How Does Satellite Internet Work?

Satellite internet is a two-way data transfer between the satellite, user dish, and ground station (Network Operations Center ). 

The satellite internet is like a TV broadcast. in TV broadcast there is only one-way communication means the user only receives the broadcast signal through satellite here ground (broadcast) station does not have information about the user 

if you are on Earth somewhere with no mobile internet, and no optical fiber, lan wire then here satellite internet can help you

in satellite communication, A Satellite dish installed at the user's end is sent and receives electromagnetic waves from its broadcast satellite which is moving around Earth from 550 Km.

broad cast satellite receives the user signal and sends it ground station (Network Operations Center) to identify the user data and according to a user, request renders the data to the broadcast satellite which is again sent back to the user's Satellite dish. user dish is connected to the modem which converts satellite signal into the internet and connects to the computer.   

A. Equipment :

• Modem/router
• Satellite dish
• Satellite in space
• Network Operations Center (NOC)

Satellite DISH: inside the dish, there is an aluminum back plate where a large PCB(printed circuit board) is mounted over it after PCB  copper an array of antennae is installed each antenna is controlled by a microchip in the PCB. dish work as both it sends and receives the signal.  more than a thousand arrays of antennae generate high-intensity beams of signal to the satellite and receive information back. out of ten 9 times, they are working for receiving data. 

Broadcast Satellite in Space: broadcast satellite works as a medium between the satellite dish and  Network Operations Center (NOC). In the satellite, an antenna has two parts one is connected to the satellite dish, and another one is connected to Network Operations Center.

These satellites are launched into a lower orbit at  550 Km from Earth .since in a lower orbit satellites cover a small region of Earth so, for cover to the entire globe over 10,000 satellites are required. 

Network Operations Center (NOC): NOC is a ground station on Earth that beam data to satellites according to the user's request. it also holds the information of the user.

when we click any link, the data request is uploaded to the dish. this request is received by the Network Operations Center through Satellite which gathers the information you requested and sends it back.

Cable Internet Vs Satellite Internet:

• Cable internet has limitations in rural or mountainous areas but satellite internet is independent of geo conditions of the earth so it can access anywhere in the earth.  
• speed of satellite internet is 100 Mbps which is lower than optical fiber, but in the absence of a cable network, it is quite manageable.
• Satellite internet has higher latency than cable internet due to the distance the signal has to travel. so isn’t good for for real-time application like gaming.
•  Satellite internet is more expensive than cable internet.
• Satellite internet is less reliable than cable internet. because cable internet has less interference or disruptions.

Conclusion: cable internet is better than satellite internet in cost, speed, and reliability while satellite internet is effective in rural or mountainous areas where cable internet is not available.