
|
|||
|
|
package of English language broadcasters on
Astra.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Also on the Sky Movies Gold transponder (at 7.38 MHz) is Radio
Asia, which
|
|||
|
|
broadcasts over Spectrum Radio in London. Spectrum's full
schedule is to be
|
|||
|
|
broadcast over this channel in the near future.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Another shortwave broadcaster on Astra is Swiss Radio
International, on the
|
|||
|
|
Teleclub transponder at 11.332 GHz, audio
subcarrier 7.2 MHz. SRI is changing
|
|||
|
|
its programming to fit satellite
broadcasts by April, 1994. SRI is planning to
|
|||
|
|
expand to four satellite
channels, three relaying the national services in
|
|||
|
|
German, French, and
Italian, complemented by SRI programs in those languages.
|
|||
|
|
The fourth
would be a 24 hour English channel, consisting of a repeated
|
|||
|
|
and
updated 2 hour program block.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
According to one report, some British local ILR stations are to
appear on the
|
|||
|
|
Discovery and Bravo transponders in the near future.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
MTV reportedly may be planning to join up with the American
network ABC in
|
|||
|
|
launching a pan)European radio channel.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
List of Radio stations broadcasting from the ASTRA satellites
|
|||
|
|
-------------------------------------------------------------
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Station Frequency Subcarrier(s) TV station
|
|||
|
|
)))---------------------------------------------))))))))))))))))))
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle 11.229 7.38 RTL-Plus\v\
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle 11.229 7.56 RTL-Plus
|
|||
|
|
Deutschlandfunk 11.288 7.38/7.56 Sat.1
|
|||
|
|
Deutschlandf.Int. 11.288 7.74 Sat.1
|
|||
|
|
Deutschlandf.Int. 11.288 7.92 Sat.1
|
|||
|
|
Sky Radio 11.317 7.38/7.56 Sky One
|
|||
|
|
Radio 538 11.317 7.74/7.92 Sky One
|
|||
|
|
Swiss Radio Int. 11.332 7.20 Teleclub
|
|||
|
|
Radio Eviva 11.332 7.74/7.92 Teleclub
|
|||
|
|
Virgin 1215 11.376 7.38/7.56 Sky News
|
|||
|
|
Super Gold 11.376 7.92 Sky News
|
|||
|
|
RTL Radio 1 11.391 7.38/7.56 RTL)4
|
|||
|
|
RTL Radio 2 11.391 7.74/7.92 RTL-4
|
|||
|
|
Star*Sat Radio 11.406 7.38/7.56 Pro-7
|
|||
|
|
Radio-Ropa 11.406 7.74/7.92 Pro-7
|
|||
|
|
RMF 11.420 7.74/7.92 MTV)Europe
|
|||
|
|
Quality Europe FM 11.435 7.38/7.56 Sky Movies
ASDA
|
|||
|
|
storecast FM 11.435 7.74 Sky Movies
MDR Sputnik
|
|||
|
|
11.464 7.38/7.56 Premiere
|
|||
|
|
Sunrise Radio 11.479 7.38 Movie Ch.
|
|||
|
|
Holland-FM 11.479 7.56 Movie Ch.
|
|||
|
|
Sudwestfunk 3 11.493 7.38/7.56 ARD
|
|||
|
|
Q)CMR 11.509 7.38 Sky Sports
|
|||
|
|
United Christian Broad. 11.509 7.56 Sky Sports
|
|||
|
|
World Radio Network 11.538 7.74 MTV)Europe
|
|||
|
|
BBC WS 11.553 7.38 UK Gold
|
|||
|
|
BBC Radio 4 11.553 7.56 UK Gold
|
|||
|
|
BBC Radio 1 11.553 7.74 UK Gold
|
|||
|
|
BBC Radio 5 11.553 7.92 UK Gold
|
|||
|
|
NDR 2 11.582 7.38/7.56 N3
|
|||
|
|
NDR 4 11.582 7.74/7.92 N3
|
|||
|
|
Radio Asia 11.597 7.38 Sky Gold
|
|||
|
|
Radio Sweden 11.597 7.74 Sky Gold
|
|||
|
|
CNN Radio 11.626 7.92 CNN
|
|||
|
|
Cadena Principales 11.686 7.38 Cinemania
|
|||
|
|
Cadena Dial 11.686 7.56 Cinemania
|
|||
|
|
Cadena SER 11.686 7.74 Cinemania
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The World Radio Network relays English language programs from a
number of
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters. The current schedule (British local time) is:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
00:00 NPR "All Things Considered"
|
|||
|
|
01:30 Radio Netherlands
|
|||
|
|
04:00 Radio Canada International
|
|||
|
|
04:30 Vatican Radio
|
|||
|
|
05:00 BBC "News Hour" and "Europe Today"
|
|||
|
|
06:00 NPR "All Things Considered"
|
|||
|
|
08:00 Radio Australia
|
|||
|
|
09:00 Radio Korea
|
|||
|
|
10:00 Radio Moscow
|
|||
|
|
10:30 Radio Netherlands
|
|||
|
|
11:30 Voice of Israel
|
|||
|
|
12:00 Radio France International
|
|||
|
|
13:00 NPR "Morning Edition"
|
|||
|
|
15:00 Radio Finland
|
|||
|
|
15:30 WRN info
|
|||
|
|
16:00 Radio Australia
|
|||
|
|
17:00 Radio Moscow
|
|||
|
|
17:30 Radio Netherlands
|
|||
|
|
18:30 Radio Telefis Eireann (Ireland)\v\ 19:00 NPR "Talk of the Nation"
|
|||
|
|
21:00 RADIO SWEDEN
|
|||
|
|
21:30 BBC "Europe Today"
|
|||
|
|
22:00 NPR "All Things Considered"
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The schedule varies slightly on weekends.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Astra apparently wants to use the 6.50 MHz audio subcarriers on
the 1C
|
|||
|
|
satellite for digital radio or business data transmissions.
Astra is also
|
|||
|
|
carrying out research into satellite radio broadcasting,
to small antennas,
|
|||
|
|
without the need for a receiving dish. This would
apparently be introduced with
|
|||
|
|
the upcoming Astra 1D and 1E satellites.
Presumeably this is DAB)Satellite, also
|
|||
|
|
called BSS)Sound, allocated
frequencies by last year's World Administrative
|
|||
|
|
Radio Conference.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are also a number of interesting radio stations on Eutelsat
II)F1:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BBC WS 10.987 7.38 Super Channel
|
|||
|
|
BBC External 10.987 7.56 Super Channel
|
|||
|
|
France Info 11.080 7.02 TV5 Europe
|
|||
|
|
France Inter 11.080 7.20 TV5 Europe
|
|||
|
|
Radio Victor 11.080 7.38 TV5 Europe
|
|||
|
|
Radio Free Europe 11.095 7.74/7.92/8.10 RTL)2
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle 11.163 7.02 Deutsche Welle
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle 11.163 7.20 Deutsche Welle
|
|||
|
|
VOA Europe 11.163 7.38/7.56 Deutsche Welle
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle 11.163 7.74 Deutsche Welle
|
|||
|
|
Radio Finland 11.163 8.10 Deutsche Welle
|
|||
|
|
Bonn Rundfunk 11.163 8.28 Deutsche Welle
|
|||
|
|
World Radio Network 11.554 7.74 MBC
|
|||
|
|
Super FM 11.596 8.10 Interstar
|
|||
|
|
Radio Contact 11.638 7.02 FilmNet Plus
|
|||
|
|
Radio Contact 11.638 7.20 FilmNet Plus
|
|||
|
|
Radio 10 Gold 11.678 7.92/8.10 FilmNet Plus
|
|||
|
|
Digital Radio 12.542 digital
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radio Free Europe uses separate audio subcarriers for news feeds
in Czech,
|
|||
|
|
Baltic languages, and Polish. VOA Europe is now being carried
digitally on
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F4. The analog relay on II)F1 will continue
until the end of 1994.
|
|||
|
|
VOA Europe is also carried on Intelsat 601 at
27.5 degrees West, and Intelsat
|
|||
|
|
505 at 66 degrees East. The service
will also soon be available on Intersputnik
|
|||
|
|
1 and 2.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The World Radio Network relays Vatican Radio in many languages and
Radio Canada
|
|||
|
|
International in Russian. NPR relays were here before the
Astra service began.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The digital radio channels are the following French stations:
Europe 2, FIP,
|
|||
|
|
Fun Radio, Modulation France, Nostalgie, ad NRJ.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Swedish news agency TT has been heard on Swedish Radio since
its pioneer
|
|||
|
|
days. TT is now making hourly newscasts available to
community radio stations
|
|||
|
|
around Sweden, over Tele)X, using the TV5
Nordic transponder at 12.475 GHz,
|
|||
|
|
audio 7.56 MHz. Radio Sweden uses
7.38 MHz on the TV4 transponder. The
|
|||
|
|
Copenhagen local station The Voice
is on 7.74/7.92 on the same transponder.
|
|||
|
|
Curiously, Radio Sweden and
the Voice have appeared on the same audio
|
|||
|
|
subcarriers on the TV5 Nordic
transponder, for no apparent reason. Some of
|
|||
|
|
Sweden's new commercial
radio stations may be networked as well over Tele)X.\v\
|
|||
|
|
Other audio subcarriers can be found on:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
DFS Kopernikus 3 (German channels, DSR)
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F3 (Morocco, Poland, Croatia, Hungary, Egypt and Tunisia)
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F2 (Spain, Portugal, Turkish, RL/RFE)
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F4 (Serbian)
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 512, 515 (Norwegian channels)
|
|||
|
|
Telecom 2B, 2A, TDF)1/2 (French channels)
|
|||
|
|
TV)Sat (DSR as on Kopernikus 3)
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 601 (BBC WS and British Forces Broadcasting)
|
|||
|
|
Hispasat (Spain)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Taiwan's Voice of Free China says that within the next couple of
years they
|
|||
|
|
would be coming to Europe via satellite, through the help of
Deutsche Welle.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Digital Radio on Satellite
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Digital Satellite Radio (DSR) is a German)developed technology,
providing CD
|
|||
|
|
quality satellite radio. Unfortunately DSR cannot be
broadcast terrestrially,
|
|||
|
|
which means it will be replaced when Digital
Audio Broadcasting (DAB) starts in
|
|||
|
|
the next couple of years. Currently
16 DSR channels in German are on DFS)3
|
|||
|
|
Kopernikus at 23.5 degrees East
on 12.625 GHz and on TV)Sat at 19.2 degrees West
|
|||
|
|
on 11.977 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A number of international broadcasters have taken part in tests of
DSR on
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F3 (16 degrees East). Transponders 26 (11.078 GHz)
and 34A (11.650
|
|||
|
|
GHz) have been used, and among the 8 channels are Voice
of America, Radio France
|
|||
|
|
International, Deutsche Welle, and BBC World
Service.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Two digital satellite radio services from the United States are
expanding into
|
|||
|
|
Europe. Digital Music Express, or DMX, is already
available to more than 10
|
|||
|
|
million cable subscribers in the United
States. Thirty themed channels of
|
|||
|
|
various types of music would be made
available to European subscribers, without
|
|||
|
|
the need for DJs, jingles,
or commercials. The 30 types of music would include:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
US hottest hits, European hottest hits, contemporary jazz, classic
jazz,
|
|||
|
|
country, big band, world beat, blues, reggae, golden oldies,
heavy metal,
|
|||
|
|
classic rock, chamber music, and opera.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Signals are being relayed from DMX's Atlanta studios to a C)band
transponder
|
|||
|
|
aboard Intelsat 601, before being cross)linked to a Ku)band
transponder. Signals
|
|||
|
|
would be downlinked by cable operators.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
DMX, has launched a new pan-European consumer marketing campaign,
which will be
|
|||
|
|
initially run in the UK, Denmark and Norway before being
rolled out throughout
|
|||
|
|
Europe as distribution contracts are signed with
carriers. British Sky
|
|||
|
|
Broadcasting is reported to be close to signing
an agreement with to relay DMX
|
|||
|
|
over Astra from June 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The DMX decoder, manufactured by Scientific Atlanta, displays
information on
|
|||
|
|
the music being played, such as the name of the artist,
song and album title,
|
|||
|
|
composer, and chart position.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Another service called Digital Cable Radio currently provides 56
CD)quality
|
|||
|
|
radio channels to North American subscribers and cable\v\systems. DCR plans to
|
|||
|
|
bring 68 themed radio channels to Europe, under
the name Music Choice Europe. A
|
|||
|
|
number of cable operating and
distribution agreements have already been signed
|
|||
|
|
in the Netherlands,
Britain, and Switzerland, giving it a potential subscriber
|
|||
|
|
base in
excess of three million homes.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Digital Audio Broadcasting, or DAB, will replace FM in the next
few years. The
|
|||
|
|
World Administrative Radio Conference held in Spain in
January, 1992 approved
|
|||
|
|
frequencies for satellite DAB, which would be
receivable on small portable
|
|||
|
|
receivers. Various countries, including
Sweden and Britain, have been conducting
|
|||
|
|
test broadcasts of DAB, prior
to its expected introduction in 1995. The BBC used
|
|||
|
|
the Olympus
satellite for DAB tests as well.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other Non)Video Signals
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
We have had no reports yet of European SCPC. But a number of news
agencies are
|
|||
|
|
using satellites to distribute their signals. BBC
Monitoring is now subscribing
|
|||
|
|
to the Russian ITAR)TASS news agency, via
a data link on Intelsat 601. The BBC
|
|||
|
|
will receive information from
Moscow in English and Russian, replacing the
|
|||
|
|
previous intricate system
of communications cables.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\2\ IV. Middle Eastern Satellite Broadcasting
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Middle East is an expanding area for satellite broadcasting,
centering
|
|||
|
|
around the Arab League's Arabsat satellites and Turkey's
broadcasts to Turkish
|
|||
|
|
emigrants in Western Europe and the newly
independent countries of Central Asia.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Arabsat 1B is drifting eastward and has reached at least 43
degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
Both Arabsat 1B and 1C have 25 C-Band transponders, as
well as one strong S-Band
|
|||
|
|
transponder around 2600 MHz. 1B has been used
to relay programs from Morocco,
|
|||
|
|
Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Mauritania. One
transponder has been used for Inter-Arab
|
|||
|
|
news, co-ordinated via Tunis.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Arabsat 1C (31 degrees East) is now the main Middle Eastern
satellite, and
|
|||
|
|
includes:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
MBC 2.560 GHz PAL
|
|||
|
|
Canal France International 3.811 PAL
|
|||
|
|
CNN International 3.829 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Libyan feeds 3.867 PAL
|
|||
|
|
UAE TV1 Dubai 3.956 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Saudi Arabia TV1 3.977 SECAM
|
|||
|
|
RMT 1 Morocco 4.008 SECAM
|
|||
|
|
UAE TV2 Dubai 4.033 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Saudi Arabia TV2 4.051 SECAM
|
|||
|
|
Oman TV 4.063 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Mauritanian TV 4.081 SECAM
|
|||
|
|
MBC 4.107 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Jordanian TV 4.144 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Egyptian Space Channel 4.164 PAL
|
|||
|
|
KTS Kuwait 4.180 PAL
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Middle East Broadcasting Centre (MBC) is a London)based Arabic
channel.
