Main applications in the field of GMES, GNSS and Telecommunications

From INVESaTWIKI

MAIN APPLICATIONS IN THE FIELD OF EARTH OBSERVATION

Introduction

In the following figure and related links it will be showh the situation about the satellites, in orbit or in planning, for earth observation. [1]

Fig.1 Major earth observation satellites in orbit or in planning

Explanation for Figure 1:

NOAA applications

Landsat satellites

NASA EOS satellites

US commercial applications

SPOT satellites

The european situation

The situation for European earth observation satellite systems is only partially comparable to those in the US. With the French SPOT series, Europe was once leading the commercial supply of high resolution satellite images. Though also used by military and security forces, the requirements of European military forces would not have so far justified the deployment of commercial operations. European military interests have been not as global as the US ones and European military budgets are significantly smaller than those of its Atlantic ally.
The new geopolitical situation and “asymmetric” threats have changed this picture significantly. New military engagements require presence of European troops in countries outside Europe. The new European constitution gives the European Commission a greater role in coordination of a “European Foreign and Security Policy” (EFSP) and the procurement of military systems. Therefore, a new European Defence Agency has been established in 2004. Since then, national classified earth observation systems have been deployed by France and few partner states (HELIOS) and most recently by Germany (SARLupe with 5 imaging radar satellites, which is due for operations in 2006).
The European White paper on space not only constitutes an autonomous access to space (e.g. the Ariane launcher programme), but also an independency in the primary data supply as a strategic objective. Whilst this objective is also a driver for the future European ESA/Commission earth observation satellites (i.e. the SENTINELS), European nations have already started in the mid 90s to consider either a further privatisation of the imaging satellite business and/or the need for VHR data for national security and mapping needs.
Meanwhile, European military agencies also act as normal customers to the existing and near future suppliers of VHR data. Systems, which can satisfy both civilian and public needs, have been initiated in Italy and France. The COSMOSkyMed project of Italy is conducted in a partnership with the Italian military and therefore classified as dual-use. Three X-Band imaging radar satellites will form a capability, amended later by two optical VHR satellites delivered by a similar French dual use set-up, the Pleiades system. A French–Italian user preparation program under the name ORFEO has started, which also includes the development of data evaluation tools.
Recently, Spain has started a project—named Tarsis—aimed to complement the Italo–French reconnaissance satellite network by Spanish small satellites with optical and radar capabilities (Aviation Week, August 2, 2004).
Though, not intended for security and military use, other commercial earth observation imaging systems also value military customers as important clients. Notably the German TerraSAR-X VHR radar satellite will offer its polarized SAR modes and phased-array antenna flexibility to military and security customers worldwide. TerraSAR-X is done in a public private partnership (PPP) between the German Space Agency (DLR) and ASTRIUM, Germany. In return for the governmental investment in the satellite and the built-up and operations of the entire ground segment at DLR, DLR has the right to have access to 50% of the entire global satellite capacity for non-commercial, primarily scientific investigations. The remaining 50% of the imaging capacity will be exclusively sold to international customers and ground stations by InfoTerra, Germany, a subsidiary of ASTRIUM.
Another German commercial company, Rapid Eye, has meanwhile concluded its financial set-up and is targeted to launch a five satellite based optical system. Though meant for agricultural monitoring and not in the VHR domain, the high repetition rate of the five satellites could be an important factor for some users concerned with rapid and most frequent observations. [1]

MAIN APPLICATIONS IN THE FIELD OF GNSS

Here applications that have shown very promising developments are presented.
The Location Based Services (LBS) market, with its enormous potential, is first described. In particular, four main LBS categories, i.e. information and navigation services, emergency assistance services, tracking services and network-related services, are examined in detail and their expected considerable revenues explained.
Four important transport domains (road, aviation, maritime and rail) are also presented, giving for each sector an insight into the present markets, the possibilities for development and the new markets opened by Galileo.
Specific applications such as oil and gas, electricity networks and precision farming are addressed, in view of the improvements in exploitation techniques made achievable by satellite navigation technologies.
A complete view on GNSS applications is not complete without referring to almost all of the sectors of activity, such as fisheries, survey and maritime engineering, insurance, leisure, water management, environment monitoring, support to people with disabilities, consumer protection, meteorology, science, timing, etc. [2]

MAIN APPLICATIONS IN THE FIELD OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Satellite system approaches

There are four basic technology categories that form the basis for the various satellite broadband service offerings: Ku-band FSS, bent pipe Ka-band, on-board processing Ka-band and L-band MSS. These approaches and representative service offerings are summarized in Table 1.

Table 1 2-way broadband satellite technologies

The first generation services that are now in place use existing Ku-band Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) satellites for two-way connections. Using FSS, a large geographical area (e.g., the United States or all of North America) is covered by a single broadcast beam.
The new Ka-band systems use more focused beams that cover a much smaller area (hundreds of miles across, rather than thousands of miles with FSS) that form coverage cells like the illustration below. Adjacent cells use different frequency ranges but a given frequency range can be reused many times over a wide geographical area. In this way there is a large increase in overall capacity because of frequency reuse; the spot beam frequency gain is analogous to the difference between a direct-to-home broadcast signal and cellular phone coverage. From a practical standpoint, Ka spot beams provide 30 to 60 times the system capacity of the FSS approach. The increase system capacity to 30 Gbps plays a very significant role in helping to make satellite broadband services a long-term, economically viable business opportunity, as end-users' bandwidth requirements will only increase over the next five to ten years.
The Ka-band systems under development are being designed with two basic constructs: bent pipe and on-board processing. [3]

Overview of market assessment issues

The recent record of market assessment and forecasting in the satellite industry is mixed at best. Limiting the review to new services aimed at the general business and consumer markets, some have succeeded beyond the expectations of analysts, such as direct broadcast satellite (DBS). On the other hand, the widely-anticipated market for Global Mobile Personal Communication Systems (GMPCS) has failed to materialize. [4]

Threats and opportunities in broadband communications

Given their capabilities, broadband satellite systems are best positioned to offer the services addressing four primary markets.

• Wholesale carrier services.
• Global corporate networking.
• Public service institutions.
• Broadband local loop.

In each of these markets, there are threats and opportunities for satellite carriers. [4]

Strategies for broadband satellite operators : a co-opetitive analysis

The industry and market conditions create a very complex competitive landscape for satellite providers, making it difficult for those providers to decide how they will deal with the many players involved in broadband communications. The framework developed by business researchers Adam Brandenberg and Barry Nalebuff is a useful tool for a co-opetitive analysis of this landscape. [4]

References

[1] G.Schreier, S.Dech
"High resolution Earth observation satellites and services in the next decade - A european perspective".

[2] Galileo Joint Undertaking
"Business in satellite navigation - An overview of market developments and emerging applications".

[3] M.Dankberg, J.Puetz
"Comparative approaches in the economics of broadband satellite services".

[4] E.G.Carayannis, J.Alexander
"Virtual, wireless mannah: a co-opetitive analysis of the broadband satellite industry".