COMMUNICATIONS IN SPACE))EDITION 5.5
THE LAST DXers GUIDE TO THE GALAXY
George Wood January, 1994
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction)Satellites...........................................1
Part I: Satellite Broadcasting)TVRO
North America..........................................2
Latin America
Europe and Astra......................................12
Africa................................................26
Middle Eastern Satellite Broadcasting
Asia and the Pacific..................................29
Global Satellite Channels.............................33
Part II: Weather and other "Utility" Satellites
Weather Satellites....................................36
Amateur Radio in Space................................38
Part III: Monitoring the Space Shuttle, MIR, and the Military
The Shuttle and MIR...................................40
Military Communications in Space......................43
Part IV: Horizons.................................................44
For More Information..............................................45
Copyright 1994 Radio Sweden. Reproduction of this publication is
permitted provided credit is given to Radio Sweden and
"Communications in Space".
Radio Sweden is not responsible for anything that might happen
because of possible mistakes, inaccuracies, or out)of)date
information.
INTRODUCTION SATELLITES
In the beginning, the Great Prophet Marconi cast his bread upon the waves.
Long, medium, even short wave))the ether was filled, and at home listeners tuned
the bands, and heard far away signals from Bonaire, Motala, and Oakland.
Then, on October 4, 1957, the world changed. The Soviet Union launched the
Sputnik satellite, and listeners around the world tuned in to its signals just
above 20 MHz. The Space Age had begun.
What we find is this...the skies are filled with satellites that can be
monitored, some with simple equipment, some with more complex and expensive
gear. Weather pictures, satellite TV, astronauts and cosmonauts, computer
bulletin boards in the sky, are all there waiting.
We used to call satellite DXing the shortwave listening of the future. Well,
the future is now. The signals are there, and more are coming. This guide is
intended to help you tune in to signals from space. Equipment varies from USD
2000 for C)Band TVRO dishes and receivers to less than USD 200 for a scanner and
discone antenna for monitoring weather satellites.
Communications satellites were first proposed by science fiction writer Arthur
C. Clarke in 1945. Clarke pointed out that if a satellite was positioned high
enough above the equator (36,000 kilometers or 23,000 miles), its orbit could be
matched to the rotation of the Earth. The satellite would appear to remain fixed
in one particular spot in the sky. Such a position would be ideal for relaying
telephone, radio and television communications. Three such satellites
located equidistant from each other could cover the entire Earth.
It took technology a while to catch up with Clarke's idea. In 1957 the Soviet
Union launched Sputnik, the world's first artificial satellite. In 1962 the
United States launched Telstar, the first communications satellite. Today there
are more than 100 commercial TV and telecommunications satellites in
geostationary orbit, and many more are scheduled for launch before the end of
the century.
In addition, there are communications satellites in non*geostationary orbits
(such as the former Soviet Molniya), weather and other Earth resources
satellites, amateur radio satellites, and American and CIS space vehicles. All
are accessible, if you have the right equipment.
The Third World AA
In many ways, Third World countries have more to gain from
satellite communications than do the developed nations. Arthur C.
Clarke is today a citizen of Sri Lanka, and a dedicated advocate of satellites
for Third World development. As one of Sri Lanka's representatives at a UNESCO
conference in 1981, Clarke said:
"To many developing countries, satellites are ESSENTIAL; they will
make it unnecessary to build the elaborate and expensive ground systems
required in the past. Indeed, to many countries, satellites could be a
matter of life and death."
\v\ PART I: SATELLITE BROADCASTING)TVRO
Television Receive Only (TVRO) systems allow home monitors to tune in to radio
and television from geostationary satellites. There are around 3.5 million TVRO
installations in North America and more than 1 million in Europe. Numbers are
rapidly increasing in India, China, and other parts of Asia. Latin America and
Africa are areas of expansion, where satellites are generally used for relays to
television stations and cable networks, rather than direct to home (DTH).
To tune in to broadcast satellites, you need a dish antenna and receiver.
Antennas vary from 20 centimeters for the strongest DBS satellites to 3 meters
or more for weak signals in the C)band. Antennas can also be fixed in one
position, for reception of just one satellite, or motorised, to permit reception
of many satellites. The signals are picked up by Low Noise Block amplifiers
(LNBs) and fed by low loss cables to receivers. Fixed antennas can even have
extra LNBs amounted to pick up additional satellites.
Different bands are used for satellite broadcasting. Some are more common in
different parts of the world. Higher frequency bands generally require smaller
dish antennas. The satellite TV bands are:
S)Band 1700)3000 MHz
C)Band 3700)4200 MHz
Ku1)Band 10.9)11.75 GHz
Ku2)Band 11.75)12.5 GHz (DBS)
Ku3)Band 12.5)12.75 GHz
Ka)Band 18.0)20.0 GHz
I. North America
Most North American TVRO still uses the C)Band, although Ku)band use is
increasing. C)band dish antennas are at least nine feet (3 meters) in diameter.