|
|||
|
|
Although it is Saudi)backed (the chairman is the brother)in*law of Saudi
|
|||
|
|
Arabia's King Fahd), the channel was briefly banned in
Saudi Arabia for its
|
|||
|
|
bare)headed female announcers. Parallel
transmissions continue to Europe on
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II-F1. The station is
working together with the Saudi)financed Arab
|
|||
|
|
Network of America in the
United States.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The MBC is to launch a package of three to six subscription
channels for the
|
|||
|
|
Middle East in 1994. These would include a family
channel, a general
|
|||
|
|
entertainment channel, and a movie channel. The
current MBC Europe channel would
|
|||
|
|
become MBC1, a free service offering
news and teasers for the other channels.
|
|||
|
|
NTL's digital compression
system is to be used for the package, which would be
|
|||
|
|
carried on an
Arabsat.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Kuwait Satellite Channel carries a news bulletin in English at
around 19:30
|
|||
|
|
UTC. BBC World Service TV is planning on starting a 24
hour Arabic service to
|
|||
|
|
the Middle East from Arabsat in April, 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The new Arabsat 1D at 20 degrees East has carried test signals on
two
|
|||
|
|
transponders (3.760 and 3.840 GHz) for "ART ) Arabic Radio and
Television".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Arab Space Communications Corporation has awarded a contract
for two new
|
|||
|
|
Arabsats. The first would be launched in 1996. Besides 18
C)band channels, and 2
|
|||
|
|
S)band channels, they would also carry 12 Ku*band transponders, making reception
|
|||
|
|
possible with 60 to 80 cm dishes.\v\
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F3 is the main satellite for broadcasts from Arabic
countries to
|
|||
|
|
North Africa and Europe. Tunisia's first satellite
channel, RTT (or TV7
|
|||
|
|
Tunisie), is on 11.660 GHz. The new external
service of Tunisian Radio is
|
|||
|
|
carried on the subcarrier at 7.02 MHz
(7.20 also reported). English is heard at
|
|||
|
|
13:00 hrs, German at 14:00
hrs, and French at 15:00 hrs. The international
|
|||
|
|
service, RTCI,
broadcasts mainly in French.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Morocco's RTM is on 10.970 GHz, with sound in Arabic on 6.60 MHz,
Berber on
|
|||
|
|
7.20, and a multi)lingual service on 7.38. The RTM
International service in
|
|||
|
|
Arabic uses 7.02, with RTM Morocco on 7.56.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Egyptian Space Channel is on 11.178 GHz, with radio stations
on 7.02, 7.20,
|
|||
|
|
and 7.38 MHz. The International Service Nile TV
International, began low)powered
|
|||
|
|
test transmissions on 11.156 GHz on
October 10, 1993. Initial broadcasts are
|
|||
|
|
between 17:00 and 19:00 hrs
UTC, most in English. When the channel is officially
|
|||
|
|
launched there
will be two hours in English and one hour in French daily.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Dubai launched its 24 hour "Emirates TV Dubai" satellite service
to Europe,
|
|||
|
|
North and Central America on December 6, 1993. Most
programming is in Arabic,
|
|||
|
|
but there are newscasts at 15:00 and 18:00
hrs British time in English.
|
|||
|
|
Broadcasts to Europe are on Eutelsat II)
F1, while the Americas are reached
|
|||
|
|
through Galaxy 7.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Iraq is to launch the Iraq International Television station during
the last
|
|||
|
|
quarter of this year. Broadcasts are to be to Europe and North
Africa on
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat and to the Middle East on Arabsat and another
satellite known as
|
|||
|
|
"al)Jisr".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Arabsat 1D at 20 degrees East is to carry four Lebanese channels:
Future on
|
|||
|
|
3.787 GHz, and ART with a sports channel on 3.788, an
entertainment channel on
|
|||
|
|
3.844, and a children's channel on 3.626 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 602 at 63 degrees East carries Iran's IRIB TV1 and TV2 on
Ku)band
|
|||
|
|
10.990 and 11.150 GHz, and the American AFRTS on 11.470 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Iran has announced it plans to broadcast six hours a day of
television to
|
|||
|
|
Europe and Asia. According to the report "a number of
satellites will be hired."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are Turkish channels on several Eutelsats: TGRT and HBB are
on II)F3.
|
|||
|
|
A)TV, Show)TV, and interStar are on II)F2. Kanal 6 and Kanal
Market are on
|
|||
|
|
II)F4. The Turkish State Television's TRT International
broadcasts to Europe on
|
|||
|
|
Eutelsat II)F1. There have been news bulletins
in English and German following
|
|||
|
|
the Turkish news at 21:00 hrs European
time.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
TRT began satellite broadcasting 4 channels to Central Asia on
April 1, 1992,
|
|||
|
|
using Ku)band transponders on Intelsat 604 at 60 degrees
East (10.974, 11.138,
|
|||
|
|
11.647, and 11.683 GHz). TRT hopes to reach as
many as 57 million Turkic
|
|||
|
|
speakers in the 6 new Moslem states of the
former Soviet Union.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Turkey's first 16 transponder Turksat is due to be launched on
January 20,
|
|||
|
|
1994, with a second satellite 6 to 12 months later. CNN has
applied to lease a
|
|||
|
|
transponder on Turksat. According to reports, Turkey
has also reached agreement
|
|||
|
|
to lease transponders to Kazakhstan,
Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, and Georgia.
|
|||
|
|
Presumeably, the 5 TRT channels\v\and the current 6 or more private Turkish
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters will also find
homes on Turksat.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Israel broadcasts from Intelsat 512 on 11.015, 11.174, and 11.590
GHz. The
|
|||
|
|
domestic Radio Israel uses 7.20 MHz and the international
service Kol Israel
|
|||
|
|
uses 7.38 and 7.56 MHz on the 11.590 GHz
transponder. Israel's Amos DBS,
|
|||
|
|
carrying 6 or 7 Ku-Band transponders,
is due to be launched, probably from
|
|||
|
|
French Guyana, in 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
AA
|
|||
|
|
\\ V. African Satellite Broadcasting
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In Africa, satellite broadcasting is expanding, particularly to
South Africa.
|
|||
|
|
European satellites can be monitored in southern Africa,
and there are even
|
|||
|
|
reports of reception of Astra (with a 4 meter dish)!
An important satellite is
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 601 at 27.5 degrees West. While
European broadcasters use this
|
|||
|
|
satellite for Ku)band transmissions, C*band is used to Africa. Broadcasters
|
|||
|
|
include:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BBC World Service Television 3.650 GHz PAL
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle/WorldNet 3.743 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Canal Horizons (French) 3.803 PAL
|
|||
|
|
Canal France International 3.915 SECAM
|
|||
|
|
Algerian TV 4.003 PAL
|
|||
|
|
CNN International 4.048 PAL
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The BBC is encrypted using the IRDETO system, requiring a decoder
from the
|
|||
|
|
South African)based M)Net company, which shares the
transponder with BBC. (This
|
|||
|
|
is in fact the same system used by the
Dutch RTL)4 on Astra, but known there as
|
|||
|
|
Luxcrypt.)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Sky News was due to start 12 hours a day of broadcasts to South
Africa,
|
|||
|
|
beginning October 3, 1993 , using a relay from Intelsat.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The South African Broadcasting Corporation's external services
have changed
|
|||
|
|
their name to Channel Africa. This includes both Radio RSA
and a television
|
|||
|
|
service on the Intelsat 605 satellite at 24.5 degrees
West, at 4.166 GHz. This
|
|||
|
|
consists of African news, information, and
educational material in English and
|
|||
|
|
French, weekdays at 12:00)13:00 hrs
for rebroadcast by stations in other parts
|
|||
|
|
of Africa. The SABC intends
to move from the C)band to the Ku)band in 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 505 (66 degrees East) carries WorldNet/Deutsche Welle, as
well as
|
|||
|
|
Zaire, South Africa's SAIS and Bop)TV, and France's Canal
France International.
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 602 (63 degrees) carries South Africa's
M)Net and SABC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The international French)speaking channel TV5 Afrique is now
broadcasting to
|
|||
|
|
Africa via the former Soviet Ghorizont 12 at 40 degrees
East (on 3.730 GHz).
|
|||
|
|
Besides TV5, Portugal's RTP International (3.930
GHz) is on this satellite.
|
|||
|
|
Unfortunately, Ghorizont 12 is in an
inclined orbit, which means that Earth
|
|||
|
|
stations must be able to track
the satellite as it drifts in a "figure eight"
|
|||
|
|
pattern.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
M)Net and the South African Broadcasting Corporation have booked
transponders
|
|||
|
|
on PAS)4, set to launch in March, 1995, for southern
Africa's first direct to
|
|||
|
|
home broadcasting service.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The planned Afro)Caribbean Satellite Channel, which is to begin
operations
|
|||
|
|
aimed at Europe, hopes to eventually reach the emerging
cable systems of Africa.
|
|||
|
|
The American Black Entertainment Network also
plans to expand into the African
|
|||
|
|
market.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\j\ VI. Asia and the Pacific
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are nearly 30 geostationary satellites in orbit above Asia
and the
|
|||
|
|
Pacific. Five are former Soviet satellites, another five are
from Intelsat. The
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat satellites provide a variety of C-Band
services. Intelsat 508 at 180
|
|||
|
|
degrees relays in C)band Australia's Nine
Network and Network 10, as well as
|
|||
|
|
Japan's NHK, and the American CNN,
ABC, CBS, NBC, ESPN, and WorldNet/Deutsche
|
|||
|
|
Welle. There's an RFO-France
relay to Tahiti and WTN news feeds. In the Ku)band,
|
|||
|
|
there are
transponders carrying Turner Broadcasting and Fuji TV.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 505 (66 degrees East) carries WorldNet/Deutsche Welle,
and several
|
|||
|
|
Chinese channels, as well as television from Malaysia.
Intelsat 602 (63 degrees)
|
|||
|
|
carries two channels from Thailand.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat has relocated Intelsat 501 to 91.5 degrees East to
provide expanded
|
|||
|
|
coverage to the Asia)Pacific countries.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
On October 22, 1993 the first of the new 7th generation Intelsats,
Intelsat
|
|||
|
|
701, was launched by an Ariane rocket. The satellite will be
used to provide
|
|||
|
|
services in the Asia-Pacific region from 174 degrees
East. The satellite is the
|
|||
|
|
first of nine Intelsat 7's scheduled for
launch before the end of 1995.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are Ghorizonts at 80, 90, 96.5, and 103 degrees East. Each
has 6
|
|||
|
|
C-Band transponders, and the first three have experimental
Ku-Band transponders
|
|||
|
|
as well (presumably on 11.525 GHz).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Soviet satellite Ekran at 99 degrees East carries a
transponder on UHF
|
|||
|
|
714 MHz. This is between Japanese channels 53 and 54
and European channels 51
|
|||
|
|
and 52, and is reported to be available all
over Asia. This carries the Orbita
|
|||
|
|
service from Moscow. India's first
state)wide cable network, Asianet in Kerala,
|
|||
|
|
has booked another Ekran
transponder on 751 MHz (European UHF channel 56) to
|
|||
|
|
relay a program in
Malayalam to systems around the state.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Star)TV
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Asiasat)1, the first commercial satellite designed for Asian
countries, was
|
|||
|
|
launched in April, 1990 by a Chinese Long March rocket.
Located at 105.5 degrees
|
|||
|
|
East, it carries 24 C-Band transponders, half
dedicated to a North Beam covering
|
|||
|
|
northern Asia, the rest to a South
Beam covering southern Asia.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Here are the channels on Asiasat:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Mongolian TV 3.760 North beam SECAM
|
|||
|
|
Pakistan TV 3.780 South PAL
|
|||
|
|
Star TV Sport 3.800 North NTSC
|
|||
|
|
MTV Asia 3.840 North NTSC
|
|||
|
|
Star TV Sport 3.860 South PAL
|
|||
|
|
BBC WS TV Asia 3.880 North NTSC
|
|||
|
|
MTV Asia 3.900 South PAL
|
|||
|
|
Star Mandarin TV 3.920 North NTSC
|
|||
|
|
BBC WS TV Asia 3.940 South PAL
|
|||
|
|
Star TV Plus 3.960 North NTSC
|
|||
|
|
Zee TV 3.980 South PAL
|
|||
|
|
Yunnan TV 4.040 North PAL
|
|||
|
|
Star TV 4.060 South PAL
|
|||
|
|
CCTV4 4.120 North NTSC
|
|||
|
|
Myanmar TV (Burma) 4.140 South NTSC
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The first pan-Asian satellite broadcaster, Star-TV, began
broadcasts on
|
|||
|
|
Asiasat in August, 1991. It is owned by Hong Kong's
Hutchvision, which become
|
|||
|
|
part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation
media empire in 1993. Star)TV now
|
|||
|
|
reaches at least 1.8 million homes
from Asiasat 1. It includes 6 channels, 4 on
|
|||
|
|
both beams (N/S):
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
1) Star-Sports (3.80 GHz/3.86 GHz)
|
|||
|
|
2) MTV Asia (3.84 GHz/3.90 GHz)
|
|||
|
|
3) BBC World Service Television (3.88 GHz/3.94 GHz)
|
|||
|
|
4) Star TV (entertainment) (3.96 GHz/4.02 GHz)
|
|||
|
|
5) Mandarin TV (3.92 GHz) NTSC
|
|||
|
|
6) Zee TV (3.98 GHz) PAL
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Zee TV is Star's Hindi language channel to South Asia. The Hong
Kong
|
|||
|
|
authorities have also given permission for Star)TV to broadcast in
Cantonese.
|
|||
|
|
This service will begin after the system's three year trial
ends.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
News Corporation is expected to begin new Star)TV pay channels.
