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TheS band is a designation by theInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a part of themicrowaveband of theelectromagnetic spectrum coveringfrequencies from 2 to 4 gigahertz (GHz). Thus it crosses the conventional boundary between theUHF andSHF bands at 3.0 GHz. The S band is used byairport surveillance radar forair traffic control,weather radar, surface shipradar, and somecommunications satellites, particularlysatellites used byNASA to communicate with theSpace Shuttle and theInternational Space Station. The 10 cmradar short-band ranges roughly from 1.55 to 5.2 GHz. India's regional satellite navigation network (IRNSS) broadcasts on 2.483778 to 2.500278 GHz.^[1]

The S band also contains the 2.4–2.483 GHzISM band, widely used for low power unlicensed microwave devices such ascordless phones, wireless headphones (Bluetooth),garage door openers,keyless vehicle locks,baby monitors as well as for medicaldiathermy machines andmicrowave ovens (typically at 2.495 GHz). One of its largest uses is 2.4 GHzIEEE 802.11Wi-Fi wireless networks, allowing smartphones, laptops, printers and TVs to connect to the internet without cables.

The largest use of this band is byWi-Fi networks; theIEEE 802.11b and802.11g standards use the 2.4 GHz section of the S band. These are the most widely used computer networks in the world, used globally inhome and small office networks to linkdesktop andlaptop computers,tablet computers,smartphones,smart TVs,printers, andsmart speakers together and to awireless router to connect them to the Internet, and inwireless access points in public places like coffee shops, hotels, libraries and airports to provide public Internet access for mobile devices.

Mobile services are operated in the 2.3 GHz to 2.6 GHz range, specifically between the 2300–2400 MHz band and the 2500–2690 MHz band. Spectrum in the 3.55–3.7 GHz band has been auctioned off in the United States to be used forCBRS services and spectrum between 3.45–3.55 GHz and 3.7–3.98 GHz has been auctioned off by the FCC for 5G although this spectrum is referred to asC Band by the agency.

In the United States, theFCC approved satellite-basedDigital Audio Radio Service (DARS)broadcasting in the S band from 2.31 to 2.36 GHz in 1995,^[2] used bySirius XM Radio. More recently, it has approved portions of the S band between 2.0 and 2.2 GHz for the creation of Mobile Satellite Service (MSS) networks in connection with Ancillary Terrestrial Components (ATC). There have been a number of companies attempting to deploy such networks, including ICO Satellite Management (nowPendrell Corporation) andTerreStar (defunct).

The 2.6 GHz range is used forChina Multimedia Mobile Broadcasting, asatellite radio andmobile TV standard which, as with proprietary systems in the United States, is incompatible with theopen standards used in the rest of the world.

In May 2009,Inmarsat andSolaris Mobile (a joint venture betweenEutelsat andSES (EchoStar Mobile)) were each awarded a 2×15 MHz portion of the S band by theEuropean Commission.^[3] The two companies are allowed two years to start providing pan-European MSS services for 18 years. Allocated frequencies are 1.98 to 2.01 GHz for Earth to space communications, and from 2.17 to 2.2 GHz for space to Earth communications.^[4] The EutelsatW2A satellite was launched in April 2009 and is located at 10° East.

InIndonesia, S band is used byMNC Vision forDirect-to-Home satellite television (unlike similar services in most countries, which useK_u band). The frequency allocated for this service is 2.52-2.67 GHz (LOF 1.570 GHz).

IndoStar-1 was the world's first commercial communications satellite to use S-band frequencies for broadcast, which efficiently penetrate the atmosphere and provide high-quality transmissions to small-diameter 80 cm antennas in regions that experience heavy rainfall such as Indonesia. A similar Ku- or C-band reception performance requires greater transmission power or much larger dish to penetrate the moist atmosphere.

Many NASA spacecraft (near Earth and interplanetary) can communicate in the S-band, often using theDeep Space Network. For example, theJames Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021, utilizes 2 GHz S-band to enable 40 kbps real time telemetry^[5] from near the Sun–EarthL2 point.

Microwave ovens operate at 2495 or 2450 MHz in the ISM bandIEEE 802.16a. Some digital cordless telephones operate in this band too. 802.16e standards use a part of the frequency range of S band; underWiMAX standards. Most vendors are manufacturing equipment in the range of 3.5 GHz. The exact frequency range allocated for this type of use varies between countries.

In North America,2.4–2.483 GHz is anISM band used forunlicensed spectrum devices such ascordless phones,wireless headphones, andvideo senders, among otherconsumer electronics uses, includingBluetooth which operates between 2.402 GHz and 2.480 GHz.

Amateur radio andamateur satellite operators have two S-band allocations,13 cm (2.4 GHz) and9 cm (3.4 GHz).Amateur television repeaters also operate in these bands.

Airport surveillance radars typically operate in the 2700–2900 MHz range.

Particle accelerators may be powered by S-band RF sources. The frequencies are then standardized at 2.998 GHz corresponding to a wavelength of 100 mm (Europe) or 2.856 GHz (US).^[6]

The NationalNEXRAD Radar network operates with S-band frequencies. Before implementation of this system,C-band frequencies were commonly used for weather surveillance.

In the United States, the 3.55 to 3.7 GHz band is becoming shared spectrum under rules adopted by theFederal Communications Commission in April 2015 as a result of theNational Broadband Plan (United States). The biggest user of CBRS (Citizens Broadband Radio Service) spectrum is theUnited States Navy.^[7][8] Cable companies are planning to use the band forwireless broadband in rural areas, withCharter Communications beginning tests of the service in January 2018.^[9]

The band is also used as a transmit intermediate frequency in satellite communications as a replacement forL band where a single/shared coaxial connection is used between the modem/IDU and antenna/ODU for both the transmit and receive signals. This is to prevent interference between the transmit and receive signals which would otherwise not occur on a dual coaxial setup where the transmit and receive signals are separate and both can use the whole L-band frequency range. In a single coaxial connection using S-Band to "frequency shift" the transmit signal away from L band, a multiplier such as 10, is usually applied to form the SHF frequency. For example, the modem would transmit at 2.815 GHz IF (S Band) to the ODU and then the ODU up-converts this signal to 28.15 GHz SHF (Ka Band) towards the satellite.^[10][11]

• Electromagnetic interference at 2.4 GHz
• ISM band
• Unified S-band, an S-band communication system used in theApollo program of crewed spaceflight

• "TerreStar Networks".TerreStar Corporation. Archived fromthe original on 19 January 2010.
• Christy, Robert."Satellite Radio Frequencies: Transmissions at S-band".Zarya.info.Archived from the original on 13 August 2012.
• Esteves, John P. (1 August 2004)."Pioneer 10 & 11".Texas Space Grant Consortium. Archived fromthe original on 1 March 2005.

• Microwave bands
• Satellite broadcasting
• Telecommunications equipment

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