International experts discuss interference-free satellite services at ITU Satellite Symposium

The ITU Satellite Symposium 2018 was held at ITU in Geneva from 28-30 November 2018.

Participants from Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia, including satellite operators and regulators, broadcasters, scientists and experts from the satellite industry attended the symposium to interact, share experience and provide an overview of ongoing progress on regulations and the latest innovative technologies developed by the industry to detect, identify, locate and mitigate harmful interference, which may severely impact satellite services, including safety operations.

ITU Satellite Symposium 2018 is the continuation of this series, previously held in Geneva and the Americas and Asian regions, which is dedicated to Satellite Communications technologies, markets and trends — from fundamentals of satellite communications to emerging technologies and policies.

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The symposium included a hands-on outdoor workshop where participants from all continents had the opportunity to gain experience on the use of equipment and to perform measurements.

It also included setting up three real Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSATs) in the Ka band to operate with the Eutelsat Ka-Sat satellite, located at 9 degrees East, following the steps required to prevent any interference to adjacent satellites, as mentioned in ITU Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) Recommendations for occasional use of fixed satellite services (FSS) and broadcasting satellite services (BSS).

Verifications using spectrum analyzer were also performed (from a practical and concrete standpoint, consistent with the ITU-R Sector main Strategic Goal of preventing and reducing interference to space services).

The third-day special session dedicated to innovation in small satellite systems (small sats) focused on discussions from well-recognized speakers from the industry, space agencies and ITU. It addressed the coexistence of small satellites with other systems in line with current technology and regulations. Emerging technologies and innovative applications were also presented, together with new solutions on space monitoring.

Participants also focused on new challenges in space monitoring and issues related to spectrum management for a new generation of satellites, including small sats and CubeSats.

For more information see the website here.

View the photo album on Flickr here.