Star is
|
|||
|
|
offering four subscription channels to Hong Kong's first cable
TV network: Star
|
|||
|
|
Asian Movie Channel, Star Movie Channel, Star
Children's Channel, and the Asian
|
|||
|
|
News and Business Channel. Japan's
Mitsui company, NBC in the United States and
|
|||
|
|
Pearson plc, owner of the
"Financial Times", are behind the 24 hour Asian News
|
|||
|
|
and Business
Channel. Presumeably these channels will also be carried on
|
|||
|
|
Asiasat.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
News Corporation has tried to terminate the BBC's 10 year contract
(after only
|
|||
|
|
2 years) claiming that the BBC's planned Arabic service
from Arabsat would
|
|||
|
|
overlap with Star. The BBC has blocked the attempt,
but it is possible News
|
|||
|
|
Corporation would like to carry its own Sky
News instead.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
At the annual meeting of News Corporation in October, 1993 Rupert
Murdoch
|
|||
|
|
announced the splitting of Star)TV, into four divisions, one
each for China,
|
|||
|
|
India, Indonesia and the Middle East.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Asiasat has signed a contract for an Asiasat)2, with an option for
a further
|
|||
|
|
satellite. Asiasat)2 will have 40 C)band transponders, and 9
Ku)band
|
|||
|
|
transponders at 100.5 degrees East. It would be launched in
March 1995, and
|
|||
|
|
would have an unprecedented footprint reaching from
Tokyo to Berlin, and south
|
|||
|
|
to Australia.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
British Telecom has booked 5 transponders, Australia's Nine
Network another 10.
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle also plans to use Asiasat)2.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Palapa
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The main competition to the Star)TV service is on Indonesia's
Palapa B2P
|
|||
|
|
satellite at 113 degrees East. CNN, ESPN, Home Box Office,
the Australian
|
|||
|
|
Broadcasting Corporation, and Hong Kong's TVB have
agreed to co)ordinate efforts
|
|||
|
|
to broadcast their programs on one
satellite, initially B2P. CNN is on 3.840
|
|||
|
|
GHz, ESPN on 4.042 GHz, both
in B)MAC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\t\ The Australia Television International service to Asia began on
February
|
|||
|
|
17, 1993 via Palapa B2P. The programs, which are hoped to
reach 30 Asian)Pacific
|
|||
|
|
countries, include news reporting, special
international topics, Asian)Pacific
|
|||
|
|
socio)cultural aspects, reports on
scientific and technical developments, and
|
|||
|
|
education.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
TVB, which has an enormous library of Chinese language films, has
not yet begun
|
|||
|
|
transmissions on the satellite.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Asia's first business television channel began broadcasts on
November 1, 1993
|
|||
|
|
on the same satellite. Among the owners of Asia
Business News are Dow Jones, the
|
|||
|
|
American cable giant TCI, Television
New Zealand, and the Singapore Broadcasting
|
|||
|
|
Corpation.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Canal France International is also broadcasting over Palapa B2P on
3860 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
The network beams a variety of programs including news,
features, filmes,
|
|||
|
|
debates, sports, and children's programs produced by
the main French channels
|
|||
|
|
TF1, France 2 and France 3.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
B2P also provides television for Thailand, Malaysia, and the
Philippines as
|
|||
|
|
well as Indonesia.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Hughes Communications has signed an agreement to build a third
generation of
|
|||
|
|
satellites for Indonesia, Palapa)C. The first two
satellites will be delivered
|
|||
|
|
in July 1995 and January 1996, with an
option for a third, which expires in
|
|||
|
|
1999. Each satellite will carry 30
C)band and 4 Ku)band transponders, providing
|
|||
|
|
coverage through)out
southeast Asia and parts of China and Australia.
|
|||
|
|
Arianespace has signed
a contract to launch Palapa C1 in October 1995. It will
|
|||
|
|
replace Palapa
B2P at 113 degrees East, and will have an expected life of 14
|
|||
|
|
years.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
China's commercial satellite launch service has signed a contract
with Hong
|
|||
|
|
Kong's APT Satellite to launch the 24 transponder Apstar)1
satellite in June,
|
|||
|
|
1994. The satellite will be made by Hughes, which
will also make Apstar)2, due
|
|||
|
|
to be launched a year later. The Star
rivals on Palapa B2P are to move to
|
|||
|
|
Apstar)1 after its launch.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
These services hope to move in to the lucrative Chinese market,
which may be
|
|||
|
|
difficult following the Chinese government's recent
restrictions on satellite
|
|||
|
|
television.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Another potential broadcaster to China is Australia's state-owned
multicultural
|
|||
|
|
broadcasting network, the Special Broadcasting Service or
SBS. SBS is holding
|
|||
|
|
talks with potential Asian and North American
partners to establish an
|
|||
|
|
international satellite television service in
several languages with English
|
|||
|
|
subtitles. SBS currently broadcasts
television and radio in 63 languages across
|
|||
|
|
Australia.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
India
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
India began using the American ATS)6 satellite for rural
education, the
|
|||
|
|
SITE experiment, in 1975. The first Insat satellite was
launched in 1983. The
|
|||
|
|
most recent, Insat 2)A, is at 74 degrees East,
and three regional Indian
|
|||
|
|
television channels have moved to it from
Arabsat. Tamil Nadu programs are on
|
|||
|
|
4.115, Karnataka on 4.135, and
Maharashtra on 4.175 GHz. Insat 2)B was launched
|
|||
|
|
in July, 1993, and
placed at 93.5 degrees East. A new package of 5 channels, in
|
|||
|
|
an effort
to compete with Star)TV, which has made tremendous inroads in
|
|||
|
|
India,
was inaugurated on Indian Independence Day, August 15th.\v\
|
|||
|
|
A survey in January indicated that 3.3 million Indian homes were
watching Star
|
|||
|
|
and Zee TV. Another survey revealed that satellite TV has
reached 4 percent of
|
|||
|
|
India's half a million villages, where English*language soap operas are the most
|
|||
|
|
popular programming.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A group of non)resident Indian businessmen has started anther
Hindi)language
|
|||
|
|
channel, Asian TV Network, from Ghorizont 19 (96.5
degrees East), on 3.800 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
India's first state)wide cable network, Asianet in Kerala, has
booked a
|
|||
|
|
transponder on the Russian Ekran satellite at 99 degrees East
on 751 MHz
|
|||
|
|
(European UHF channel 56) to relay a program in Malayalam to
systems around the
|
|||
|
|
state. Other transponders may be booked on the (now
dormant) Ekran satellites at
|
|||
|
|
48, 64, 84, and 95 degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A new 9 channel satellite television service to India is to be
begin on January
|
|||
|
|
1, 1994. The nine channels carried by the joint
American)India network are to
|
|||
|
|
cover: religious and spiritual
programming; politics; children's programming,
|
|||
|
|
entertainment, music and
movies; sports; medicine, health, fitness and sex
|
|||
|
|
education; business
and economy; and development, environment, and women's
|
|||
|
|
issues, science,
and technology. Broadcasts are to be over two satellites, the
|
|||
|
|
Russian
Statsionar 21 at 103 degrees East, and Asiasat.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Insat 2)C satellite, to be launched in 1995, will bring
Doordarshan
|
|||
|
|
programs to viewers in the Middle East and Asia. It will
carry more than the
|
|||
|
|
eight transponders on 2)B, including Ku)band
transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Japan
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Japan has been a pioneer in direct satellite broadcasting, as
|
|||
|
|
might be expected from its consumer electronics industry. The world's
|
|||
|
|
first direct broadcast satellite was Japan's BS-2. It's successors, BS-
|
|||
|
|
3A and BS)3B, are positioned at 110 degrees East. They each carry three
12 GHz
|
|||
|
|
transponders, and one wide-band data channel. Programs are
provided by the
|
|||
|
|
Japanese public service broadcaster NHK and the
commercial JSB.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
BS)3B also broadcasts High Definition Television using the
Japanese Hi)Vision
|
|||
|
|
system on 11.880 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
On February 26, 1992 an Ariane rocket put into orbit Japan's
Superbird B)1 at
|
|||
|
|
162 degrees East. Superbird carries six new satellite
TV stations, including CNN
|
|||
|
|
International and MTV. This satellite
carries 19 Ku)band transponders and 10
|
|||
|
|
Ka)band transponders, and can be
received on 20)24 cm dish antennas.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Three television stations have started new satellite channels,
bringing the
|
|||
|
|
number of Japanese satellite channels to 9. The three are
SVN Space Vision
|
|||
|
|
(entertainment and sports), Let's Try Life Design
(hobby and cultural programs),
|
|||
|
|
and Asahi Newstar (news and
documentaries). At present there are only 58,000
|
|||
|
|
satellite
subscriptions in Japan, far short of the targeted 200,000. One
|
|||
|
|
reason
for the sluggish demand is the high cost of equipment.
|
|||
|
|
Currently,
antennas and receivers cost around 200,000 yen. New receivers,
|
|||
|
|
cheaper
by tens of thousands of yen, will be marketed later this year.
|
|||
|
|
\v\ BBC World Service Television also plans to broadcast its 24 hour
news and
|
|||
|
|
information channel to Japan, together with Japanese partner
the Nissho Iwai
|
|||
|
|
Corporation. While programs will be sold to terrestrial
broadcasters in Japan,
|
|||
|
|
the service will also include direct to home
broadcasts, presumably via
|
|||
|
|
Superbird, beginnning in early 1994. Viewers
will be able to choose between
|
|||
|
|
English and Japanese sound.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other Japanese satellites are JCSat 1 and 2 (at 150 and 154
|
|||
|
|
degrees respectively) each with 32 Ku-Band transponders. CS-3a (132
degrees)
|
|||
|
|
carries 2 C-Band and 10 Ka-Band (17.7-19.45 GHz) transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Nihon Keizai Shimbum, Television Tokyo Channel 13 Limited and
|
|||
|
|
five
sub-affiliates say that they will start broadcasting programs by
|
|||
|
|
satellite from 1997 using the BS-4 satellite, which is set to be
|
|||
|
|
launched in 1997. The satellite operator TXN will simulcast HDTV
broadcasts
|
|||
|
|
alongside conventional broadcasts, and the service will be
split between pay-TV
|
|||
|
|
services and advertising supported.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other Asian Satellite Broadcasters
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
China's DFH2-A1 is at 87.5 degrees East and DFH2-A2 at 110.5
degrees. Each
|
|||
|
|
carries 4 C)band transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
China's CCTV)3 service has begun relays from the Chinasat)5
satellite at 115.5
|
|||
|
|
degrees East, on 3720 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Portuguese Marconi company has signed an agreement with China
to deliver a
|
|||
|
|
satellite TV service to all of China and South East Asia,
called Telesat. Based
|
|||
|
|
in Macao, Telesat would start in late 1994, and
will offer what a Hong Kong
|
|||
|
|
newspaper called "European TV channels".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Taiwan's DPP political party is reported to be leasing four
transponders on
|
|||
|
|
the American NASA's TDRSS satellite at 174 degrees
West.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
After reaching a compromise with Asiasat, Thailand's Thaicom 1 and
Thaicom 2
|
|||
|
|
satellites will be co)located at 78.5 degrees east. Thaicom 1
was launched by
|
|||
|
|
Ariane in December, 1993. The second satellite is to go
into orbit by June,
|
|||
|
|
1994. The satellites will cover South East Asia,
eastern China, the Korean
|
|||
|
|
peninsula, and Japan. The two Hughes)built
satellites will carry 12 transponders
|
|||
|
|
each, 10 C)band and 2 Ku)band.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Pacific
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Australia's 3 Aussats are located at 156, 160, and 164 degrees
|
|||
|
|
East. They provide television to the Australian Outback, New Zealand,
|
|||
|
|
and the Pacific, using B-MAC. Each satellites has 15 Ku-Band
|
|||
|
|
transponders in the 12.25-12.75 GHz range. They are being replaced by
the new
|
|||
|
|
Optus B series.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Australia's Optus B1 satellite went into service on December 16,
1992. This
|
|||
|
|
satellite carries 15 Ku)band transponders, is at 160 degrees
East. Australia is
|
|||
|
|
to use B1 and its follow)up B2 to carry a 6 channel
subscription TV service, due
|
|||
|
|
to begin operation in early 1994.
|
|||
|
|
Unfortunately the B2 satellite was destroyed while being launched from
China on
|
|||
|
|
December 14, 1992.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Moreover, the awarding of the pay)TV franchises has been called by\v\"Satnews":
|
|||
|
|
"The biggest farce arguably in broadcasting history...Ever
since the Australian
|
|||
|
|
government first announced that four channels
could be broadcast by satellite
|
|||
|
|
aboard an Optus satellite, the whole
affair has been dogged by errors, omissions
|
|||
|
|
and plain stupidity. This
time two private companies with the same owners, and
|
|||
|
|
related to an
unsuccessful previous bidder, have been granted the licences
|
|||
|
|
to
broadcast...Only a few weeks ago two companies failed to come up with
money
|
|||
|
|
pledged for the licences. Ucom Pty Limited and Hi Vision Limited
paid
|
|||
|
|
significantly over the odds against over 50 rivals including
seasoned veterans
|
|||
|
|
such as News Corp. to secure the licences."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A third licence has been reserved for the state-owned broadcasting
|
|||
|
|
company ABC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. has jointed forces with Australia's
largest
|
|||
|
|
telephone company Telestra to form an alliance to exploit the
Asian media
|
|||
|
|
market. The new venture will pursue interests and
investments in activities such
|
|||
|
|
as pay television, home shopping and
interactive services. Telestra and News
|
|||
|
|
Corp. have already taken a
stake in Australian terrestrial broadcaster Seven
|
|||
|
|
Network Limited, and
the Australian Broadcasting Authority is examining the deal
|
|||
|
|
for
evidence of unfair competition.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are many new Pacific satellite services being planned:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Panamsat, the company behind the trans)Atlantic satellite PAS)1,
is preparing
|
|||
|
|
to reach the Pacific. PAS)2, to be launched in May, 1994,
will cover the Pacific
|
|||
|
|
region from China and Japan to Western Canada.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Tonga has run into problems on two sides with its Rimsat project.