Dishes and receiver prices start at around USD 1000 for motorized systems
without decoders, and USD 1500 for systems with decoders. There are also fixed
dish systems available for the Galaxy 5 satellite, which is currently the
American "hot bird", offering a wide variety of free and subscription
programming (see below). An antenna and receiver for Galaxy 5 is available for
around USD 800, with a decoder for an extra USD 375.
Here are the North American C and Ku)Band downlink frequencies:
Channel 1 = 3720/11730 MHz Channel 13 = 3960/12096 MHz
Channel 2 = 3740/11743 Channel 14 = 3980/12109
Channel 3 = 3760/11791 Channel 15 = 4000/12157
Channel 4 = 3780/11804 Channel 16 = 4020/12170
Channel 5 = 3800/11852 Channel 17 = 4040
Channel 6 = 3820/11865 Channel 18 = 4060
Channel 7 = 3840/11913 Channel 19 = 4080
Channel 8 = 3860/11926 Channel 20 = 4100
Channel 9 = 3880/11974 Channel 21 = 4120
Channel 10 = 3900/11987 Channel 22 = 4140
Channel 11 = 3920/12035 Channel 23 = 4160
Channel 12 = 3940/12048 Channel 24 = 4180
The Ku)Band frequencies are based on a 16 channel system. For the 32 channel
format, half)spacing is used.\v\
The 27 C and Ku)Band satellites above North America stretch from 69 degrees
West longitude to 139 degrees West. They typically carry 24 transponders (each
transponder can carry one analog TV channel and several radio channels or many
voice and data channels). The older satellite transponders each transmit with 5
to 8 watts of power. The newer generation, such as Satcom C4 and Telstar 401,
are 16 to 20 watts output.
American programmers, led by the pay)film channel Home Box Office, began
scrambling signals in 1986. On April 27, 1986 a "video hacker" calling himself
Captain Midnight (the hi)tech hero of a 1960's TV series) interrupted Home Box
Office's broadcast of the film "Falcon and the Snowman". He transmitted a
message over the satellite link, overpowering HBO's uplink to the Galaxy 1
satellite. The message was a protest against HBO's scrambling. (The choice of
the film was apt, as it concerns military spy satellites.)
John McDougal, who called himself Captain Midnight. was traced to a Florida
uplink station where he worked part)time. He was fined USD 5000.
Many popular American satellite channels now scramble their signals, using the
VC II or VC II+ systems. Modern satellite receivers come equipped with decoders,
and TVRO enthusiasts can subscribe to the coded channels, either by monthly
payment to the stations directly, or to organizations offering special packages.
The company manufacturing VC II decoders, General Instruments, has a market
monopoly. Separate decoders for receivers lacking them are extremely difficult
to find, and can cost between USD 600 and 800. There is a lively underground of
enthusiasts hacking decoders, hardware and software, in order to view pay
channels for free. A digital compression system allowing up to 10 channels on a
single transponder, General Instrument's, DigiCipher, is gradually being
introduced.
American satellites have recently introduced a new system using only 2 degree
spacing, which may result in interference from adjacent satellites with smaller
dishes. Here are the satellites above North America, and some of the more
interesting satellite channels (C)band and uncoded unless otherwise indicated):
Satcom C5 (139 degrees): Also known as Aurora II, it has reached its projected
end)of)life, and is primarily used for non)video purposes. Alaska Satellite TV
is on transponder 24.
Satcom C1 (137 degrees): Mainly the western coded feeds of network affiliates
from Denver. The Fox Network is on transponder 19, with the Jade Channel in
Chinese on transponder 5 and TV Japan, the NHK feed to United States, is on
transponder 17. NBC, which otherwise uses Ku)band on the K)2 satellite, has its
eastern feed on transponder 8, which is sometimes in the clear.
Satcom C4 (135 degrees): This high)powered satellite was launched on August 31,
1992. Deutsche Welle is on transponder 5, Italy's RAI on 7, shopping channels on
9 and 10, music channel The Box on 11, the Travel Channel on 13, the Cable
Health Club on 14, and C)SPAN2 from the U.S. Senate on 19. Viacom uses this
satellite for its eastern coded services, including MTV, VH)1, Nickelodeon, and
the new digitally*encrypted MTV Latino in Spanish.\v\
Galaxy 1 (133 degrees): This satellite includes several popular coded services,
including the Disney Channel (West), Comedy Central (West), The Cartoon Network,
Cinemax (East), HBO (East), Showtime 2, and the Discovery Channel. Uncoded
services include the TV Food Network, the Nostalgia Channel, shopping,
religious, and Spanish language services Univision and Galavision. Other
services have moved to Galaxy 5.
