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Satellite phone

Satellite phone (Inmarsat)

A satellite telephone, satellite phone, or satphone is a type of mobile phone that connects to orbiting satellites instead of terrestrial cell sites. They provide similar functionality to terrestrial mobile telephones; voice, short messaging service and low-bandwidth internet access are supported through most systems. Depending on the architecture of a particular system, coverage may include the entire Earth, or only specific regions. The mobile equipment, also known as a terminal, varies widely. Early satellite phone handsets had a size and weight comparable to that of a late-1980s or early-1990s mobile phone, but usually with a large retractable antenna. More recent satellite phones are similar in size to a regular mobile phone while some prototype satellite phones have no distinguishable difference from an ordinarysmartphone.[1][2] Satphones are popular on expeditions into remote areas where terrestrial cellular service is unavailable. A fixed installation, such as one used aboard a ship, may include large, rugged, rack-mounted electronics, and a steerable microwave antenna on the mast that automatically tracks the overhead satellites. Smaller installations using VoIP over a two-way satellite broadband service such as BGAN or VSAT bring the costs within the reach of leisure vessel owners.Internet service satellite phones have notoriously poor reception indoors, though it may be possible to get a consistent signal near a window or in the top floor of a building if the

roof is sufficiently thin. The phones have connectors for external antennas that are often installed in vehicles and buildings. The systems also allow for the use of repeaters, much like terrestrial mobile phone systems.
Contents
[hide]

1 Satellite phone network

o o

1.1 Geosynchronous satellites 1.2 Low Earth orbit

1.2.1 Tracking

2 Locations banning satellite phones 3 One-way services 4 Cost of a satellite phone 5 Virtual country codes 6 Calling cost 7 Use in disaster response 8 See also 9 References 10 External links

Satellite phone network

Geosynchronous satellites
Some satellite phones use satellites in geostationary orbit, which are meant to remain in a fixed position in the sky. These systems can maintain near-continuous global coverage with only three or four satellites, reducing the launch costs. The satellites used for these systems are very heavy (approx. 5000 kg) and expensive to build and launch. The satellites sit at an altitude of about 35,000 kilometres (22,000 mi); a noticeable delay is present while making a phone call or using data services due to the large distance from users. The amount of bandwidth available on these systems is substantially higher than that of the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) systems; all three active systems provide portable satellite Internet using laptop-sized terminals with speeds ranging from 60 to 512 kbits per second (kbps). Another disadvantage of geostationary satellite systems is that in many areaseven where a large amount of open sky is presentthe line-of-sight between the phone and the satellite is broken by obstacles such as steep hills and forest. The user will need to find an area with line-of-sight before using the phone. This is not the case with LEO services: even if the signal is blocked by an obstacle, one can wait a few minutes until another satellite passes overhead, but a moving LEO may drop a call when line of sight is lost.

 

ACeS: This small regional operator provides voice and data services in East Asia using a single satellite. Inmarsat: The oldest satellite phone operator, founded in 1979. It originally provided large fixed installations for ships, but has recently entered the market of hand-held phones in a joint venture with ACeS. The company operates eleven satellites. Coverage is available on most of the Earth, except polar regions.

Thuraya: A system based in the UAE. Three satellites are currently in service that provide coverage to most of Eurasia, Africa and Australia. There is some degree of coverage overlap between adjacent satellites within the network.

MSAT / SkyTerra: An American satellite phone company that uses equipment similar to Inmarsat, but plans to launch a service using hand-held devices in the Americas similar to Thuraya's.

 

Terrestar: Satellite phone system for North America ICO Global Communications: A satellite phone company which has launched a single geosynchronous satellite which is not yet active.

Low Earth orbit

LEO telephones utilizes LEO (low Earth orbit) satellite technology. The advantages include providing worldwide wireless coverage with no gaps. LEO satellites orbit the earth in high speed, low altitude orbits with an orbital time of 70100 minutes, an altitude of 640 to 1120 kilometers (400 to 700 miles), and provide coverage cells of about (at a 100-minute orbital period) 2800 km in radius (about 1740 mi). Since the satellites are not geosynchronous, they must fly complete orbits. At least one satellite must have line-of-sight to every coverage area at all times to guarantee coverage. Depending on the positions of both the satellite and terminal, a usable pass of an individual LEO satellite will typically last 415 minutes on average;[3] thus, a constellation of satellites is required to maintain coverage (as is done with Iridium, Globalstar, GPS, and others). Two such systems, both based in the United States started in the late 1990s but soon went into bankruptcy after failing to gain enough subscribers to fund launch costs. They are now operated by new owners who bought the assets for a fraction of their original cost, and are now both planning to launch replacement constellations supporting higher bandwidth. Data speeds for current networks are between 2200 bit/s and 9600 bit/s using a satellite handset. Globalstar: A network covering most of the world's landmass using 44 active satellites; however many areas are left without coverage since a satellite must be in range of an earth station. Satellites fly in an inclined orbit of 52 degrees, so polar regions cannot be covered. The network went into limited commercial service at the end of 1999 .