Panamsat
|
|||
|
|
claims Tonga has booked too many orbital slots for such a
small country, while
|
|||
|
|
Tonga claims that one of the Indonesian Palapa
satellites is in the orbital slot
|
|||
|
|
for the first Tongasat. In 1992
Indonesia moved its Palapa B)1 satellite, in
|
|||
|
|
orbit since 1982, to 134
degrees East, a position claimed by Tonga, and
|
|||
|
|
registered with the
International Frequency Registration Board.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Tongasat 1, a Russian Ghorizont satellite, was to be moved into
that position
|
|||
|
|
on July 20, 1993. When diplomatic efforts to get
Indonesia to leave the slot
|
|||
|
|
failed, Tonga threatened to move its
satellite to one of Indonesia's existing
|
|||
|
|
orbital positions, switch it
on, and cause tremendous havoc to Indonesia's
|
|||
|
|
satellite communications
service.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In December, 1993, Indonesia announced the two countries had
settled their
|
|||
|
|
dispute, although this was supposed to involve both
sharing the orbital
|
|||
|
|
position, a questionable option. Tongasat plans to
place Russian)launched
|
|||
|
|
satellites at 134 and 130 degrees. Five more
Russian satellites are to be
|
|||
|
|
launched for Rimsat over the next few
years.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
When Tongasat 1 is in operation from its proper position, it is
expected to
|
|||
|
|
provide coverage from Iran and India to Hawaii. Behind
Tongasat are two American
|
|||
|
|
companies, Rimsat and Unicom, as well as
Asian investors.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American company TRW has filed to launch Pacificom 1 in 1994,
to operate in
|
|||
|
|
both the Ku and C bands from 172 degrees East. The
footprints would reach from
|
|||
|
|
the American West coast into Asia and
Australasia. There would be 11
|
|||
|
|
high)powered Ku band transponders for\v\DBS services, along with 8 C)band
|
|||
|
|
transponders.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Pacific Satellite Company hopes to launch Pacstar 1 into an
orbital slot at
|
|||
|
|
167.5 degrees East in late 1994. This will cover the US
West Coast, Pacific
|
|||
|
|
islands, and East Asia.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
New Zealand is also planning a satellite TV service across the
Western Pacific
|
|||
|
|
and East Asia.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Asian and Pacific Satellite Radio
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Japan launched the world's first nationwide digital radio
|
|||
|
|
system, using BS-3A. The broadcasts use pulse code modulation, or
|
|||
|
|
PCM, matching the quality of compact disks, and free from the usual
|
|||
|
|
radio hissing noises.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
A Japanese company currently provides 440 cable radio channels.
There are plans
|
|||
|
|
to expand the system to 1000 channels within 5 years,
with the ultimate aim of
|
|||
|
|
2000 channels. The offerings include the
sounds of steam trains, roosters, cows,
|
|||
|
|
and ringing bells.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American company Digital Music Express, DMX, planned to start
in Australia
|
|||
|
|
during 1993. DMX services are be relayed from the United
States via satellite
|
|||
|
|
and then transmitted to customers using a
microwave distribution system. A small
|
|||
|
|
roof)mounted antenna would be
used to receive the signals. Twenty audio channels
|
|||
|
|
would initially be
offered, in addition to a special Australian channel.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\<\ VII. Global Satellite Channels
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The war in Vietnam was called the first television war, with the
|
|||
|
|
pictures of violence and horror on American TV screens night after
|
|||
|
|
night contributing to the feelings that fed the growing peace movement.
|
|||
|
|
The conflict in the Gulf was the first live TV war, broadcast around
|
|||
|
|
the world by satellite, and underlining the arrival of the first global
|
|||
|
|
TV broadcaster, the Cable News Network, CNN.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Arthur C. Clarke, the English visionary who first proposed
|
|||
|
|
communications satellites in 1945, watched what he called "the first's
|
|||
|
|
first satellite war" from his home in Sri Lanka.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In an interview with Reuters, Clarke said communications is power,
|
|||
|
|
and the forces unleased by satellites in the Gulf War have the
|
|||
|
|
potential for making the world a safer place. The further development
|
|||
|
|
of a satellite communications network with the wider availability of
|
|||
|
|
telephone, fax, and television, Clarke says, will make us one global
|
|||
|
|
family, whether we like it or not.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The conflict in the Gulf was also a boost for the BBC's long
|
|||
|
|
discussed plans for World Service Television, which became a reality on
|
|||
|
|
March 11th, 1991, taking over the existing BBC-TV Europe service on
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat VI-F4 (now Intelsat 601). In October, 1991 the 24 hour a day
service to
|
|||
|
|
Asia via Asiasat began. An African service, also on Intelsat
601, began in May,
|
|||
|
|
1992.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Beginning November, 1992 the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and
BBC World
|
|||
|
|
Service Television began exchanging daily news video. Under
the terms of the
|
|||
|
|
deal, the CBC has exclusive Canadian rights to
broadcast BBC WS TV's news,
|
|||
|
|
business, and weather reports. These are
carried on the English and French
|
|||
|
|
domestic networks as well as the 24
hour cable news channel CBC Newsworld (which
|
|||
|
|
is carried scrambled on
Anik E2, transponder 16). The service is being relayed
|
|||
|
|
uncoded to North
America on Intelsat 601 at 27.5 degrees West, using the
|
|||
|
|
C)band
transponder 4.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
World Service Television is going ahead with plans to start a
bilingual service
|
|||
|
|
to Japan and a 24 hour service in Arabic to the
Middle East via Arabsat. Future
|
|||
|
|
plans are to expand into the United
States, the Pacific and Latin America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
What seems to be becoming the third global broadcaster, and the
only
|
|||
|
|
competition to CNN and BBC World Service, is Rupert Murdoch's News
Corporation,
|
|||
|
|
which owns British Sky Broadcasting in Europe, Fox
Broadcasting in North
|
|||
|
|
America, Star)TV in Asia, and is branching out
into Africa and South America. In
|
|||
|
|
a speech to Sky advertisers in
London, Murdoch announced "Plans are well
|
|||
|
|
advanced to take Sky News, or
a parallel service, to all continents of the
|
|||
|
|
world, where we will be
seeking local partners, both national and regional."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Murdoch's News International has contracted NTL to join a group
developing a
|
|||
|
|
multi)channel digital TV system for direct satellite
reception in the home. NTL
|
|||
|
|
will develop the encoding, decoding and
multiplexing technology. The eventual
|
|||
|
|
domestic receiver will be mass*produced under licence for the comsumer market in
|
|||
|
|
Europe, Asia and
elsewhere.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\t\ Deutsche Welle has also become a global broadcaster, working with
the
|
|||
|
|
United States Information Agency's World Net in sharing many
transponders.
|
|||
|
|
Besides broadcasts to Europe on Eutelsat II)F1, Deutsche
Welle is using the
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat)K satellite to reach North America. The
signal is then relayed on
|
|||
|
|
Spacenet 2 transponder 3, and Satcom C4
transponder 5.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle is also relayed to Africa on Intelsat 601 at 27.5
degrees West
|
|||
|
|
at 3.745 GHz. Africa, Asia, and the Pacific are covered by
transmissions on
|
|||
|
|
Intelsat 505 at 66 degrees East at 4.177 GHz. Finally,
Deutsche Welle is also
|
|||
|
|
transmitting to the Far East and Pacific on
Intelsat 508 at 180 degrees East on
|
|||
|
|
3.993 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle's Waldemar Kraamer has told Radio Sweden: "In the
middle or end
|
|||
|
|
of 1994 we'll begin broadcasting on Asiasat)2, and we'll
then cover the world
|
|||
|
|
from Eastern Europe to East Asia. There are plans
to reach Africa as well.
|
|||
|
|
Currently we can be seen for two hours a day
in North Africa, using transponders
|
|||
|
|
leased by the American WorldNet."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
It was announced at the Internationale Funkaustellung in Berlin on
August 30th
|
|||
|
|
that Deutsche Welle TV will be expanding from 16 to 24 hour
a day service from
|
|||
|
|
1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Another global broadcaster in the making is the French)language
TV5, which has
|
|||
|
|
been broadcasting to Europe on Eutelsat I)F1 on 11.080
GHz, and to North America
|
|||
|
|
on Anik E1 transponder 17. TV5 Afrique
launched on September 30, 1992 via
|
|||
|
|
Ghorizont 12 at 40 degrees East. TV5
plans to expand to Latin America using
|
|||
|
|
Panamsat)1.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
TV5 carries programs from France (TF1, France 2 and 3), Belgium
(RTBF),
|
|||
|
|
Switzerland (SSR), and Quebec (Radio Canada). France also
transmits its Canal
|
|||
|
|
France International to Africa on Intelsats 601 and
505, to the Middle East on
|
|||
|
|
Arabsat 1C, and to East Asia on Palapa B2P.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Arab world's MBC, which owns the international news agency
UPI, broadcasts
|
|||
|
|
to the Middle East and North Africa on Arabsat, to
Europe on Eutelsat, and is
|
|||
|
|
working with the Arab Network of North
America.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
International Radio Broadcasting By Satellite
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
While the BBC, Radio France, and Deutsche Welle can put out 24
|
|||
|
|
hour services in their native languages by satellite, services which
|
|||
|
|
can be relayed over cable networks, it's much harder for small
|
|||
|
|
broadcasters. Both Radio Sweden and Swiss Radio International now have
satellite
|
|||
|
|
channels. But what cable system would relay them, each with a
series of programs
|
|||
|
|
in varying languages?
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
One possibility is for many international broadcasters to share
several
|
|||
|
|
satellite radio channels, one for English, one for French,
|
|||
|
|
one for German, etc. Cable operators in Britain, for example, could
offer one
|
|||
|
|
channel with alternating English programs, say from Sweden,
the Netherlands,
|
|||
|
|
Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and so on.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
This is what is being pioneered by the World Radio Network with
its WRN1
|
|||
|
|
service in English on Astra, which began in September, 1993.
If the effort is a
|
|||
|
|
success, services in other languages will follow.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\v\ There are some other options farther into the future, such as
Digital
|
|||
|
|
Audio Broadcasting (DAB) by satellite, also called BSS)Sound.
This would provide
|
|||
|
|
high quality radio reception to portable receivers.
BSS)Sound was approved by
|
|||
|
|
the World Administrative Radio Conference
held in Torremolinos, Spain during
|
|||
|
|
February, 1992.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The conference agreed that 1.5 GHz was the most technically
suitable frequency
|
|||
|
|
range, as it offers best reception for portable
receivers, without interference
|
|||
|
|
from the terrain or buildings. Small
whip antennas can be used and the
|
|||
|
|
satellites will be cheaper to build.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
However, politically many countries could not agree, one of the
reasons being
|
|||
|
|
that their existing users at 1.5 GHz in some cases
include the military. The
|
|||
|
|
conference reached absolute deadlock on this
subject, and it was only in its
|
|||
|
|
very last stages that a compromise was
drawn up. This provided the world with
|
|||
|
|
three separate allocations for
BSS-Sound. One is at 1.5 GHz--with a small
|
|||
|
|
portion of the band
available immediately, another allocation at 2.6 GHz, and a
|
|||
|
|
separate
band for the US at 2.3 GHz. The result is that digital satellite
|
|||
|
|
radio
is now just around the corner, Provided, of course, satellites are
built
|
|||
|
|
and receivers brought on to the market.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Worldspace, based in Washington, DC, plans a service called
Afrispace,
|
|||
|
|
which would broadcast 9 digital radio channels to Africa and
the Middle East.
|
|||
|
|
The planned portable receivers are expected to cost
around USD 100 each.
|
|||
|
|
Afristar 1 would be located at 12 degrees West,
and Afrispace hopes to be
|
|||
|
|
operating by late 1994. Radio Netherlands has
already signed a contract with
|
|||
|
|
Afrispace to broadcast 24 hours a day to
Africa and the Middle East.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
An American company called the International Radio Satellite
Corporation, or
|
|||
|
|
RadioSat, has announced plans to create a worldwide
direct broadcast satellite
|
|||
|
|
service for international broadcasters.
RadioSat plans to launch three
|
|||
|
|
high-powered satellites, each with
|
|||
|
|
more than 200 channels to be leased to international broadcasting
|
|||
|
|
organizations. RadioSat says the VOA, BBC World Service, Radio Moscow
and 5
|
|||
|
|
other broadcasters have expressed interest. RadioSat hopes to
launch the first
|
|||
|
|
of its three spacecraft in 1995.
|
|||
|
|
\L\ PART II. WEATHER AND OTHER "UTILITY" SATELLITES
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
If TVRO is the satellite version of shortwave broadcast DXing,
then these
|
|||
|
|
satellites provide the equivalent of utility monitoring and
scanning. The
|
|||
|
|
equipment required can be much less elaborate and much
less expensive than for
|
|||
|
|
TVRO. On the other hand, transmissions may be
less comprehensible, without the
|
|||
|
|
necessary expensive or unobtainable
equipment for decoding.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
I. Wefax
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
WEFAX or Weather Facsimile, is the method used to transmit
photographs and
|
|||
|
|
weather satellite maps via radio and telephone lines.
|
|||
|
|
The satellite version is known as APT. There are many low orbit
|
|||
|
|
weather
satellites using this system in the 136)138 MHz band.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Some of the active satellites that can be monitored are the
American NOAA and
|
|||
|
|
the former Soviet Meteors:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
NOAA beacons..................136.770 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Meteor 3)3, 3)4 and 3)5.......137.300 MHz APT
|
|||
|
|
NOAA 10 and 12................137.500 MHz APT
|
|||
|
|
NOAA 9 and 11..................BB137.620 MHz APT
|
|||
|
|
NOAA beacons..................137.770 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Meteor 2)21...................137.850 MHz APT
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Meteor 2)21 is a new satellite, launched on August 31, 1993.
