International Satellite Directory

Approximately one-half of all international telephone traffic is handled through geostationary, commercial, satellite systems. Mix in the ever-growing markets in maritime mobile satellite service (MMSS), digital satellite news gathering (DSNG), vehicle-to-base, direct broadcasting (DBS: from DTH to 3D to even VoD), aircraft-to-ground, corporate nets, email, Internet connectivity, emergency services communications, paging, and digital radio. Additionally, one of the most important segments includes military satellite communications --- with all of this comes the realization SATCOM is responsible for most of the world's communication.For communication to occur, whether from geostationary orbit, from the application of the Molniya system, the use of low- and medium-altitude Earth orbits, a massive array of equipment and trained personnel are required. This industry is more than just a collection of satellites that accommodate communication uplinks and downlinks --- it's about ground stations and transponders and customer support and launch services and all of the myriad bits and pieces that build the international networks we now take for granted on an hourly, if not minute-by-minute, basis. With this International Satellite Directory, the daily and weekly SatNews as well as our magazines, SatMagazine and Milsat-Magazine, we intend to keep you well informed of the ongoing activities within our industry and its various market segments --- activities that remain, for the most part, invisible to those whose use these channels of communication. For most users, SATCOM is a background element rarely, if ever, thought of --- as Arthur C. Clarke once said, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." This is an industry filled with superb magicians