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Product Description
9.1-Meter Remote Sensing
Ground Station
ViaSat
Satellite Ground Systems
8 October 2001
9.1-Meter Remote Sensing Ground Station
Product Description 2
www.viasat.com 4356 Communications Drive, Norcross, GA 30093 USA Tel: +1 678.924.2631 Fax: +1 770.935.3285
History and Experience
Since the inception of the Landsat program in the early 1970s,
ViaSat has been the leader in providing Remote Sensing
Ground Station antenna systems. This success began in 1973
with the first ground station used specifically for Landsat 1,2
and 3, which was supplied to Brazil.
In 1978, NASA awarded ViaSat the first contract to supply
an S- and X-Band Landsat 4 and 5-ground station. At that
time ViaSat developed the high data rate (15/85 Mbps)
demodulators and bit synchronizers used for satellite testing
and data reception.
In 1984, on-going development resulted in the worlds first
Multi-Function Digital Receive System (MFDRS), which was
installed as part of a 10 meter S- and X-Band system atop
an 8-story building in Fairbanks, Alaska. This system
enabled reception of data from multiple satellites with the
maximum use of common hardware and has since been
used in all ViaSat ground stations.
By 1989, ViaSats expertise in servo mechanism and control
systems design heralded the first system in the world to
acquire and track Remote Sensing Satellite signals at X-
Band, in the 10 meter CLIRSEN system in Ecuador.
Further developments in high data rate modem design
resulted in ViaSat being selected, in 1993, by E-Systems &
Space Imaging for the provision of their IKONOS ground
stations. All have the capability to receive data up to 320
Mbps.
Also in 1993, ViaSat delivered the first ever Landsat 7
AQPSK demodulator and bit synchronizer to the EROS Data
Center.
As a result of ViaSats success in the delivery of all of
Motorolas 57 IRIDIUM