Meteors 3)4 and
|
|||
|
|
3)5 are currently not transmitting. Meteor 3)6 is to be
launched soon. NOAA 13
|
|||
|
|
was launched on August 9, 1993. Unfortunately,
contact with the satellite was
|
|||
|
|
lost on August 21, 1993. The launch of
NOAA 14 has been moved up to early 1994.
|
|||
|
|
China has orbited several
polar orbiting WEFAX satellites in its Fengyun)1
|
|||
|
|
series. None are
currently operational, but the frequencies used are 137.06,
|
|||
|
|
137.80, and
137.795 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The satellite APT provides a continuous strip of image as the
satellites circle
|
|||
|
|
the globe in polar orbit. The NOAAs orbit at around
800 kilometers, while
|
|||
|
|
Meteors are in a higher orbit at around 1200
kilomters. This means that NOAA
|
|||
|
|
satellites pass overhead at the same
time every day (for example NOAA 11 passes
|
|||
|
|
over Britain travelling
northbound at around 15:30 hrs UTC and southbound at
|
|||
|
|
around 03:00 hrs).
Meteors, on the other hand, because of the higher altitude,
|
|||
|
|
tend to
arrive earlier each day by 10 to 20 minutes. NOAAs provide both
|
|||
|
|
visible
and infrared images (and can be monitored during darkness), while
|
|||
|
|
the
Meteors are more irregular in providing infrared images.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The satellites are quite strong, and can be heard on simple
scanners and
|
|||
|
|
antennas. However, since the bandwidth of the APT signal
is wider than the
|
|||
|
|
narrowband FM bandwidth of ordinary scanners, which
is around 15 to 35 kHz. The
|
|||
|
|
best images are received with receivers
having an IF bandwidth of 45 kHz.
|
|||
|
|
Dedicated WEFAX receivers are sold by
a number of companies, including Vanguard
|
|||
|
|
Labs and Hamtronics in the US
and Timestep in the UK. For those who find a
|
|||
|
|
dedicated receiver too
expensive, Software Systems Consulting in the US sells a
|
|||
|
|
specially
modified scanner for around USD 150.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
It is possible to obtain images using an ordinary scanner or
receiver, such as
|
|||
|
|
the ICOM R7000, although the detail will be less
clear.\v\
|
|||
|
|
Small non)directional antennas, such as ground planes, discones,
or active
|
|||
|
|
antennas are usually all that are required to receive
satellites in low orbit.
|
|||
|
|
The satellites are so strong that even a
quarter length whip for the amateur 145
|
|||
|
|
MHz band will result in clear
reception.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The best antenna to receive polar orbiting satellites, however, is
a crossed
|
|||
|
|
dipole or turnstile cut specifically for 137 MHz. It's
important that the
|
|||
|
|
antenna be omindirectional, but also have a high
angle of elevation, to receive
|
|||
|
|
signals from satellites passing
overhead. Most scanner and amateur radio
|
|||
|
|
antennas are designed to have
a low angle of elevation, to boost reception of
|
|||
|
|
terrestrial signals.
Crossed dipoles can be built fairly easily (there are plans
|
|||
|
|
in the
Weather Satellite Handbook and the PC GOES/WEFAX User's Reference
Manual,
|
|||
|
|
for example). There are also a number of commercially available
antennas.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other onmidirectional antennas that work well with polar orbiting
satellites
|
|||
|
|
include the linblad, quadrifilar helix, and the vertical
helix. It's
|
|||
|
|
advantageous to use low)loss cable, and a preamplfier,
usually mounted at the
|
|||
|
|
antenna end of the cable. Tuned amplifiers, such
as those used for the amateur
|
|||
|
|
radio 2 meter band, work much better than
broadband amplifiers, which do have
|
|||
|
|
the advantage of being much less
expensive. Do not use a broadband amplifier
|
|||
|
|
with a broadband scanner or
discone antenna.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
To interpret the satellite signals and view the images, computers
and special
|
|||
|
|
interfaces are necessary. These are available from the same
vendors who sell
|
|||
|
|
receivers, as well as many others. Check out articles
and advertisements in such
|
|||
|
|
magazines as "Monitoring Times" and "Popular
Communications" in the US and
|
|||
|
|
"Shortwave Magazine" in Britain. Note
that many interfaces are solely for
|
|||
|
|
reception of HF Wefax from
shortwave. These will NOT work with satellite APT.
|
|||
|
|
We've tested the PC
GOES/WEFAX demodulator for MS)DOS computers from Software
|
|||
|
|
Systems
Consulting. It seems to work very well.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Most of the available software is for MS)DOS computers, although
there are
|
|||
|
|
interfaces and software for other machines, such as the BBC
Micro and Sinclair
|
|||
|
|
Spectrum. In most cases the interface is connected
to an available serial port
|
|||
|
|
on the computer, and to the headphone or
external speaker jack of the receiver.
|
|||
|
|
Some receivers have separate
line output jacks, but the levels there are usually
|
|||
|
|
too low.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
It can be useful to plug a "Y" cable into the headphone jack, with
one end
|
|||
|
|
connected to the interface and the other to a small speaker
(preferably with its
|
|||
|
|
own volume control), so that the monitor can
listen to the channel at the same
|
|||
|
|
time that it is permanently connected
to the interface. (Cable, small speakers,
|
|||
|
|
and even cables with built)in
volume controls can be found at suppliers such as
|
|||
|
|
Radio Shack/Tandy.)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Unlike geostationary satellites, the polar orbiting satellites
move. While it
|
|||
|
|
can be interesting to tune in from time to time, or
remember when the daily
|
|||
|
|
passes of the NOAA satellite occur, the easiest
way to know when to look for the
|
|||
|
|
satellites is with a satellite
tracking program. Some interface software, such
|
|||
|
|
as PC GOES/WEFAX, come
with tracking programs included. There are a number of
|
|||
|
|
programs for
amateur radio satellite tracking available that work very well
|
|||
|
|
with
WEFAX satellites. Some are public domain or shareware, and can be found
in
|
|||
|
|
BBS's or in data libraries in online systems such as CompuServe.\v\Others are
|
|||
|
|
available through AMSAT in various countries.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\\ II. Geostationary Weather Satellites
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Geostationary satellites provide 24 hour WEFAX transmissions from
a single
|
|||
|
|
position in the sky. No tracking or waiting for a satellite to
come in range is
|
|||
|
|
required, but the greater distance and higher
frequencies require more expensive
|
|||
|
|
equipment than that required to
monitor polar orbiting satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The currently operational geostationary weather satellites are:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Meteosat)4 0 degrees
|
|||
|
|
Meteosat)5 8 degrees West
|
|||
|
|
Meteosat)3 75 degrees
|
|||
|
|
GOES)6 75 degrees
|
|||
|
|
GOES)7 112 degrees
|
|||
|
|
GOES)2 135 degrees
|
|||
|
|
GOES)3 176 degrees
|
|||
|
|
GMS)4 140 degrees East
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American geostationary GOES satellites downlink on 1691 MHz,
while the
|
|||
|
|
European Space Agency's Meteosats use 1694.5 MHz. Other
Meteosat frequencies
|
|||
|
|
include 1695.73 and 1695.76 MHz. Meteosat)3 was
originally positioned at 50
|
|||
|
|
degrees West longitude, but in early 1993
it was moved to 75 degrees West, to
|
|||
|
|
cover for the failure of a GOES
satellite. When the system is fully operational,
|
|||
|
|
there should be GOES
satellites at 59, 112, and 135 degrees West. Meteosat)4 is
|
|||
|
|
at 0 degrees
longitude. Meteosat)5 is positioned nearby, and would have
|
|||
|
|
replaced
Meteosat)4 but suffered from imaging faults. The satellite has now
|
|||
|
|
been
reactivated and is scheduled to replace Meteosat)3 at 75 degrees West
in
|
|||
|
|
early 1994. The Japanese GMS)4 is at 140 degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Meteosat)6 was launched from French Guiana on November 19, 1993.
It is to
|
|||
|
|
replace Meteosat)4 at the end of January, 1994.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
China is scheduled to launch its FENGYUN)2A satellite into
geostationary orbit
|
|||
|
|
on February 23, 1994. This will be positioned at
105 degrees East.
|
|||
|
|
To receive geostationary satellites, it is often easiest to build
upon a
|
|||
|
|
receiving station for polar orbiting satellites. A sensitive
antenna for 1690
|
|||
|
|
MHz is required, usually a dish of around 1 meter or
one or more stacked looped
|
|||
|
|
yagis. To this is connected a block down
converter and preamplifier, which
|
|||
|
|
converts the signal from 1690 MHz
down to 137 MHz. This is important because
|
|||
|
|
cable absorbs more energy at
1690 MHz than at 137 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The GOES and Meteosat satellites use the same APT format as found
on the polar
|
|||
|
|
orbiting satellites. They also supply higher quality PDUS
and HRPT images, which
|
|||
|
|
require specialized receiving equipment, which
is also available. The GMS
|
|||
|
|
satellites use a wide band FM format that is
incompatible with APT. They use a
|
|||
|
|
frequency deviation of 150 kHz, which
requires receivers with that bandwidth.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The European Space Agency plans to launch a new Meteosat in late
1993 and NOAA
|
|||
|
|
has scheduled launches of new GOES satellites in April,
1994 and in 1995.
|
|||
|
|
AAAAMeteosat, operated by the European Space Agency on behalf of the
European
|
|||
|
|
Meterological Office, will be undergoing in)flight tests
before it enters
|
|||
|
|
service at 0 degrees longitude at the end of January
1994. Tests will be
|
|||
|
|
conducted while the satellite drifts from its
current orbital position at 19
|
|||
|
|
degrees west. \v\
|
|||
|
|
The first on)board test images will be relayed back towards the end of
this
|
|||
|
|
week.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Once operational Meteosat 6 will replace Meteosat 4, which will become
a back up
|
|||
|
|
satellite. Meteosat 5 will then be drifted to cover the
Americas to replace
|
|||
|
|
Meteosat 3, presently on loan to the US Weather
Service )) NOAA )) which has
|
|||
|
|
suffered the loss of many of its
|
|||
|
|
satellites (Satnews passim). Meteosat only has a lifespan of a few
months left.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Meteosat 7 and 8 are scheduled to be launched by the end of 1995, just
before
|
|||
|
|
Eumetsat takes over all the operation off Meteosat satellites
from ESA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
III. Other "Utility" Satellites
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are many other satellites using the 136)138 MHz band. Many
use narrow
|
|||
|
|
band FM to transmit their telemetry. Britain's Prospeso
satellite is on 137.56
|
|||
|
|
MHz. Temisat transmits on 137.72 MHz. Japan's
Marine Observation Satellites MOS
|
|||
|
|
1 and 1B can be heard on 136.11 MHz.
India's Bhaskara 1 (137.230 MHz) and 2
|
|||
|
|
(137.380 MHz) also use narrow
band FM. A Transit navigational satellite can be
|
|||
|
|
heard on 136.65 MHz.
Sweden's Freja)1 auroral research satellite uses 137.50
|
|||
|
|
MHz, a
frequency generally used by the NOAA satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other satellites monitored in this band in the past include NASA's
ATS)3
|
|||
|
|
(136.37), Transit (136.65), IUE (136.86), Marecs A/B (137.17),
Okean (137.4),
|
|||
|
|
and Intercosmos (137.45). There have been, and will be,
many other satellites in
|
|||
|
|
this band.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Other interesting satellites on nearby frequencies include the
American Hilat
|
|||
|
|
(149.988 MHz narrow band FM) and Geosat (150.015 and 400
MHz CW).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American Transit and former Soviet CosNav satellites provide
navigational
|
|||
|
|
data to ships and submarines. They transmit simultaneously
on two frequencies:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Channel 1))149.910 and 399.762 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Channel 2))149.940 and 399.842 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Channel 3))149.970 and 399.922 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Channel 4))150.000 and 400.200 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Channel 5))150.030 and 400.082 MHz
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The CosNavs may also use 148.91 and 388.84 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Scientific and research satellites use the following bands: 400*402 MHz,
|
|||
|
|
1400)1429 MHz, and 2655)2700 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Sweden's Freja)1 research satellite, investigating the Northern
Lights, has a
|
|||
|
|
beacon on 400.55 MHz. Other satellites monitored around
400 MHz include DOD
|
|||
|
|
(401)401.5) and DCS (401.5)403). Various DOD
satellites are listed using the
|
|||
|
|
band between 406 and 425 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Marisat are geo)stationary satellites carrying transponders for
maritime mobile
|
|||
|
|
and aeronautical communications. Maritime Mobile use
1535)1543 MHz downlinks
|
|||
|
|
while Aero Mobile uses 1458)1542 MHz for\v\downlinks.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American Landsat operates around 2 GHz, as do the Franco*Swedish Spot photo
|
|||
|
|
satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a new American system that
will
|
|||
|
|
eventually include 24 Navstar satellites in a 55 degree inclined
orbit at 20 to
|
|||
|
|
200 kilometers above the Earth. These provide accurate
longitude, latitude, and
|
|||
|
|
altitude information to handheld units that
monitor 3 to 4 satellites. They use
|
|||
|
|
spread spectrum transmissions
around 1575.42 MHz. Besides the commercial
|
|||
|
|
version, which provides
accuracy to around 100 meters, there is a more accurate
|
|||
|
|
military system
which was used by American Army Intelligence during the Gulf
|
|||
|
|
War. This
uses an additional signal on around 1227.6 MHz to compensate
|
|||
|
|
for
various delays between the satellites and the receiver.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Although GPS satellites don't transmit a signal that can be
listened to in a
|
|||
|
|
traditional sense, the status of the entire system can
be monitored on a
|
|||
|
|
shortwave receiver. WWV transmits an update the
system every 14 minutes on 2.5,
|
|||
|
|
5, 10, 15, and 20 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The similar former Soviet GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite
Systems) system
|
|||
|
|
uses 1250, 1597, 1603, and 1617 MHz. There are to be 24
GLONASS satellites in
|
|||
|
|
orbit.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\6\ PART III. Amateur Radio in Space
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Besides governments and corporations, radio amateurs have also
launched many
|
|||
|
|
satellites. The first communications satellite was in
fact the Moon, which radio
|
|||
|
|
amateurs bounced have bounced signals off
for years. In 1960 a group of radio
|
|||
|
|
amateurs in the United States
formed the Project Oscar ("Orbiting Satellite
|
|||
|
|
Carrying Amateur Radio")
Association to design and build satellites for use in
|
|||
|
|
the amateur radio
bands.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Oscar was succeeded by the Amateur Satellite Corporation (AMSAT)
in 1969. There
|
|||
|
|
are national AMSAT societies in many countries, and the
international
|
|||
|
|
headquarters is in Washington, DC.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Amateur Radio Satellites:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Satellite BBOrbit Beacon or Downlink Modes/Comments
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Oscar 10 elliptical 145.810/145.987 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Oscar 11 circular 145.826/435.025
|
|||
|
|
RS 10/11 circular 29.357/.408 RS)10 CW
|
|||
|
|
145.857/.903 "
|
|||
|
|
29.407/.453 RS)11 CW
|
|||
|
|
145.907/.953 "
|
|||
|
|
Oscar 13 elliptical 145.812/435.651
|
|||
|
|
UO)14 circular 435.070
|
|||
|
|
PO)16 circular 437.02625/437.0513
|
|||
|
|
DO)17 circular 145.825 voice synth.
