1 Satellite Services and Interference: The current situation ITU International Satellite Communication Symposium Geneva, 13-14 June 2016 Ruben D. Marentes Director, RF Operations Center
2 Current impact of RFI in satellite operations: Radio frequency interference (RFI) represents the biggest impact in operational performance for satellite operators, especially those working in the geostationary orbits This is a significant cost for satellite operators, not only because of the revenue impact but because of the amount of resources needed to isolate and mitigate these events
3 Current impact of RFI in satellite operations (Cont.): It is estimated that more than 85% of all customer problems and troubleshooting activities performed by the RF operations center are caused by interference RFI causes many impacts. Some of these are: loss of usable bandwidth, allocation of troubleshooting resources from end-users and satellite operators, shifting timelines (delays), service performance degradation, and the overall perception of service response
4 What is the current environment? We continue to operate in a congested environment as satellite operators are pursuing more services in their current capacity Commercial push to create a better value proposition which means more carriers in less bandwidth for the use of mobile and VSAT terminals More satellites with overlapping coverage Conflicts in some areas due to the competitive nature of the regional markets and lack of coordination agreements between operators Unknown flybys and other maneuvers not shared with neighbors and affected parties
5 What has changed? The increase of practices like frequency reuse places remote stations in conflicting segments that could impact adjacent satellites One of the major trends in the increase of RFI in satellite segments is the technical skill dilution, as remote techs are being replaced by operators and end-users when doing initial implementations Reduced deployment timelines and loose installation practices are causing a real impact in the operational RF frequencies Mobile (aero) terminals are performing much better than their fixed VSAT counterparts due to antenna auto-tracking systems with less than 1 out 10 incidents for networks in similar size Regulators should not fear aero terminals!!
6 What is Intelsat doing to isolate RFI? Increasing geolocation capability and installing more antennas in strategic places where we can capture most of the beams and transponders. Supporting Carrier ID regulation and participating with industry-based agencies for its adoption. Working with vendors on improvement monitoring and alarming tool to provide a more proactive approach.
7 What else is being done? Providing fast access to historical spectrum captures to identify when and where RFI was first detected Developing a customer web portal for the submission of transmission plans: My.Intelsat.com Users can upload their transmission plan (new/changes) and keep their loading plans up to date in a convenient way (RFM) Antenna information, AZ/EL utility, G/T calculator tools can be accessed from anywhere
8 What are we doing to mitigate RFI? Invite satellite users and operators to provide training to their installers Promote satellite self-access best practices and strict quality controls for service activation Develop real-time interference alarming solutions Create a loading philosophy to accommodate carriers depending on their RF profiles in order to reduce impact and conflict Thrive to a higher level of operations and stimulate a accountable approach to interference events
9 Space Data Association/RFI Collaboration Multi-national, open to all space operators, in all orbital regimes The SDA is a not-for-profit cooperative for the reliable and efficient data-sharing critical to the long-term safety, viability and integrity of both space and RF environments. SDA developing RFI tool to improve geolocation abilities of members Accurate ephemeris + maneuvers + RF data + antenna patterns + reference emitters + geolocation sites
10 Summary What can we do together to isolate and mitigate RFI? Enforce internal training and best practices and policies Support initiatives to share information between external stakeholders (i.e, Satellite Database Center, geolocation services, conjunction data, Carrier ID, C-band protection rulings) When issues or exceptions are suspected, contact your RF Operations Center: Our efforts are aimed to identify and eliminate sources of RFI. Share, communicate, collaborate and participate in troubleshooting efforts.
11 Questions Ruben D. Marentes Ruben.Marentes@intelsat.com Director, RF Operations Center