Satellite broadband is now becoming an alternative solution to remote connectivity issues. In hard-to-reach locations, terrestrial networks and traditional telecommunications infrastructure are often impracticable. Desert areas, mountainous regions, dense tropical foliage, or earthquake prone provinces pose a challenge to those who would want to opt for fibre networks, or telephone poles.
In such instances when geography and climate prevent the use of terrestrial networks, broadband through satellite is becoming the prefered solution. The emergence of more affordable VSAT networks is making satellite technology even more practical too. The size of VSAT systems also make it possible to deploy them in far-flung regions. Installing them is convenient, and despite their size, they can connect to powerful geostationary satellites through various telecommunications port which uplink to the space vessel.
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| A VSAT broadband system install in a remote location |
The only hurdle to the use of satellite broadband in providing Internet access, data transmission, and even video conferencing services in areas without such benefits, would be its cost. Satellite systems are expensive. Latency issues still continue to hound the technology. Since the satellites orbiting the earth are thousands of kilometers above the ground, delays in transmission of signals are expected. This can even be worsened by rain fade, and extreme weather systems which would create interferences.
However, more powerful satellites are being developed. New birds which will work in high-capacity Ka band spectrum are now in orbit, and many more such vessels are under construction, with launches slated in the coming years. With more powerful satellites, latency issues are minimized, but bandwidth capacity is increased, making broadband via satellite possible in even more remote regions across the globe. At this stage, the technology is still an alternative, but it has proven itself as a crucial solution to “last mile” problem which characterized traditional non-wireless communications network.
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