|
|||
|
|
WO)18 circular 437.0751/437.102 slowscan TV
|
|||
|
|
LO)19 circular 437.1258/437.15355 packet BBS
|
|||
|
|
FO)20 circular 435.795/435.910 packet BBS
|
|||
|
|
AO)21 145.987 FM/packet dnlink
|
|||
|
|
145.800/.819/.838/.948 beacons
|
|||
|
|
UO)22 circular 435.120 (see below) packet BBS
|
|||
|
|
RS)12/13 circular 29.408/.454 RS)12 CW
|
|||
|
|
145.912/.959 "
|
|||
|
|
29.458/.504 RS)13 CW
|
|||
|
|
145.862/.908 "
|
|||
|
|
KO)23 circular 435.175 packet BBS
|
|||
|
|
AO)24 elliptical 2446.47 2 meter failure
|
|||
|
|
KO)25 circular 435.175/500 packet BBS
|
|||
|
|
IO)26 circular 435.867/822 packet and voice
|
|||
|
|
AO)27 circular 436.800 packet and FM
|
|||
|
|
PO)28 circular 435.250/435.275 occasional
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The easiest way to get started in amateur satellite monitoring is
to listen to
|
|||
|
|
the RS satellites in the 10 and 15 meter bands on an
ordinary shortwave
|
|||
|
|
receiver. Radio amateurs with a shortwave receiver
and a 2 meter transmitter
|
|||
|
|
(even a handheld) can work the RS satellites.
An ordinary longwire antenna is
|
|||
|
|
all that is needed for shortwave, and
simple quarter wavelength 2 meter whips
|
|||
|
|
will do for transmitting.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Most users use more sophisticated equipment. Omnidirectional
antennas will work
|
|||
|
|
the satellites in low earth orbit, although most
active users prefer directional
|
|||
|
|
gain antennas, such as crossed yagis,
on a motorised rotor run from a satellite
|
|||
|
|
tracking program.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\t\ Tracking programs are vital for finding amateur radio satellites.
|
|||
|
|
Some are public domain or shareware, and can be found in BBS's or in
data
|
|||
|
|
libraries in online systems such as CompuServe. Others are
available through
|
|||
|
|
AMSAT in various countries. We've tested one of the
best programs for the MS)DOS
|
|||
|
|
computers, RealTrak, which is highly
recommended. The more sophisticated
|
|||
|
|
programs can interface with antenna
rotors.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Most amateur radio satellites use some kind of digital packet
radio mode.
|
|||
|
|
Terrestrial packet radio operators can move up to satellite
operation fairly
|
|||
|
|
easily, although a variety of packet modes are used,
and new modems to connect
|
|||
|
|
to existing TNCs will be needed in most
cases. Conventional packet radio uses a
|
|||
|
|
system known as AFSK (Audio
Frequency Phase Shift Keyed) modulation. This was
|
|||
|
|
used by some earlier
satellites, such as UO)11, and is used by Dove. UO)11 uses
|
|||
|
|
an older
ASCII system, AMSAT)TTY, similar to Bell 202, but at 1200 baud.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Because of the Doppler Effect (frequency shift from high speed),
satellite
|
|||
|
|
packet generally uses a different system called PSK (Phase
Shift Keyed)
|
|||
|
|
modulation. AO)13 and 21 use a system with 400 baud ASCII.
The first "microsats"
|
|||
|
|
(AO)16, WO)18, LO)19, FO)20, and AO)21) use a
1200 baud system where the uplink
|
|||
|
|
is Manchester coded AFSK (FM), while
the downlink is BPSK (SSB). UO)22, KO)23
|
|||
|
|
and 25, and PO)28 use what may
be the amateur satellite of the future, FSK (FM)
|
|||
|
|
at 9600 baud. Some of
the second generation "microsats", A0)27 and IO)26, are
|
|||
|
|
more flexible,
with up and downlinks at varying speeds up to 9600 baud.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Oscar 10 and 13 have elliptical orbits, which mean that they tend
to "hover"
|
|||
|
|
over the Northern Hemisphere, making for long periods for
contacts with little
|
|||
|
|
adjustment needed in tracking antennas. However,
they require antennas with
|
|||
|
|
higher gain than those used for the circular
orbit satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The former Soviet RS)10/11 and RS)12/13 are each two separate
packages on the
|
|||
|
|
same satellite.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
UO)14 (UoSat)3), PO)16 (PacSat), DO)17 (Dove), WO)18 (WeberSat),
LO)19 (LuSat)
|
|||
|
|
are known as "microsats" because of their small size.
They were launched
|
|||
|
|
together with an Ariane rocket in January, 1990.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
UO)14 was made by the University of Surrey in Britain. UO)15,
launched with
|
|||
|
|
UO)14, stopped transmitting the day after launch. Owned
by Volunteers in
|
|||
|
|
Technical Assistance, UO)14 carries a packet radio
BBS, which is used to
|
|||
|
|
transmit free medical information to universities
in East Africa. The service,
|
|||
|
|
known as HealthNet, is operated by an
organization called Satel)Life. Health)Net
|
|||
|
|
transmissions use packet
radio at 9600 baud, with downlinks on 428.01 and
|
|||
|
|
429.985 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
PO)16 was built by AMSAT)North America, and LO)19 by AMSAT
Argentina. They
|
|||
|
|
contain PSK packet radio BBS's. Dove is a Brazilian*made "peace satellite". It
|
|||
|
|
has a voice synthesizer and also transmits
standard packet AFSK)FM on 145.825
|
|||
|
|
MHz. WO)18 was built by Weber State
University in Utah. It contains an onboard
|
|||
|
|
camera that downlinks its
pictures by packet radio. The Japanese JO)20 also
|
|||
|
|
carries a packet BBS,
with similar up and downlink frequencies to PO)16 and
|
|||
|
|
UO)19.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The French satellite SARA is an amateur astronomy satellite, with
a beacon on
|
|||
|
|
145.955 MHz. It's use of an amateur radio frequency is
controversial, and
|
|||
|
|
probably illegal.
|
|||
|
|
\v\ South Korea's KO)23 downlinks ordinary packet radio at 9600 baud
on 435.175
|
|||
|
|
MHz. The satellite can also photograph the Earth and measure
cosmic rays. It
|
|||
|
|
carries an amateur radio electronic mail system, and
will conduct experiments in
|
|||
|
|
voice broadcasting. It's described as a
near clone of UO)14 and UO)22. KITSAT)B
|
|||
|
|
(KO)25), launched with the
second set of microsats on September 5, 1993, is
|
|||
|
|
virtually identical,
as is the amateur radio part of Portugal's PoSat (PO)26),
|
|||
|
|
launched at
the same time.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Kitsats are in near circular orbit 1300 kilometers from the
Earth, with an
|
|||
|
|
inclination of 66 degrees, which make them available to
users much farther to
|
|||
|
|
the north and to the south than most amateur
radio satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Arsene, launched with Astra 1C in May, 1993, orbits over the
equator. It's
|
|||
|
|
farthest distance from the Earth is 37,000 kilometers,
just about the same
|
|||
|
|
distance as geostationary satellites, but since it
gets as close as 17,500
|
|||
|
|
kilometers, it appears to slowly drift from
west to east. The high orbit means
|
|||
|
|
access time of nearly 20 hours a
day. ARSENE was supposed to function as a
|
|||
|
|
packet radio repeater in the
sky, relaying AFSK packet down to Earth. However,
|
|||
|
|
the 2 meter equipment
has failed, and the satellite can only be worked on voice
|
|||
|
|
in S mode
with a downlink on 2446.54 MHz. There is also a beacon on 2446.47 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Italian amateur radio satellite IO)28 (Itamsat) downlinks
voice FM as well
|
|||
|
|
as ordinary AFSK packet at 1200 baud and PSK at 1200
and 9600 baud. Uplinks can
|
|||
|
|
vary between 1200, 4800, and 9600 baud. The
American commercial satellite Amrad
|
|||
|
|
(AO)27) will sometimes relay
digital (300)9600 baud) and FM voice amateur radio
|
|||
|
|
signals.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are plans for many more amateur radio satellites. UNAMSAT
from Mexico and
|
|||
|
|
RS)15 from Russia are awaiting launch. UNAMSAT will
carry a packet PSK BBS, with
|
|||
|
|
a downlink on 437.200 MHz. CEsat)1 from
Chile, SUNSAT from South Africa,
|
|||
|
|
Finland's HUTSAT, the American Sedsat,
and Guerwin)1 from Israel are under
|
|||
|
|
construction. Guerwin will probably
be a packet PSK BBS, with a downlink around
|
|||
|
|
435.250 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radio amateurs are particularly looking forward to the Phase 3)D
satellite, a
|
|||
|
|
follow)up to the aging Oscars 10 and 13. Phase 3)D will
carry a matrix of
|
|||
|
|
separate transmitters and receivers that can be
linked together, rather than
|
|||
|
|
discrete transponders. The satellite will
carry equipment for 145 and 435 MHz,
|
|||
|
|
as well as 1.2, 2.4, 5.6, and 10
GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Phase 3)D will cost around USD 5 million, as much as a
geostationary satellite.
|
|||
|
|
Many radio amateurs are looking forward to the
day when there will be
|
|||
|
|
geostationary amateur radio satellites, what is
called Phase 4 But AMSAT has
|
|||
|
|
decided to go ahead with Phase 3)D,
because a single geostationary satellite
|
|||
|
|
would only benefit one third
of the world's amateur radio population. Three
|
|||
|
|
would be needed to
provide communications for radio amateurs everywhere. But we
|
|||
|
|
can look
forward to the day when radio amateurs will have access to 24
|
|||
|
|
hour
communications, without the bother of tracking programs and rotors
|
|||
|
|
to
complicate things.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Then there's Northern California's Project Oscar, which orbited
the first
|
|||
|
|
amateur radio satellite, which has now proposed installing
the first repeater on
|
|||
|
|
the Moon. The group hopes to get "Project
Moonray" off the ground by the turn of
|
|||
|
|
the century.\r\ Part IV. MONITORING THE SPACE SHUTTLE, MIR, AND THE MILITARY
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
I. The Space Shuttle and MIR
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Space shuttle communications have been relayed on shortwave from a
number of
|
|||
|
|
amateur radio clubs at NASA bases. These are in single side
band (SSB), and the
|
|||
|
|
frequencies to look for are 3862, 7185, 14295,
21395, and 28650 kHz from WA3NAN
|
|||
|
|
at the Goddard Space Flight Center in
Maryland; 3840, 14280, 21350, and 28495
|
|||
|
|
kHz from the Johnson Space
Center in Texas; and 3840 and 21280 kHz from the Jet
|
|||
|
|
Propulsion
Laboratory in California.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Here are some reported frequencies connected with the shuttle
missions:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Shortwave (SSB):
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Western Test Range.............................. 5700 kHz
|
|||
|
|
13218
|
|||
|
|
Eastern Test Range.............................. 5190
|
|||
|
|
NASA Tracking Ships............................. 5180
|
|||
|
|
5187
|
|||
|
|
Launch Support Ships............................11104
|
|||
|
|
19303
|
|||
|
|
NASA Kennedy Operations......................... 7675
|
|||
|
|
USAF Cape Radio................................. 6837
|
|||
|
|
6896
|
|||
|
|
11414
|
|||
|
|
BB 11548
|
|||
|
|
19640
|
|||
|
|
23413
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Shuttle)Mission Control.........................11201
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
NASA Ascension Island tracking..................20186
|
|||
|
|
NASA CB Radios..................................27065
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
VHF/UHF (AM):
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Military aircraft emergency frequency........... 243.0 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Primary shuttle communications.................. 259.7
|
|||
|
|
Shuttle space suits............................. 279.0
|
|||
|
|
Primary UHF downlink............................ 296.0
|
|||
|
|
Air)to)ground or orbiter)to)suit................ 296.8
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
S)Band (Wideband FM) via TDRS satellites:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
NASA downlink................................... 2205.0 MHz
|
|||
|
|
2217.5
|
|||
|
|
2250.0
|
|||
|
|
2287.5
|
|||
|
|
Primary digital downlink........................ 2287.5
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
North American satellite TV monitors can watch live video from the
shuttle
|
|||
|
|
missions via NASA Select on Satcom 2R transponder 13. A voice
TV schedule update
|
|||
|
|
can be heard by calling American telephone number 1*202)755)1788. Missions with
|
|||
|
|
German astronauts may be relayed on one of
the Kopernikus satellites to Europe.
|
|||
|
|
Space launches may also be carried
on Intelsat 504 at 31.4 degrees West, on
|
|||
|
|
11.133 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
\v\
|
|||
|
|
Amateur Radio on the Shuttle
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There have been many amateur radio operations from the shuttles,
known as SAREX
|
|||
|
|
(Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment). The first was Dr.
