History

A communication Satellite is  an artificial satellite used to aid telecommunications by reflecting or relaying a radio signal. The first communication satellite was launched by the Soviets called Sputnik 1 on Octorober 4, 1957. America soon followed with project Score in 1958 during the race for space. These satellites just were for simple radio communications. The way a communication satellite works is like bouncing messages off a mirror in space to either a spead or fixed location. There are various patterns of orbit that the satellite rotates with or around the Earth. AT&T was the first company to put an active relay satellite (back then owned by Telstar) which NASA launched on July 10, 1962. The satellites use radio bands and wavelenghts to send messages back and forth.

Billion dollar industry

 "Satellite communications is also the only truly commercial space technology- -generating billions of dollars annually in sales of products and services." (NASA) By 1964 there were 6 satellites total 2 of which were AT&T. This set up the telephone industry to be capable of long distance phone calls. Instead of using the typical land line people would be using the service of a geostationary satellite.

Satellite television and radio has also added to the profits of satellite owners. Satellite radio is in near every car produced today and majority of customers have satellite television. Now there are costs of maintaining the satellite along with runing the business however even with those costs these companies are able to make billions of dollars. Sirius and XM are two of the companies in the satellite radio business that have boomed with the intertwining of mobile staellite radio and cars. what satellite radio allows is for a customer to listen to the same station from coast to coast, state to state and city to city, instead of having to find a new broadcast every few hundred miles.

 Orbital Rotations

Low earth orbit=blue

Geostationary orbit

Military use

Communication satellites are used by the military for Ground control and command. If our countries satellites were taken out, we would be okay due to back up plans but we would have a brief moment of chaos.

NOT FINAL DRAFT THEREFORE NO SOURCES LISTED, HOWEVER SOURCES USED.   final will have MLA cited sources.