What is Satellite Internet and How does It Work?
After it was announced that Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet service was providing Internet to war-torn Ukraine, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov tweeted a picture of a truck carrying the terminal. High Starlink thanked Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX.
According to the reports of the monitoring organization Netblocks (Netblocks) on February 24, due to the military actions of Russia and the resulting conflicts, Ukrainian internet services in the capital city of Kyiv and throughout the country have faced “severe disruptions.”
But did you know that the roots of satellite internet technology go back to the Cold War space competition between the Soviet Union and the United States of America? The first satellite of the Soviet Union, named Sputnik, was sent into orbit in 1957, and the United States of America sent the Explorer 1 spacecraft into space in 1958.
Although the first satellites were launched for logistics and defense purposes, as time passed and when Bell Labs launched the first commercial communication satellite in 1962, Internet satellites became more prominent.
It has been more than two decades since satellite Internet has been available to humanity, and it seems that this technology is now ready to fulfill its promises to provide high-speed and affordable Internet for all people worldwide.
The closest way to realize this goal is the American company SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk. This company recently announced the successful tests of the Starlink system. Starlink is a series of low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites designed to create a low-latency network in space. But America is not the only one looking to expand the use of satellite internet. Just like SpaceX, China is deploying the LEO constellation.
What is satellite internet, and how does it work?
Satellite Internet is a telecommunication network consisting of orbital communication stations. In this network, radio signals are used instead of cables to transmit data, and thus the speed of the Internet increases.
These radio waves communicate with satellites orbiting the Earth. Data is sent and received over a communication network that starts with your device. In this way, the modem and the satellite dish send the information to the satellites in circulation. Finally, these data are returned to the ground stations known as Network Operation Centers (NOC). The data is sent to space through this network and returns to the satellite dish on the ground to be delivered to your device.
Satellite Internet uses a 5-part relay or amplifier system:
1- The device is ready to connect to the Internet
2- Modem or router
3- Satellite dish
4- Satellite in space
5- Network Operations Center (NOC)
In the following, we examine each of these five items:
1- The device is ready to connect to the Internet
Any device that can connect to the Internet through the appropriate service is considered a ready-to-connect device or an Internet-ready device. This device can be a computer, tablet, smartphone, game console, or internet-enabled device. When these devices connect to the Internet, your modem or router sends and receives data.
2- Modem or router
The modem’s job is to convert the data to send them from the device connected to the Internet to the satellite dish. Some devices, such as computers, smart TVs, or game consoles, directly relate to the modem using an Ethernet cable. But sometimes, working with these cables makes you a hassle, and on the other hand, you can’t use an Ethernet cable to connect to a smartphone or tablet. This is where the router comes in handy.
The router is the part that connects to the modem and activates the Wi-Fi feature. The router broadcasts the internet signal wirelessly, and your phone, laptop, or device can receive it. HughesNet and Viasat satellite internet modems are equipped with an internal router, but if you want, you can use another router to strengthen your network signals.
3- Satellite dish
The satellite dish is the next step in connecting you to the satellite internet. For the word to send data correctly and receive signals from the providing satellite in orbit, it must be placed correctly. A trained technician does the installation of the satellite dish.
4- Satellite in space
You have probably heard the name of geostationary satellites. The satellites used in legacy satellite services such as Viasat and HughesNet are located 35,405 km above the Earth’s surface and near the equator. These satellites rotate with the Earth’s motion and thus create a stable signal. This causes a two-way data connection between the satellite dish and the Network Operations Center (NOC).
But the next generation satellites, i.e., Starlink satellites (owned by SpaceX) and Project Kuiper satellites (owned by Amazon), are much closer to the Earth’s surface and orbit about 482 km above the Earth’s surface. These satellites are launched into low earth orbit (LEO). Compared to the previous satellites, the next generation satellites provide faster Internet with less delay due to being closer to the Earth’s surface. But since these satellites cannot remain fixed in the Earth’s orbit like geostationary satellites, thousands of Starlink satellites must be used instead of two or three ordinary satellites to serve a covered area, which is considered their weakness.
When you enter a request on the Internet; For example, you click on a link or open your Facebook page, the data of this request will be loaded according to the procedure we mentioned. Then the satellite sends this data to the network operation center.
5- Network Operations Center (NOC)
The NOC receives your request through satellite dishes much more significantly than your home dish. Then NOC is connected to the main center of the Internet network and sends your demands to you after collecting them. All this process, including shipping information to a distance of 35,405 km from the surface of the Earth and returning them, happens in a fraction of a second.
Advantages of satellite internet
- Satellite internet is ideal for rural or remote places without internet cables.
- Since satellite internet has a lower dropout rate, it provides a better connection.
- With satellite dishes, two-way communication is easier to send and receive data.
Disadvantages of satellite internet
- Sending data from your device to satellites and back again on satellite internet takes place with more delay. The uncertainty in DSL Internet services and cable modems is 50-150 milliseconds, while satellite Internet will delay 500-600 milliseconds. For this reason, satellite internet is not suitable for doing tasks that require a quick response, such as online
- games or millisecond video conferences.
Snow, rain, and lousy weather weaken the satellite internet. - The sky must be clear to establish a stable connection with satellite internet.
- Bad weather hurts the signal path. When there is a strong wind or a storm, the quality of the satellite internet decreases or is completely cut off.
- You cannot use VPN with satellite internet. VPNs require a low-latency, high-bandwidth system, which satellite internet lacks.
- The cost of satellite internet is relatively high. To use satellite internet with a speed of 2 megabits per second, you have to pay about 100 dollars per month. At the same time, the cost of cable internet with 25 times faster rate is half of this amount.
The Future of satellite internet
Satellite Internet will be used in many fields, some of which include the following:
- The transportation industry (ship planes) is equipped with more adv tasksanced communications.
- Internet of Things (IoT), devices will be need, ed to perform tasks such as fleet management and remote repair.
- Other communication companies, infrastructure, and mobile backhaul, are also becoming more advanced.
- A platform for direct sales of various products to consumers in rural areas and other underprivileged areas is provided.