Owen Garriott, W5LFL, from
|
|||
|
|
"Columbia" in 1985. He was heard by tens of
thousands of listeners and made two
|
|||
|
|
way contact with some 350 stations
using FM with a downlink on 145.55 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
With the resumption of shuttle missions after the "Challenger"
crash, amateur
|
|||
|
|
radio operations have resumed as well, with both FM
voice and packet radio.
|
|||
|
|
Unfortunately most shuttle flights maintain an
orbital inclination of 28
|
|||
|
|
degrees, which restricts radio contacts to
stations within around 30 degrees of
|
|||
|
|
the Equator. Occasional missions
use a greater inclination, up to 57 degrees,
|
|||
|
|
which make it possible for
many more people to listen to and contact the
|
|||
|
|
shuttle.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
STS)37, on "Atlantis" in April, 1991, was particularly noteworthy,
as all five
|
|||
|
|
crew members were licensed radio amateurs. There were
hundreds of contacts with
|
|||
|
|
amateur radio operators on Earth. While a
problem curtailed packet radio and
|
|||
|
|
slowscan television operation, the
first television picture ever received on
|
|||
|
|
board a spacecraft was
carried out using fast scan television. The Atlantis crew
|
|||
|
|
was also able
to hear the Soviet cosmonauts on MIR, but were unable to complete
|
|||
|
|
two
way communications.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The entire crew of STS)45, in March, 1992, were also radio
amateurs. At least
|
|||
|
|
nine of the current astronauts have amateur radio
licenses, which means that
|
|||
|
|
virtually every launch will have an amateur
onboard. The usual downlink
|
|||
|
|
frequency is 145.55 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
MIR
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The former Soviet MIR space station can easily be heard with its
powerful FM
|
|||
|
|
signals on 143.625 MHz, but this channel is now only being
used over Europe,
|
|||
|
|
when the station is in range of the ground station in
the Crimea. Funding cuts
|
|||
|
|
dictated that the communications ships off
Sable Island, Madeira, etc., which
|
|||
|
|
were relaying MIR by shortwave, are
no longer operational.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Voice communications have also been reported on 143.42 and 142.42
MHz, as well
|
|||
|
|
as a beacon on 121.75 MHz. Data communications from MIR
have been heard on
|
|||
|
|
166.130 (or possibly 165.875) MHz. Other frequencies
reported from the former
|
|||
|
|
Soviet space program are:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Soyuz T)11 space vehicle telemetry.... 20008
|
|||
|
|
Soyuz T)11 voice communications.......142.423 MHz
|
|||
|
|
Soyuz TM)3 and TM)4...................121.750
|
|||
|
|
Progress 7 supply ship................166.000
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
When out of range of the CIS ground stations, MIR communications
are now often
|
|||
|
|
relayed through the "Luch" or "Altair" transponder
systems of CIS geostationary
|
|||
|
|
satellites. The Soviet satellite tracking
network is called SDRN, the Satellite
|
|||
|
|
Data Relay Network. Downlinks are
on 10.8, 11.3, and 13.7 GHz. The relay most
|
|||
|
|
used over Europe is via the
satellite at 16 degrees West listed as ZSSRT)2 (an
|
|||
|
|
abbreviation of the
Russian words "Zemlya S Sputnik Radio Translator", meaning
|
|||
|
|
"Western
geostationary satellite transponder"). There is also an eastern
|
|||
|
|
relay
at 167 degrees East. \v\
|
|||
|
|
The SECAM color signals from MIR are listed at 10.835 GHz, but are
actually
|
|||
|
|
carried at 10.829 GHz (unfortunately just below the range of
most satellite TVRO
|
|||
|
|
receivers). Monitors can look for the satellite by
tuning in to the strong data
|
|||
|
|
signals on 11.375 GHz, which can often be
seen as flashing lines on the screen.
|
|||
|
|
Voice signals from MIR can be
heard near the TV frequency, on a 300 kHz SSB
|
|||
|
|
subcarrier, but only when
no TV signals are being relayed.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
MIR video has also been reported on the Ghorizont at 11 degrees
West, on 11.525
|
|||
|
|
GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Molniya satellites are also used for relaying manned space
voice
|
|||
|
|
communications.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Amateur Radio on MIR
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Several MIR cosmonauts have been radio amateurs. In 1988 amateur
radio stations
|
|||
|
|
U1MIR, U2MIR, and U3MIR operated on 145.550 and 145.400
MHz FM. Musa, U2MIR, was
|
|||
|
|
on the air frequently in 1990 and 1991.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Britain's first astronaut, Helen Sharman, spent 8 days on MIR in
May, 1991. She
|
|||
|
|
operated the amateur radio station there, under the call
sign GB1MIR. Contacts
|
|||
|
|
on 145.55 MHz continued in 1992, and are expected
to continue in 1993, in both
|
|||
|
|
FM as U6MIR and packet radio with the
callsign U6MIR)1. MIR reception reports
|
|||
|
|
can be sent, along with a self*addressed envelope and USD 1 to 5 to:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
RV3DR, Sergai Samburov, Space QSL Manager
|
|||
|
|
P.O. Box 141070, Box 73
|
|||
|
|
Kaliningrad)10 City
|
|||
|
|
Moscow Area
|
|||
|
|
Russia
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\H\ II. Military Communications in Space
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Military communications are usually coded, but occasionally some
transmissions
|
|||
|
|
are in the clear. Most military satellites are in geo*stationary orbit. These
|
|||
|
|
include FLEETSATCOM satellites at 72, 75, 77,
100, 105, 145, and 177 degrees
|
|||
|
|
West. These use frequencies in the 240
to 399 MHz range, as well as around 7, 8,
|
|||
|
|
19, 20, 30, and 44 GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
FLEETSATCOM are the most popular satellites for listeners as they
have some
|
|||
|
|
unencrypted FM channels. The most active are between 261 and
263 and between 269
|
|||
|
|
and 270 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
During the Gulf War, monitors reported that American military
communications in
|
|||
|
|
the Gulf could be heard from the FLEETSATCOM
satellite network between 240 and
|
|||
|
|
270 MHz, with most of the voice
traffic in the 260 MHz range, and most coded.
|
|||
|
|
One monitor reported to
"Popular Communications" American AWACS planes on
|
|||
|
|
263.825 MHz and Saudi
forces on 249.325 MHz. Other active frequencies reported
|
|||
|
|
were 261.825,
262.200, 262.150, 262.425, and 263.525 MHz. According to
|
|||
|
|
another
report, traffic on Fleetsatcom 7 has been heard on 249.125,
|
|||
|
|
250.350,
262.300, and 263.825 MHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Since the shooting down of an American U)2 surveillance plane over
the then
|
|||
|
|
Soviet Union in 1960, the United States has developed a
network of spy
|
|||
|
|
satellites, some of which monitor radio communications.
The most recent
|
|||
|
|
generation known to the public is KH)11, first launched
in 1976, and the first
|
|||
|
|
spy satellite to transmit images in real time. A
new type, called "Advanced
|
|||
|
|
KH)11" was first put into orbit by the space
shuttle Discovery in 1989.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In order to communicate with ground stations the KH)11 satellites
use a system
|
|||
|
|
of satellites in polar orbits. The 14 current satellites
in this Satellite Data
|
|||
|
|
System (SDS) seem to use frequencies around 240
MHz and in the 1700)1900 MHz
|
|||
|
|
range. As there have been no SDS launches
since 1988, there is a good
|
|||
|
|
possibility that the American Tracking and
Data Relay Satellites (TDRS) are
|
|||
|
|
taking over the task of relaying data
from the KH)11 satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The next generation of American military satellites is called
Milstar. Funding
|
|||
|
|
for 6 Milstars has been approved. They will be the
most sophisticated
|
|||
|
|
communications satellites ever designed, putting all
military communications in
|
|||
|
|
the same system, making possible
communications between the various services.
|
|||
|
|
"Popular Communications"
says there are 10 assigned positions, but only 2 or 3
|
|||
|
|
are known to be
in orbit at this time. Milstars use frequencies around 2, 20,
|
|||
|
|
and 45
GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The former Soviet satellite tracking network is called SDRN, the
Satellite Data
|
|||
|
|
Relay Network. Downlinks are on 10.8, 11.3, and 13.7
GHz.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Molniya satellites use a highly elliptical orbit that makes it
possible to
|
|||
|
|
reach high latitudes out)of)reach of geo)stationary
satellites (which would be
|
|||
|
|
too low on the horizon). Molniya 1 uses 800
MHz and 1 GHz, while Molniya 3
|
|||
|
|
satellites use 4 and 6 GHz. These carry
satellite broadcast television as well
|
|||
|
|
as military and manned space
voice communications.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\v\ PART V. HORIZONS
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Space exploration can be expected to continue. The American space
station
|
|||
|
|
Freedom is scheduled for launch in the late 1990's. AMSAT and
the ARRL have
|
|||
|
|
submitted a formal proposal to NASA for a permanent
amateur radio station on
|
|||
|
|
Freedom. The proposal includes downlinks in
the 145, 435, and 2401 MHz bands.
|
|||
|
|
Three geostationary satellites would
be used to relay continuous communications
|
|||
|
|
from Freedom. AMSAT hopes to
have its own geostationary satellites in orbit in
|
|||
|
|
the near future.
Until then, the system would use the TDRS satellites used for
|
|||
|
|
shuttle
communications.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Project Oscar has called for an amateur radio repeater on the
Moon.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Farther into the future, it may be possible to monitor
communications from
|
|||
|
|
proposed Moon bases, expeditions to Mars, or future
space colonies in Earth
|
|||
|
|
orbit.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Moving deeper into space, radio astronomy probes the limits of the
universe on
|
|||
|
|
wavelengths other than those of light used by conventional
astronomy. To this
|
|||
|
|
belongs SETI, the Search for Extra Terrestrial Life.
The first SETI project was
|
|||
|
|
carried out by Dr. Frank Drake at the
National Radio Astronomy Observatory in
|
|||
|
|
Greenback, West Virginia, in
1960. He listened to two relatively close stars for
|
|||
|
|
two weeks on one
particular frequency.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Project META, a SETI project at Harvard University, funded by the
Planetary
|
|||
|
|
Society and film director Steven Spielberg (the maker of
"E.T." and "Close
|
|||
|
|
Encounters of the Third Kind") is monitoring sweeps
across the sky on 8.4
|
|||
|
|
million discrete frequencies. After five years of
observations, there are 11
|
|||
|
|
interesting "events" that satisfy all but
one of the critera for a genuine alien
|
|||
|
|
signal. As astronomer Carl
Sagan, President of the Planetary Society, writes in
|
|||
|
|
"Parade Magazine":
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"We've never been able to find any of them again. We look back at
that part of
|
|||
|
|
the sky three minutes later, there's nothing. We look the
following
|
|||
|
|
day))nothing. Examine it a year later, or six years later,
and still there's
|
|||
|
|
nothing."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
NASA started its new SETI program on October 12, 1992, using a
radio telescope
|
|||
|
|
in California's Mohave Desert, and another at the
Arecibo Observatory in Puerto
|
|||
|
|
Rico. In the first year, 164 strong
"candidate" signals were found for closer
|
|||
|
|
examination. Unfortunately,
in the Fall of 1993, the U.S. Congress, looking to
|
|||
|
|
reduce the budget
deficit, cut the USD 10 million dollar a year funding for the
|
|||
|
|
program.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Carl Sagan writes about the effect finding intelligent life on
other worlds
|
|||
|
|
could have on us: "The knowledge that such other beings
exist and that, as the
|
|||
|
|
evolutionary process requires, they must be very
different from us would have a
|
|||
|
|
striking implication: Whatever
differences divide us down here on Earth are
|
|||
|
|
trivial compared to the
differences between any of us and any of them. Maybe
|
|||
|
|
it's a long shot,
but discovery of extraterrestrial intelligence might play a
|
|||
|
|
role in
unifying our squabbling and divided planet. It would be a rite
|
|||
|
|
of
passage for our species, a transforming event in the ancient quest
|
|||
|
|
to
discover our place in the universe."
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\t\ There may be a role in the SETI quest for amateurs. Speaking to
"Monitoring
|
|||
|
|
Times", astronomer Kent Cullers of the NASA Ames Research
Center in California
|
|||
|
|
says that amateurs could try searching the 1)1.4
GHz range, because
|
|||
|
|
"interstellar noise is relatively low there."
