Aground station,Earth station, orEarth terminal is a terrestrialradio station designed for extraplanetarytelecommunication withspacecraft (constituting part of theground segment of the spacecraft system), or reception ofradio waves fromastronomical radio sources. Ground stations may be located either on the surface of theEarth, or in its atmosphere.[1] Earth stations communicate with spacecraft by transmitting and receiving radio waves in thesuper high frequency (SHF) orextremely high frequency (EHF)bands (e.g.microwaves). When a ground station successfully transmits radio waves to a spacecraft (or vice versa), it establishes atelecommunications link. A principal telecommunications device of the ground station is theparabolic antenna.
Ground stations may have either a fixed or itinerant position. Article 1 § III of theInternational Telecommunication Union (ITU) Radio Regulations describes various types of stationary and mobile ground stations, and their interrelationships.[2]
Specializedsatellite Earth stations orsatellite tracking stations are used to telecommunicate withsatellites — chieflycommunications satellites. Other ground stations communicate with crewedspace stations or uncrewedspace probes. A ground station that primarily receivestelemetry data, or that follows space missions, or satellites not ingeostationary orbit, is called aground tracking station, orspace tracking station, or simply atracking station.
When a spacecraft or satellite is within a ground station's line of sight, the station is said to have aview of the spacecraft (seepass). A spacecraft can communicate with more than one ground station at a time. A pair of ground stations are said to have a spacecraft inmutual view when the stations share simultaneous, unobstructed,line-of-sight contact with the spacecraft.[3]
Atelecommunications port — or, more commonly,teleport — is a satellite ground station that functions as a hub connecting a satellite orgeocentric orbital network with a terrestrialtelecommunications network, such as theInternet.
Teleports may provide variousbroadcasting services among other telecommunications functions,[4] such asuploadingcomputer programs or issuingcommands over anuplink to a satellite.[5]
In May 1984, the Dallas/Fort Worth Teleport became the first American teleport to commence operation.[citation needed]
InFederal Standard 1037C, the United StatesGeneral Services Administration defined anEarth terminal complex as the assemblage of equipment and facilities necessary to integrate an Earth terminal (ground station) into a telecommunications network.[6][7] FS-1037C has since been subsumed by the ATIS Telecom Glossary, which is maintained by theAlliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS), an international, business-oriented,non-governmental organization. TheTelecommunications Industry Association also acknowledges this definition.
TheITU Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R), a division of theInternational Telecommunication Union, codifies international standards agreed-upon through multinational discourse. From 1927 to 1932, theInternational Consultative Committee for Radio administered standards and regulations now governed by the ITU-R.
In addition to the body of standards defined by the ITU-R, each major satellite operator provides technical requirements and standards that ground stations must meet in order to communicate with the operator's satellites. For example,Intelsat publishes the Intelsat Earth Station Standards (IESS) which, among other things, classifies ground stations by the capabilities of their parabolic antennas, and pre-approves certain antenna models.[8]Eutelsat publishes similar standards and requirements, such as the Eutelsat Earth Station Standards (EESS).[9][10] The Interagency Operations Advisory Group offers a Service Catalog describing standard services,[11] Spacecraft Emergency Cross Support Standard, andConsultative Committee for Space Data Systems data standards.
The Teleport (originally called aTelecommunications Satellite Park) innovation was conceived and developed by Joseph Milano in 1976 as part of aNational Research Council study entitled,Telecommunications for Metropolitan Areas: Near-Term Needs and Opportunities.
A network of ground stations is a group of stations located to support spacecraft communication, tracking, or both. A network is established to provide dedicated support to a specific mission, function, program or organization.[12]
Ground station networks include:
Other historical networks have included:
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain.| Main articles | |
|---|---|
| Hardware | |
| Satellite radio /TV | |
| Broadcast companies | |
| Relay satellite companies | |
| Satellite manufacturers | |
| Trade organizations | |
| Lists | |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
