Rock and Roll Satellites Beam Satellite Radio Coverage to Earth

If you are new to the satellite radio wave, you may be wondering exactly how satellite radio works and more importantly how it is possible to provide you with such crystal clear coverage continent-wide.

Satellite radio is able to provide coverage through two satellites which orbit the atmosphere. The satellites are Boeing HS 702 satellites which bear the ironic names of Rock and Roll. One satellite is located 85 degrees west longitude while the other satellite is located 115 degrees west longitude. The satellites orbit approximately 22,000 miles high above the Earth.

Rock was the first satellite to be placed into orbit on March 18, 2001. The second satellite, Roll, went up into the atmosphere on May 8th of the same year. In the event one of those two satellites should experience problems, a third satellite is ready and waiting to be launched.

A satellite radio station back down on Earth transmits a signal to the two satellites, which then bounces the signal back down to the ground again. Radio receivers owned by consumers who subscribe to satellite radio have the capability of receiving and then unscrambling the digital signal. That particular digital data signal can contain up to one hundred channels of audio content.

Along with the encoded sound, the signal can also contain further broadcast information as well. This includes the song title, artist and music category. This information can be displayed on the LCD of radio receivers, providing consumers with information about the audio content they are hearing through their satellite radio.

Since buildings could potentially block out the signal from the satellite in urban areas, broadcasting equipment is further supplemented by transmitters on the ground.

A unique chipset is contained within each receiver. The first chipsets were delivered to manufacturers in the fall of 2000 in anticipation of the production of satellite radio receivers and the arrival of satellite radio programming. Two integrated circuits are contained within each chipset. In addition, each satellite radio contains a small antenna which is capable of receiving the digital signal broadcast from the satellite.

From the very beginning car manufacturers recognized the value that satellite radios would present to consumers and began investing in digital satellite radio. GM quickly invested several million dollars, with Honda quickly following suit. In late 2000, General Motors began installing the first satellite radio receivers in their vehicles.

Since that time, the satellite radio industry has advanced rapidly and consumers can now choose to have not only satellite radio receivers in their vehicles but also in their homes as well. Small hand held satellite radio receivers also make it possible for consumers to take their music and programming with them wherever they go.

Subscription prices for satellite radio service fit just about any budget, providing subscribers with the ability to listen to a digital sound that is crystal clear. Subscribers also gain the advantage of having access to more than 100 channels of talk, news and music. A large majority of the satellite radio stations are commercial-free. Even the channels which are not commercial-free have far less advertisements than standard radio.

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What is Satellite Radio?

Satellite Radio – Its here! Satellite radio is a new service being offered by two companies, XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Both companies are offering over 100 channels of streaming music and entertainment. High quality sound is achieved through the use of satellites orbiting high above. Satellite radio has been commercial free and free from regulations by federal committees. The impossible, is now possible, hearing the same radio station across north America and from coast to coast. All made possible by XM satellite radio and Sirius satellite radio. Find more at: http://www.TopSatelliteRadio.com

XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio have designed satellite broadcast systems that differ but they achieve the same high quality of satellite radio. A milestone of this success is the fact that satellite radio signals that are available across the United States and into Mexico and Canada. Rock and Roll – No its not a genre any more! XM Satellite Radio has two satellites named Rock and Roll which remain in parallel geostationary orbit to provide radio coverage throughout the United States. Sirius Satellite Radio has chose to use three satellites in an inclined elliptical orbit. This configuration provides 16 hours per satellite of signal, which gives a great redundancy if any satellite were to fail. Playing it smart, Sirius and XM both have spare satellites, which can be called on in a moments notice if needed.

XM satellite radio and sirius satellite radio have Earth based broadcast stations that are used to send up information to the satellites, which is then dispersed through out the globe. Sirius and XM both have disk jockeys that manage, create and program music which is then sent up to the satellites. The information is then taken in by the satellites and sent through a rebroadcast of the streams to earth. The Major advantage of this is that, unlike earth-based radio stations whose signals reach listeners 150 miles away, satellite radio signals have a huge reach, and are receivable anywhere within the continental United States and hundreds of miles in each direction of the borders. Satellite Radio is growing to become a world wide network and offerings are growing throughout the world. XM satellite radio and Sirius satellite radio are making it happen!

So How Does Satellite Radio Work: First, a receiver decodes and plays the received signals through an antenna. In the beginning, some cars have used a tuner that accepts the antenna signals and then passes them to a satellite radio-ready radio for playing. Ad the concept has grown out of the car and into the home, home kits for satellite radio use direct RCA inputs for home theater and traditional stereo systems. A Growing number of choices is occurring and each company is developing a broad scope of products for consumers. Already we are seeing receivers for car-only, boom boxes, computer-only, and portables for use in car and home configurations. The companies making these products are, Audiovox, Delphi Skyfi, Terk, and plenty others are jumping on board. Both XM satellite radio and Sirius satellite radio have licensed receivers and other products for consumers use.

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