Satcom C3 (131 degrees): This powerful new satellite was launched on September
10, 1992. It carries many popular coded services, including the Family Channel,
Lifetime, Arts and Entertainment, Showtime, and Nickelodeon. Uncoded services
include the Learning Channel, Courtroom)TV, C)SPAN1, two shopping channels, and
E! Entertainment.
ASC)1 (128 degrees): 18 C)band and 6 Ku)band transponders. On C*band, the Home
Dish Market Channel is on transponder 7, religious programming on transponder
12, Channel America on 20, and SCOLA, which carries news from TV stations around
the world, in on 23. (News from Sweden's TV4 is now carried Monday to Friday at
7:30 AM Eastern time, and on Saturdays at 6:00 AM Eastern.) There are occasional
transponders on Ku)band channels 23 and 24.
G)Star 2 (125 degrees) Ku)band only: Turner's Airport Channel is on transponder
20.
Galaxy 5 (125 degrees): This new satellite is the first of a new generation of
high)powered satellites, and is somewhat similar to Europe's Astra as a
"hotbird" target for fixed systems. It includes many popular coded services,
including: the Disney Channel (transponder 1), Playboy (2), CNN (5), Turner
Broadcasting (6), WGN (7), Home Box Office (8 and 15), ESPN (9), The Family
Channel (11), the Discovery Channel (12), CNBC (13), the new ESPN 2 (14, and
initially in the clear), Cinemax (16), TNT (17), The Nashville Network (18), the
USA Network (19), CNN Headline News (22), and Arts and Entertainment
(23). Uncoded services include a religious broadcaster (3), the Science Fiction
Channel (4), a music channel (10), Black Entertainment TV (20), and Mind
Extension University (21). Viacom is carrying out digital compression tests on
transponder 24.
Telstar 303 (123 degrees): Carries mainly TVN pay)per)view programming. Fox
(East) is on transponder 18, Fox (West) on transponder 23.
SBS)5 (123 degrees) Ku)band only: mostly college and pro sports feeds.
Morelos 1 (113.5 degrees) and Morelos 2 (116.8 degrees): Mexico's Morelos 1
offers a number of local stations and sports feeds, some coded and not available
to the US market. Morales 2 is less active, but Turner Broadcasting's TNT Latin
America, coded and not available for the US market, is on transponder 12.
Anik E1 (111.1 degrees): Canadian channels and feeds. The TV Northern Canada
service for Native Americans is on transponder 19, and TV5 Quebec is on
transponder 17. Occasional transmissions of news and sports on Ku)band.
\v\ Anik E2 (107.3 degrees): Canadian stations including weather on transponder
1 and relays of the Canadian House of Commons on transponder 24, with sound in
English and French on separate subcarriers. The CBC uses transponder 11
(Pacific), 15 (French), and 19 (Atlantic), and other transponders for feeds. CBC
Newsworld on transponder 16 relays BBC World Service Television, but is coded in
the Oak system, as are several other transponders. Visnews/London
uses transponder 17. There are BBC feeds on transponder 7, including the final
10 minutes of BBC "Breakfast News" weekdays at 3:00 AM Eastern Time. Many
Canadian Channels on Ku)band as well.
G)Star 4 (105 degrees) Ku)band only: News and sports feeds (CNN on transponders
21, 26, and 28), The Classroom Channel on transponders 31 and 32.
Galaxy 6 (103 degrees): Moved from 99 degrees, sports feeds, with the NHK feed
to Tokyo on transponder 22.
G)Star 1 (103 degrees) Ku)band only: news and sports feeds.
Spacenet 4 (101 degrees): PBS uses transponders 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12. Newscasts
from Britain's ITN can be found around 17:30 Eastern Time via PBS on transponder
10. There's a religious broadcaster on transponder 9. Three of the six Ku-band
transponders have gone bad and are considered unusable.
Galaxy 4 (99 degrees): Has replaced Galaxy 6 and Westar 4 at this position. CBS
makes extensive use of this satellite and Galaxy 7, with occasional transponders
in the clear, especially relays of the "CBS Evening News" and sports feeds. CBS
uses transponders 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 24. Religious broadcasters on
transponders 6, 15, and 23, Spanish on 8, 13, and 14. On Ku)band, NASA Select
uses transponder 18, and the National Weather Net is on transponder 12. There
are also many news and sports feeds.
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
[email protected] 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
[email protected]
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