"Monitoring Times" points out that
|
|||
|
|
antennas are critically important,
and suggests dishes, quads, and helical
|
|||
|
|
antennas. A computer can be
programmed to scan frequencies. If signals are
|
|||
|
|
passed through a
digitizer, the computer can break the information into small
|
|||
|
|
slices and
can reject certain kinds of local interference.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
FOR MORE INFORMATION
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
One way to keep up with the amateur radio satellites is to listen
to one of the
|
|||
|
|
AMSAT nets on shortwave. Here are some:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
International Net))Sundays 19:00 hrs UTC on 14282 kHz
|
|||
|
|
European Net)))))))Saturdays 10:00 hrs on 14280 kHz
|
|||
|
|
Asian)Pacific Net))Sundays 11:00 hrs on 14305 kHz
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
AMSAT and its national societies publish newsletters and sell
computer hardware
|
|||
|
|
and software for use in monitoring amateur radio
satellites. The main AMSAT
|
|||
|
|
address is: Box 27, Washington, DC, 20044,
USA. AMSAT)UK is at 94 Herongate
|
|||
|
|
Road, Wanstead Park, London E12 5EQ,
England. AMSAT)Sweden is at Box 1311, S)600
|
|||
|
|
43 Norrkoeping, Sweden.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are a number of computer bulletin boards for space
enthusiasts in the
|
|||
|
|
United States:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
1)205)895)0028 NASA BBS
|
|||
|
|
1)512)852)8194 AMSAT Software Exchange BBS
|
|||
|
|
1)214)394)7438 Downlink BBS (AMSAT)
|
|||
|
|
1)214)340)5850 N5ITU BBS
|
|||
|
|
1)513)427)0674 Celestial RCP/M BBS
|
|||
|
|
1)904)786)8142 Starship Enterprise BBS
|
|||
|
|
1)804)743)0559 Astro BBS (amateur astronomy)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are also resourcess on the Internet of interest to space
enthusiasts,
|
|||
|
|
such as: NASA News, NASA Spacelink, Shuttle and Satellite
Images, the NASA/IPAC
|
|||
|
|
Extra Galactic Database, and news groups such as
alt.radio.amateur.packet,
|
|||
|
|
alt.satellite.tv.*, and others.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The CompuServe HamNet Forum has a section devoted to amateur radio
satellites.
|
|||
|
|
The Consumer Electronics Forum has a TVRO section. There
are a number of other
|
|||
|
|
space forums on CompuServe, including a NASA
section with news from the American
|
|||
|
|
space agency. CompuServe now has
local access nodes around the world, especially
|
|||
|
|
in Western Europe and
Japan. For more information contact: CompuServe, 5000
|
|||
|
|
Arlington Centre
Blvd,. Box 20212, Columbus, OH 43220, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The FIDO network contains several conferences about satellite
television,
|
|||
|
|
amateur radio satellites, and packet radio.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are several BBS's for WEFAX enthusiasts in Britain. The
Dartcom BBS
|
|||
|
|
(0822)88249) is located at a WEFAX equipment supplier. The
Remote Imaging Group
|
|||
|
|
operates the RIG BBS (0945)85666) for members.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\r\ Two very interesting newsletters about satellite broadcasting are
available
|
|||
|
|
over data networks. Both of which were used extensively in
compiling this
|
|||
|
|
booklet, and we'd like to thank both for making
themselves available to us.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"SatNews" is huge, so big that the fortnightly uploads have to be
divided into
|
|||
|
|
two or three files. There's probably more here about the
electronics and
|
|||
|
|
satellite industries than any one person wants, but all
the important news is
|
|||
|
|
included. Editor Darren Ingram does a great job,
but it caters to business
|
|||
|
|
interests, at business prices. Fortunately
they offer a special rate to
|
|||
|
|
non)commercial subscribers: GBP 50 or USD
100 for one year to an
|
|||
|
|
Internet)compatible mailbox. If you need this
kind of information, it's well
|
|||
|
|
worth it. You can contact SatNews at the
Internet mailbox
|
|||
|
|
satnews@cix.compulink.co.uk for more information.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"Skyguide" is a short weekly newsletter covering satellite and
cable
|
|||
|
|
broadcasting, concentrating on the UK. Fortunately, it's free,
although
|
|||
|
|
distribution has been uneven recently. You can find Skyguide
every week on
|
|||
|
|
London's CIX conferencing system, in the Skyguide
conference, the Fidonet
|
|||
|
|
Satellite TV echo, and the packet radio
network. Skyguide is now available on
|
|||
|
|
the Internet in the
alt.satellite.tv.europe newsgroup.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"Dial)a)Shuttle" is a telephone number available during shuttle
missions, with
|
|||
|
|
news updates and live relays from the astronauts. The
number is 1)900)909)6272.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Europeans can access interesting, if uneven, rumors and news about
satellite
|
|||
|
|
broadcasting from the "In Orbit" teletext pages, on Super
Channel beginning on
|
|||
|
|
page 375 and on UK Gold, pages 333 and 334. The
content of the services vary
|
|||
|
|
slightly ) Super Channel's version is
consistently more critical of Astra and
|
|||
|
|
Sky, while the UK Gold version
appears (at the moment) to be more neutral.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There's a very good source of up-to-date satellite news, most of
|
|||
|
|
it in German, from a fax polling number in Germany. If you have a fax
|
|||
|
|
machine, you just dial up the number, and automatically receive pages
|
|||
|
|
of news. The initial number is +49-89-418-608. Then there are two more
numbers
|
|||
|
|
for the different services.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
99 gets you a list of satellite channels in the S-band, C-band,
and Ku-band,
|
|||
|
|
between 66 degrees East and 10 degrees East. 49 gets a
similar list between 7
|
|||
|
|
degrees East and 53 degrees West. 97 is for
satellite programming news, and 98
|
|||
|
|
for satellite industry news. 94 is
for satellite data communications news,
|
|||
|
|
compiled by English by Darren
|
|||
|
|
Ingram, editor of "Satnews".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The World Radio TV Handbook contains a section on World Satellite
Broadcasts,
|
|||
|
|
which lists current and some planned geostationary
broadcast satellites, with
|
|||
|
|
detailed lists of transponder usage. We made
extensive use of the WRTH in
|
|||
|
|
compiling the section on Asian satellites.
Unfortunately, there are no satellite
|
|||
|
|
listings in the ordinary section
of the handbook. If you look up Radio Sweden or
|
|||
|
|
Swiss Radio
International, or the BBC in the WRTH, you'll find the
|
|||
|
|
shortwave
schedules, but not a word about the satellite relays. The
|
|||
|
|
only
indication is a tiny little dish symbol next to the
|
|||
|
|
appropriate
broadcaster. These refer to the "World Satellite Broadcasts"
|
|||
|
|
section.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
\t\ Nevertheless, you still have to know what you're looking for, and
it would
|
|||
|
|
make a lot of sense to include this information under the
regular listings as
|
|||
|
|
well. This can get complicated, of course.....where
do you list information on
|
|||
|
|
Deutsche Welle's broadcasts on satellites
over North America, under Germany,
|
|||
|
|
Canada, or the USA? But there ought
to be a solution.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The World Satellite Annual, compiled by Mark Long, has just about
everything
|
|||
|
|
you could possibly want to know about communications
satellites. It lists all
|
|||
|
|
the current and many planned satellites in
geosynchronous orbit, with footprint
|
|||
|
|
maps and channel tables. There are
chapters on satellite launch vehicles for the
|
|||
|
|
1990s, the status of DBS
in America, updates on Intelsat and Eutelsat, European
|
|||
|
|
Scrambling
Systems, and the Satellite News Gathering Revolution. The book
|
|||
|
|
is
expensive, at USD 100 plus postage. But for the serious satellite DXer,
it's
|
|||
|
|
well worth it. For more information contact MLE Inc., Box 159,
Winter Beach,
|
|||
|
|
Florida, 32971, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Together with Jeffrey Keating, Mark Long as also written The World
of Satellite
|
|||
|
|
Television, a basic guide to installing, operating, and
maintaining a backyard
|
|||
|
|
satellite dish antenna. Available for USD 13
from Quantam Publications, Box 310,
|
|||
|
|
Mendocino, CA 95460, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Communications Satellites, by Larry Van Horn, covers U.S. and
Soviet manned
|
|||
|
|
space missions, military, weather, navigational, and
communications satellites.
|
|||
|
|
It's available for USD 13. (*)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Hidden Signals on Satellite Television, by Thomas Harrington
and Bob Cooper
|
|||
|
|
Jr., goes into detail about SCPC, audio subcarriers,
teletext, and other
|
|||
|
|
non)video signals on North American satellites. It
also covers the equipment
|
|||
|
|
needed. Available for USD 20. (*)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The three books above are the best guides for satellite radio and
TV DXing.
|
|||
|
|
Those interested in weather satellites should look into:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The New Weather Satellite Handbook by Dr. Ralph Taggart is the
most
|
|||
|
|
comprehensive book around about monitoring weather satellites.
The new 4th
|
|||
|
|
edition is available for USD 20 from the American Radio
Relay League, Newington,
|
|||
|
|
CT, USA, or from Metsat Products, Box 142,
Mason, MI 48854, USA. (*)
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
AMSAT and the American Radio Relay League have published an
excellent guide to
|
|||
|
|
amateur radio satellites called The Satellite
Experimenter's Handbook. (*) The
|
|||
|
|
2nd edition is available for USD 20,
from: AMSAT, Box 27, Washington, DC 20044,
|
|||
|
|
USA. The later Satellite
Anthology ought to update the handbook, but it doesn't.
|
|||
|
|
Instead it
reprints articles from "QST" magazine, some of which are very
|
|||
|
|
out)of*date. AMSAT also publishes "Satellite Journal" magazine and
|
|||
|
|
"Amateur
Satellite Report".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Most of these books are available from a number of sources. Many
of the ones
|
|||
|
|
marked (*) should be available from the following: "73
Magazine", Forest Road,
|
|||
|
|
Hancock, NH 03449, USA; Grove Enterprises, 140
Dog Branch Road, Brasstown, NC
|
|||
|
|
28902, USA; Universal Electronics, 4555
Groves Road, Suite 3, Columbus, Ohio
|
|||
|
|
43232, USA); and EEB, 323 Mill St.
NE, Vienna, VA 22180, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Some books of interest to Europeans may be ordered from PW
Publishing, Enefco
|
|||
|
|
House, The Quay, Poole, Dorset BH15 1PP, Britain.
|
|||
|
|
\v\ The best program listing for North American TVRO monitors is
"Satellite TV
|
|||
|
|
Week", available for USD 48 a year from Satellite TV
Week, Box 308, Fortuna, CA
|
|||
|
|
95540, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
There are a couple of British monthlies with channel listings and
satellite
|
|||
|
|
news, "What Satellite" (57)59 Rochester Place, London NW1
9JU) and "Satellite TV
|
|||
|
|
Europe" (5 Riverpark Estate, Berkhamsted HP4
1HD).
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"Transponder" is a British newsletter, filled with information
about satellite
|
|||
|
|
broadcasting. Published 24 times a year, it's available
in the UK for GBP 37, in
|
|||
|
|
Europe for GBP 60, and outside Europe for GBP
75, from: Transponder, Box 112,
|
|||
|
|
Crewe Cheshire, CW2 7DS, England.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
"Satellite Watch Newsletter" is the magazine of the video pirate
satellite
|
|||
|
|
underground, people who regard any kind of coding as a
violation of American
|
|||
|
|
Constitutional rights. Lots of details on
descrambler hardware and software. But
|
|||
|
|
12 issues are available for USD
35, from: Walker Media Group, 6599 Commerce Ct.
|
|||
|
|
No. 103, Gainsville, VA
22065, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radio Netherlands publishes an interesting leaflet called "Weather
Satellite
|
|||
|
|
Fact Sheet", as well as "Satellites for the Shortwave
Listener". Both are
|
|||
|
|
available for free from: Radio Netherlands, Box
222, NL)1200 JG Hilversum, the
|
|||
|
|
Netherlands.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The Fall, 1990 edition of "Whole Earth Review" has an excellent
article by
|
|||
|
|
Robert Horvitz called "Tabletop Earth)Watch Stations" about
monitoring WEFAX,
|
|||
|
|
with the WER's usual good guide to sources. Available
for USD 7 (more for
|
|||
|
|
postage abroad) from: Whole Earth Review, Box 38,
Sausalito, CA 94966, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
The American magazines "Monitoring Times" and "Popular
Communications" have
|
|||
|
|
columns with the latest on North American
satellite TVRO. "73 Magazine" has a
|
|||
|
|
column on amateur radio satellites.
The British sister magazines "Short Wave
|
|||
|
|
Magazine" and "Practical
Wireless" cover satellites very well from the European
|
|||
|
|
perspective. The
emphasis in the former is on TVRO and WEFAX, in the latter on
|
|||
|
|
amateur
radio satellites.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
If you're into cyberpunk, "Wired" magazine from San Francisco
covers everything
|
|||
|
|
from the Internet and Virtual Reality to satellite
television in Asia and
|
|||
|
|
special effects on "Star Trek". When he was
being interviewed for the magazine,
|
|||
|
|
Arthur C. Clarke took one look at
it and thought it should have been spelled
|
|||
|
|
"Weird".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
For the story of telecommunications, from the first Atlantic cable
to his own
|
|||
|
|
original proposal of communications satellites, and up to
the present, science
|
|||
|
|
and science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke's How
the World Was One is a
|
|||
|
|
fascinating read.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
CNN: The Inside Story by Hank Whitmore is the story of Turner
Broadcasting's
|
|||
|
|
early years, published in connection with CNN's 10th
anniversary in 1990. Since
|
|||
|
|
it was released by CNN, it's not likely to
contain anything really negative or
|
|||
|
|
overly)revealing, but it is a
fascinating behind)the)scenes look at how the
|
|||
|
|
satellite TV industry got
started, and how CNN works. Our only complaint is that
|
|||
|
|
there's too
little about CNN International and the network's expansion beyond
|
|||
|
|
North
America (which has largely happened after 1990).
|
|||
|
|
\v\ For information about amateur radio astronomy, you can contact the
British
|
|||
|
|
Amateur Radio Astronomy Society, c/o Steven Newberry, 19
Oakway, Kingsley Park,
|
|||
|
|
Birkenshaw, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD11 2PG,
Britain.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
For more information about the Planetary Society, write to: The
Planetary
|
|||
|
|
Society, 65 N. Catalina Ave., Pasadena, CA 91108, USA.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Reason not)withstanding, the universe continues unabated, terribly
huge and
|
|||
|
|
terribly complicated. "The DXers Guide to the Galaxy", while
relatively short,
|
|||
|
|
and undoubtedly filled with much that is wildly
wrong, out)of)date, or of
|
|||
|
|
marginal interest, is nevertheless greatly
inspired by (some might say
|
|||
|
|
plagiarized from) Douglas Adams and "The
Hitch)Hikers Guide to the Galaxy".
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
We hope he doesn't mind too much.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
For more information on this engrossing subject, consult the books
and
|
|||
|
|
magazines mentioned above. We did to write this. Repeatedly. Please
note that
|
|||
|
|
things change rapidly in this field, numbers to computer
bulletin boards even
|
|||
|
|
faster. This is as accurate as we could get it on
the day it went to the
|
|||
|
|
printers, in November1993. There were
undoubtedly mistakes then, stuff left over
|
|||
|
|
from earlier editions, and
many changes since. We disclaim all responsibility
|
|||
|
|
for anything that
happens due to these mistakes or changes.
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Should you have any information you would like to pass along, in
order to
|
|||
|
|
rectify or update any of these unavoidable errors, you can
contact Radio
|
|||
|
|
Sweden's DX Editor George Wood through any of the
following electronic means:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
CompuServe Mail 70247,3516
|
|||
|
|
MCI Mail to the CompuServe address
|
|||
|
|
Internet 70247.3516@compuserve.com
|
|||
|
|
Fidonet to George Wood at 2:201/697
|
|||
|
|
Packet Radio to SM0IIN on the SM0ETV mailbox
|
|||
|
|
Telefax +468)667)6283
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
In case of electrical failure the mail will also work:
|
|||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
Radio Sweden
|
|||
|
|
S)105 10 Stockholm
|
|||
|
|
Sweden
|
|||
|
|
|