Based on the premise that designers of future satellite systems must take account of the strong competition that satellites face from optical fibres, this book shows how in future years, satellites will continue to be commercially viable media for telecommunications only if systems designers take account of the unique features that satellites have to offer. Therefore, this book places more emphasis on satellite mobile services and broadcasting, and less emphasis on fixed, point-to-point, high-capacity services than traditional textbooks in the field. Emphasis is also given to design issues. Numerous illustrative system design examples and numerical problems are provided. The particular attention given to methods of design of satellite mobile communications systems should make it a useful resource for workers in this field. The book also contains some recent results of propagation modelling and system design studies, which should be of value to researchers and designers of satellite systems for mobile communications services. This work is suitable for use as a textbook for advanced courses on satellite communications.
