Telecommunications Essentials

Satellite

In 1947, Arthur C. Clarke (well known for his science fiction, particularly 2001: A Space Odyssey) presented a paper to the scientific community in Washington, DC. Clarke suggested that if we explored orbits in higher elevations above the earth, we might achieve an orbit at which a satellite would be able to serve as a communications broadcast tool. Until that point, we were beginning early explorations of satellites, but they were what we today would call low-earth-orbiting satellites, which means they were at relatively low altitudes over the earth and revolved around the earth much faster than the earth rotates on its own axis. Clarke theorized that if we sent a satellite into a higher orbit, it would encounter a geosynchronous orbit, ...