Iridium: A network operating 66 satellites in a polar orbit that claims coverage everywhere on Earth. Commercial service started in November 1998 and fell into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August 1999.[4] In

2001, service was re-established by Iridium Satellite LLC. Radio cross-links are used between satellites to relay data to the nearest satellite with a connection to an earth station.

Tracking
LEO systems have the ability to track a mobile unit's location using doppler shift calculations from the satellite.[5] However, this method can be inaccurate by tens of kilometers. On some Iridium hardware the coordinates can be extracted using AT commands, while recent Globalstar handsets will display them on the screen.[6]

Locations banning satellite phones

In some countries, possession of a satellite phone is illegal.[7] Their signals will usually bypass local telecoms systems, hindering censorship and wiretapping attempts. These countries tend to score low on the Democracy index, with the exception of India, so a ban can be the result of the state's desire for mass surveillance or that it lacks the technology to intercept satellite phone traffic. North Korea India - Proper permission required Cuba[citation needed] Libya[citation needed] Libya has recently been found to jam satellites since 2006. Burma[11]

    

Satellite phones are legal in most countries and are not disfavoured by many governments. InAustralia, residents of remote areas may apply for a government subsidy for a satellite phone.[12]

One-way services
Some satellite phone networks provide a one-way paging channel to alert users in poor coverage areas of an incoming call. When the alert is received on the satellite phone it must be taken to an area with better coverage before the call can be accepted. Globalstar provides a one-way data uplink service, typically used for asset tracking. Iridium operates a one-way pager service as well as the call alert feature.

Cost of a satellite phone

While it is possible to obtain used handsets for the Thuraya, Iridium, and Globalstar networks for approximately US$200, the newest handsets are quite expensive. The Iridium 9505A, released in 2001, sold in March 2010 for over $1,000 USD new.[13][14][15] Since satellite phones are purpose-built for one particular network and cannot be switched to other networks, the price of handsets varies with network performance. If a satellite phone provider encounters trouble with its network, handset prices will fall, then increase once new satellites are launched. Similarly, handset prices will increase when calling rates are reduced. Among the most expensive satellite phones are BGAN terminals, often costing several thousand US dollars.[16] These phones provide broadband Internet and voice communications. Satellite phones are sometimes subsidised by the provider if one signs a post-paid contract but subsidies are usually only a few hundred US dollars or less. Inmarsat has also introduced a new handheld satellite June-2010 called IsatPhone Pro. It is the least expensive handset and service to date. [2] Since most satellite phones are built under license or the manufacturing of handsets is contracted out to OEMs, operators have a large influence over the selling price. Satellite networks operate under proprietary closed standards, making it difficult for manufacturers to independently make handsets.

Virtual country codes

See also and Satellite phones are usually issued with numbers in a special country calling code. Inmarsat satellite phones are issued with codes +870. In the past additional country codes have been allocated to different satellites but the codes +871 to +874 have been phased out at the end of 2008 leaving Inmarsat users with the same country code regardless of which satellite their terminal is registered with.[17] Low earth orbit systems including some of the defunct ones have been allocated number ranges in theInternational Telecommunications Union's Global Mobile Satellite System virtual country code +881. Iridium satellite phones are issued with codes +881 6 and +881 7. Globalstar, although allocated +881 8 and +881 9 use U.S. telephone numbers except for service resellers located in Brazil which use the +881 range

Global Mobile Satellite System

The Global Mobile Satellite System (GMSS) is a general term referring to the selection of satellite phone providers available to private customers. It is a term analogous to PLMN, referring to wireless telephony (cellular) carriers, and PSTN, referring to traditional wire-based telephony. As of 2008, the allocated GMSS carriers are:

   

Iridium Satellite LLC Globalstar Ellipso (a non-operational service, with no satellites launched) ICO Global Communications

In 1996, the ITU introduced country code +881 for direct international dialing of phones on a GMSS provider. (Inmarsat had already been allocated country codes +870 - +874.) The next digit following the country code is allocated (two at a time) to a particular GMSS carrier:

Carrier GMSS codes ICO Ellipso spare Iridium Globalstar +881 0 +881 1 +881 2 +881 3 +881 4 +881 5 +881 6 +881 7 +881 8 +881 9

Satellite numbers outside the GMSS country code

Inmarsat is a satellite-based communications provider, but it is primarily a maritime service and is not generally considered part of the GMSS. Globalstar usually allocates subscribers with a local number in the country they are based rather than using their GMSS country code. Iridium also uses an Arizona-based access number to call Iridium phones for those unwilling or unable to call the usually expensive GMSS number directly. Thuraya has been assigned +882-16 which is part of the +882 country code.

Smaller regional satellite phone networks are allocated numbers in the +882 code designated for "international networks" which is not used exclusively for satellite phone networks.

