The Basics of Satellite Communications, Second Edition (Basics Books series) (Paperback)
Product Description
The satellite industry, like all sectors of the telecommunications and computer markets worldwide, is in the process of rapid change in terms of technology, applications, regulation, and economics. In light of this pattern of rapid change, one must strive to stay up to date on the major trends in the satellite industry, as doing so is key to understanding the future evolution of technology as well as the ensuing market changes.
The satellite field, now more than 40 years old, is still growing steadily in key service areas despite the success and technical advancement other network technologies such as of fiber optic networks. In many ways, satellite and fiber-optic capabilities complement each other as much as they compete for markets. The current success of satellites is primarily in the fixed satellite services, broadband and Internet-related satellite services, and broadcast satellite services. Often the areas of greatest market success for satellite systems represent sectors where the satellites can provide broadcast services, large-scale networking and/or connectivity to rural and remote areas. It is such areas were satellites truly excel. It is also believed that satellites will in the future still play a key role in providing mobile services despite the setbacks that came with early market failures in the land mobile service sectors.
The Basics of Satellite Communications explains the fundamentals of communications satellite systems, covering not only the technology of the industry but its other key elements as well. Intended for the non-engineer or those just starting in the field, this handbook examines the evolution of spacecraft and communications payloads, earth-station antennas and user terminals, launch systems, satellite standards and regulatory processes, the key institutions, the economics and financial aspects, and the various services now offered and those anticipated, seeking finally to provide some understanding of future technology and systems yet to come.
In the fast-changing satellite markets, where services and technologies are not easily understood, The Basics of Satellite Communications offers a clear and understandable introduction to the field.
About the Author
Joseph N. Pelton, Ph.D. is Director of the Space and Advanced Communications Research Institute (SACRI) at George Washington University. He is also the Founder and Vice Chairman of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation.
Dr. Pelton is the author of 25 books and major research studies in the field that include writings on satellites and wireless telecommunications systems, advanced telecommunications technology and regulation, and the long-range impact of technology on society. These include the multi-book series: Future Talk, Future View, and Global Talk, the latter for which he was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. His book E-Sphere: The Rise of the World-Wide Mind completes the series. He has served as Chairman of the Board (1992-1995) and Vice President of Academic Programs and Dean (1996-1997) of the International Space University of Strasbourg, France. This experimental international academic institution specializes in graduate interdisciplinary studies and hosts study programs at leading universities around the world in addition to its master's program conducted at its main campus in France.
Dr. Pelton was the 1997-1998 Chairman of a NASA and National Science Foundation Panel of Experts on Satellite Communications. This panel has published its global review of satellite telecommunications on-line and in a 300-page soft-copy volume. This report is the follow-on to a similar study panel that Dr. Pelton co-chaired in 1992. During the period 1998-2001, he was an official member of the Japanese government's high-level external evaluation committee for the Japanese Space Exploration Agency (JAXA). He also has served as a member of the official evaluation committee for the Communications Research Laboratory of the MPT of Japan with respect to satellite and new wireless technologies.
The International Academy of Astronautics has elected Dr. Pelton to full membership. He has also been awarded the Arthur C. Clarke Award for lifetime achievement in the field of satellite communications, as well as elected in 2001 to the Hall of Fame of the Society of Satellite Professionals International. From 1989 to 1996, Dr. Pelton served as Director of the Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program at the University of Colorado at Boulder, which is one of the oldest graduate programs in telecommunications in the world. From 1969 to 1989, Dr. Pelton held a number of management positions with COMSAT and the INTELSAT global satellite organization. These included Manager of INTELSAT Affairs at COMSAT, Executive Assistant to the Director General of INTELSAT, and Director of Strategic Policy for INTELSAT. Dr. Pelton is also author of more than 300 journal articles and encyclopedia entries. His Ph.D. is from Georgetown University, his M.S. from New York University, and his B.S. from the University of Tulsa.
Dr. Pelton has appeared on national television and radio shows as an expert on satellite communications, telecommunications, and futurism for NPR International, The Jim Lehrer News Hour, the BBC, ABC, and CBS Nightly News. He is on the editorial boards of Space Policy and the Journal of Space Communications. He is also the Informatics and Telematics Editor of Acta Astronautica of the International Academic of Astronautics. He has lectured at more than 40 universities and international conferences around the world as a keynote speaker.
Further, Dr. Pelton is the founding President of the Society of Satellite Professionals International, the Chairman of the Academic Committee of the International Association for the Advancement of Space Safety, and a former member of the Board of Trustees of the International Institute of Communications. He was also the winner of the H. Rex Lee Award for his leadership in organizing and managing the world-wide tele-health and tele-education Project Share. In 1996, he was given the International Communication Association's Educator's Innovation Award. Further, Dr. Pelton was appointed by President Ronald.
