An Introduction Into How Satellite Television Operates

Did you ever wonder how does satellite tv function and what are its most important purposes? This explanatory article will undoubtedly answer some of your fundamental questions on this subject.

First of all, let’s establish the most important aspects: satellite tv at its root is the transmission of both video and audio signals, sent by various satellites to the dishes that are placed on the ground. The satellites are on a geostationary orbit.

Undoubtedly, satellites can almost be considered a modern wonder and they are the ones which make so many things possible, and not only for satellite tv. They have revolutionized communications. They orbit the Earth in the Clarke Belt, which is a region in space that can be found approximately 22,300 miles over the Equator line.

But now let’s talk something about the transponders. They are items that transmit the signal to the Earth, and each and every satellite has a a different number of transponders. The signals that are broadcast are different in their nature. Most often, they are broadcast on a few important bands, the C Band, the Ku Band and the Ka Band. The frequency of the signal is the most important element being defined by these different types of bands.

Now, the signals must travel over 20,000 miles, 22,300 to be more exact. They are then picked up on the Earth’s surface by the satellite dishes. A satellite dish’s main role is to pick up these signals and broadcast them further away. Even if a dish may be as small as 18 inches across, it will still successfully transmit the signal to the feedhorn.

And now, in its journey, the satellite signal arrives at the feedhorn. But what is a feedhorn? A feedhorn is an of the satellite dish. The feedhorn’s task is to receive the signal and carry it over once more to the LNB. Then, the LNB will amplify the signal in order to transform it to a frequency which will be more appropriate for a transmission that is done over cable.

And now we discuss another enigmatic term, the LNB. LNB is an acronym of Low Noise Block, and its job is the one we were talking about earlier. The cable is called IFL, an abbreviation of Intra Facility Link. The IFL is the means with the help of which the LNB carries the signal to the receiver. Finally, the last part of the process is done by the receiver, which carries the signal to your personal television set.

And here is where the signal’s journey is finished. It is pretty fascinating when you think about the technology which is involved in the process and all the different steps and transformations the signal will need to go through. So now you finally know how satellite television works at its basics.

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