A belt of satellites in low equatorial orbits simulating the geostationary orbit

摘要

We propose to simulate the geostationary orbit (GEO) with a "belt" of satellites, angularly and regularly spaced, orbiting in the same lower equatorial orbit, in such a number that a ground station does not need to change antenna pointing, acting therefore as if it were connected to a geostationary satellite. The equivalent GEO is accomplished by using a "distributed" geostationary satellite (D-GEO). The belt can be used, cooperatively, by any ground station located in a large equatorial area around the globe, thus minimizing system costs. The complexity of a D-GEO system may be worth its costs because it multiplies what is naturally a unique physical resource, such as the geostationary orbit. We set the main parameters for comparing D-GEO and GEO satellite systems, serving approximately the same global area centered at the equator, and apply them to few examples.