Seven Interesting Facts about Satellite Communication

Due to the high demand for quick communication, so many types of methods have been developed. Satellite communication is one of the best and fastest types of communication method. Satellites play an important role in our daily lives. With the help of these satellites, it is made possible to know the weather conditions before time. In this blog, we have mentioned some of the interesting things that you must know about the satellite communication and related aspects. Have a look-

• The first satellite was launched on October 4th, 1957 by the Soviet Union. The name of this satellite was Sputnik 1 that means satellite. It was a football-sized globe with a sound of beep that orbited the earth.
• Many people don't know the importance of the satellite and its usages. More than 2500 satellites are revolving in orbit around the earth. Some of the different tasks these satellites are used are- satellite phone communication, GPS navigation, television broadcasting, satellite internet, and many more.
• If someone collects the data of the satellites transmitted from one place to another in a year, then it's stack would be four times the height of Empire State building in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It has a height of 1,454 feet tall including its antenna.
• The speed of a satellite is incredible as it can cover 18000 miles in an hour that means it has the ability to cover the circumference of the earth 14 times in a single day.
• GPS (Global Positioning System) is the most widely used satellite used for the navigation system. It consists of 24 satellites and orbiting spares. Its official name is Navstar and is expected to work for about 10 years. It is maintained and worked by the  US Department of Defence
• The size and the purpose of the satellite vary according to the need. It has the as minimum size as 10 cm to a huge space station.
• As they are designed and launched in such a way that they don't collide with other satellites in the space. But due to some technical problems these accidents may occur, the first satellite collision was reported in 2009.

A lot of different devices are used to check the performance of the network. Satellite spectrum analyzer is one of the types of electronic device for electronic engineers. To know more, click here.

Radio Frequency with its Different Bands

Have you heard about radio frequency? Radio frequency (RF) is a measurement that represents the electromagnetic radiation spectrum or electromagnetic radio waves rate which represents from the 300 GHz to 3 KHz. Most importantly, the RF field is used for wireless broadcasting and communication purposes. To check the strength of the signal RF spectrum analyzer is used. Importantly, RF spectrum analyzer is the most important electronic device for a radio frequency engineer. To offer the best and flawless network, the spectrum analyzer is used. In this blog, we have mentioned some of the important places where radio frequency with its different bands are used. 

Aircraft navigation- As RF is categorized between different bands, for aircraft navigation, VHF (Very high frequency) are used. As aircrafts fly on 1500 ft and to communicate at such a high level you need a very high-frequency band.  

Satellite systems- SHF (super high frequency) is in the range of 3 GHz to 30 GHz. It can only operate in a line of sight path since any obstruction in between the transmitter and receiving station will break the communication. In the case of satellite communication, SHF is required as it needs point to point communication and there is a great chance of loss of signals. In addition, the wavelength and the complexity both are short in case of SHF.

Marine radio- In marine radio VLF is used that range from 3 kHz to 30 KHz. The design and installation of the antenna system are quite complex due to the wavelength. It is used in submarines, radio station that synchronizes clock signals between two remote locations.

Mobile networks- Low frequency (LF) has a range from 30 KHz to 300 KHz used for mobile networks. LF is easily reflected by the ionosphere present above the earth. This can be easily used for long distances communication purposes. It gets less attenuated from the large and harsh terrains such as mountains. It is also known as ground waves.

To better the performance of the wireless communication system, there are certain technical devices used. To know more about the radio frequency bands and its uses in different places, Click Here.

A Brief Snapshot of Spectrum Analyser

Spectrum analyzers are devices used to monitor and measures the power of the spectrum of known and unknown signals. The devices are used to measure the spectral configuration of optical signals, electrical, and acoustic signals. Spectrum analyzers are used to analyze amplitude against the frequency. Amplitude is normally measured in power or in dBm instead of volts, that is generally used in all most all spectrum analyzer. Spectrum analyzers of different range are often used in factories, industries and in laboratories.

There are various spectrum analyzers, having different frequency range, resolution bandwidth, and SSB phase noise. Various analyzer includes-

• Rack Mount spectrum analyzer
• Portable spectrum analyzer
• Embedded spectrum analyzer

A 9kHz-3GHz Spectrum analyzer which is taken as an economic spectrum analyzer. It is ideal for general purpose benchtop and field applications where signals and frequency can be measured at or below 3 GHz. Mainly the technology used in the analysers guarantees the reliability and performance required to meet the RF applications. Because of its exceptional value and affordable price for a spectrum analyzer it is used in different organisations such as the telecommunication industry for analyzing the frequency spectrum, maintenance, RF education, and R&D.

Spectrum analyzer display-

A key point of using a spectrum analyzer is to understand the display importance. The main purpose of a spectrum analyzer is to show the signal amplitude plot against frequency. The display has a graticule which shows ten major horizontal and ten major vertical divisions. Your findings will not only be accurate, above this they will also be easy to read and interpret when they are displayed on the widescreen display, featuring high resolution.

Scan rate-

There is always the need to check the scans rate, it should be made as fast as possible. Because if the scan time is slow then it will take more time for the measurements. The processor in the spectrum analyzer warn if the scan rate is high for settings of filter.

While seeking the spectrum analyzers, there are numerous modulation performance specifications to consider. Out of many, some of the significant factors are as following:

• Frequency resolution.
• The sensitivity of the frequency range and
• Frequency accuracy

Thus, it is crucial, that whatever spectrum analyzer you choose should have the basic frequencies of the application to which it is be used for.

Precautions To Take While Testing Phase Noise in Spectrum Analyzer

A certain level of phase noise exists out there on all signal and gives rise to either a wanted signal or carrier. Through the shape of phase noise graph will determine whether it is a free running oscillator or phase locked loop. The different situations will vary the noise filter.

Having a look at the single sideband phase noise of a signal, real-time spectrum analyzer 9kHz-3GHz are able to make good phase noise measurements. There are few precautions you need to be careful of during remote spectrum monitoring, to make sure that the test results are accurate. 

Minimized irrelevant external noise: During a spectrum analyzer phase noise measurement, there are some levels that are measured very low. Therefore it becomes important to take care that no external noise is picked up by the analyzer.  You can make use of screened leads for right signal connections. Keep the analyzer away from noise sources. These precautions will help so that no interference is picked up.

Use the right power supply: The power supply can alter the performance of the circuitry highly. It can have a major impact by generating more noise on switch mode. Make sure that the power supply used for the equipment is one with the same performance level.

Suitable analyzer set-up: It should be taken care that the phase noise of the analyzer is at least 10dB better than that of unit under test. Avoid adding the phase noise of the oscillator to the spectrum signal for having an undistorted result.

Phase noise measured with a spectrum analyzer is one of the easiest and accurate methods that are used. High end analyzers are made with this as a regular measurement that will need to be made and thus reducing many other problems.