International Networks (country code)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

International Networks is the name given by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) tocountry calling codes 882 and 883, and serves as a catch-all for telephone services not dedicated to a single country. Satellite telephone carriers, especially those with worldwide service, are allocated within the Global Mobile Satellite System (GMSS), country code 881, with the exception of non-terrestrial Inmarsat, country code 870. As in the other such shared country codes, carriers are allocated number space within this code space plus their identification code (two-digit number in 882 code space, three or four digit number in 883 code space). The phone number for a subscriber of such a service will start with +882/+883followed by the carrier code.

Carrier Codes
As of September 15, 2007 the assignments of +882/+883 carrier codes are as follows:

Active
+882-10 British Telecommunications plc +882-12 Verizon (formerly MCI WorldCom) +882-13 Telespazio S.p.A. Reach (formerly Telstra ITERRA Digital +882-15 Network) +882-16 United Arab Emirates Administration +882-20 Asia Cellular Satellite (ACeS) +882-22 Cable & Wireless +882-23 SITA-Equant Joint Venture +882-24 TeliaSonera +882-28 Deutsche Telekom +882-30 Singapore Telecom +882-31 Telekom Malaysia +882-32 Maritime Communications Partner[1] +882-33 Oration Technologies[2] +882-34 Global Networks, Inc.[3] +882-35 Jasper Systems, Inc. +882-36 Jersey Telecom AT&T Mobility (formerly Cingular +882-37 Wireless) +882-38 Ellipso +882-39 Vodafone Malta +882-40 Oy Cubio Communications Global Office Application HyperStream International (HSI) Data Network EMS Regional Mobile Satellite System Global international ATM Network Thuraya RMSS Network Garuda Mobile Telecommunication Satellite System Global Network Sita-Equant Network multinational ATM Network Next Generation Network Global Reach Network Global Internation ATM Network

Oy Communications

+882-41 +882-42 +882-98 +882-99 +883100 +883110 +8835100 +883120

Intermatica Seanet Maritime Communications AB[4] ONAIR N.V. Telenor MediaLincc Ltd. Aicent Ltd. Voxbone Telenor

Global mobile telecommunication operator SITA GSM services in aircraft Telenor GSM network services in aircraft

iNum Initiative Global Area code for IP Communications unknow mobile services, requires Telenor invite to be implanted in number range

In the +882-99 block, two numbering spaces are currently colliding: The numbering area has officially been assigned to Telenor but prior to this assignment, e164.org has started to assign unofficial numbers within that numbering area.[5]

Inactive
The following codes have been previously assigned by the ITU but were not used as of 2007:

+882-11 formerly Singapore Telecommunications Asia Pacific Mobile Telecommunications +882-14 formerly Verizon/GTE International Networks +882-17 formerly AT&T International ATM Network +882-18 formerly Teledesic Global Network +882-19 formerly Telecom Italia Global Network +882-21 formerly Ameritech Gateway Global Service, Inc. (AGGSI) network +882-25 formerly Constellation Communications (now ICO) +882-26 formerly SBC Communications Global Data Network +882-27 formerly Williams Communications +882-29 formerly Q-Tel (NZ) Ltd (formerly World IT)

Current Routing Partners

Current Services routing calls to the Voxbone iNum Initiative
The Voxbone iNum Initiative offers FREE number blocks to all qualified service providers using SIP interconnection and supporting voice, video and SMS. Service providers can apply for their block by writing to inum <at> voxbone.com or visitng the website www.inum.net. An updated list of iNum project participating carriers is available at: www.inum.net/what-is-inum/voice-reach/ Voxbone also provides a global access number network to reach +883 5100 numbers, so callers can make local calls to iNum when their local carrier does not yet support routing to the code.

e cost of making voice calls from a satellite phone varies from around $0.15 to $2 per minute, while calling them from landlines and regular mobile phones is more expensive. Costs for data transmissions (particularly broadband data) can be much higher. Rates from landlines and mobile phones range from $3 to $14 per minute with Iridium, Thuraya[18] and INMARSAT being some of the most expensive networks to call. The receiver of the call pays nothing, unless he is being called via a special reverse-charge service. Making calls between different satellite phone networks is often similarly expensive, with calling rates of up to $15 per minute. Calls from satellite phones to landlines are usually around $0.80 to $1.50 per minute unless special offers are used. Such promotions are usually bound to a particular geographic area where traffic is low. Most satellite phone networks have pre-paid plans, with vouchers ranging from $100 to $5,000.

Use in disaster response

See also: Cascading failure Most mobile telephone networks operate close to capacity during normal times, and large spikes in call volumes caused by widespread emergencies often overload the systems when they are needed most. Examples reported in the media where this has occurred include the September 11 attacks, the2006 Hawaii earthquake, the 2003 Northeast blackouts, Hurricane Katrina,[19] the 2007 Minnesota bridge collapse, the 2010 Chile earthquake and the Dawson College shooting.[20] Reporters and journalists have also been using satellite phones to communicate and report on events in war zones such as Iraq. Terrestrial cell antennas and networks can be damaged by natural disasters. Satellite telephony can avoid this problem and be useful during natural disasters. Satellite phone networks themselves are prone to congestion as satellites and spot beams cover a large area with relatively few voice channels.