High Throughput Satellites (HTS) and KA/KU Spot Beam Technologies

Summary

This chapter looks at High Throughput Satellite (HTS) technology, applications, and key design issues. It discusses multiple access schemes and frequency reuse principles. This is followed by a discussion on the HTS spot beam approach, frequency colors, frequency bands of operation (specifically, the Ka band), losses and rain considerations, and the typical HTS applications. A comparison between approaches, namely, a discussion on Ku‐based versus Ka‐based HTS systems, and some HTS design factors are provided. After some detailed spot beam antenna design basics information for the on‐board satellite antenna, some examples of commercially deployed HTSs are provided. The selection of the best frequency for a given application is, therefore, driven by many considerations. From a satellite antenna design perspective, smaller spot sizes are easier to achieve at higher frequencies. The wider beam width associated with C band translates to larger spot sizes.