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Satellites Are Part of the Solution
When disaster strikes, access to reliable communications is crucial to the efforts of disaster relief operations where quick response translates into lives saved.
For those times when the terrestrial communications infrastructure is damaged, destroyed or overloaded, satellite communications can provide a communications lifeline for people on the front lines of public safety and emergency preparedness.
Now there is a new tool to help this crucial first responder community integrate satellite into their communications plans. The First Responder's Guide to Satellite Communications is an overview and tutorial of satellite technology and its role in response to natural or man-made disasters.
Produced by the Satellite Industry Association (SIA) and Access Intelligence, the Guide is available for free as a public service of the industry.
Contents of the Guide include:
An overview of satellite communications capabilities
Video, voice and data applications
Equipment requirements and easy-to-follow steps for connecting with satellite through various types of terminals
Glossary of terms, definitions and frequencies
This Guide is a must-read for first responders, state or federal emergency communications officials and policy makers.
SATELLITE 2008 Conference Gives Insight into the Satellite Community
SATELLITE 2008 is running from February 25-28, 2008, in Washington DC. Now in its 27th year, the conference offers attendees education and content designed for the power players of the satellite community, access to the insights of the top executives in the key satellite communications markets (including military, broadcast, enterprise and emergency response) and an international perspective focusing on trends in Africa, Europe, Asia and Latin America.
The conference will feature:
Keynote presentations with a penetrating look at the latest global innovations
Emergency Response sessions focused on mobility and interoperability - the basis of satellite-enabled communications and a necessity when responding to catastrophic events
An expanded SATELLITE Exhibition Floor with more than 250 industry leading manufacturers, integrators and suppliers.
Networking with the power players in the global satellite-enabled communications marketplace.
You can also take home the latest case studies, practical advice, innovative insights, market research and new contacts to grow your business. Plus, every conference attendee receives digital conference proceedings.
(http://www.satellite2008.com/)
Emergency Communications Must Go Beyond Traditional Terrestrial Mentality
A whitepaper on emergency communications, prepared by the Space & Advanced Communications Research Institute (SACRI), George Washington University, is now available online.
According to the authors, the nation and the world have recently been beset by national disasters of a magnitude not seen in many decades, leading to a loss of hundreds of thousands of lives, destruction of literally millions of homes and buildings and the complete ruin of critical infrastructure. These tragic events increase recognition that impaired or lost communications, coupled with a lack of real time access to critical information, can dramatically reduce our ability to recover from such disasters.
It has been observed many times over the years that a small expenditure on emergency preparations, and especially in the area of information technology, communications and power systems - when made in advance - could do a great deal of good. Such investment could save lives, avoid panic, and help prevent massive lost of property and infrastructure at a later date. In planning for the future the paper says must strive to go beyond the needs of past disasters and the capabilities of a "terrestrial radio push-to-talk mentality." This means employing the best available technology and train response teams to use these new systems on an ongoing 24/7 basis. In short, equipment, tactics, techniques, and procedures for communications must be tested, maintained and operated, not just during crisis, but rather on a continual basis. Further these emergency communications networks need to be not only protected and secured against attack, but also "regularly stressed" by power failures, call surges and other simulated crises conditions.
http://satjournal.tcom.ohiou.edu/issue10/PDF/Final_Version_White_Paper.pdf
Business Continuity Planning for Radio and Television Stations
Broadcasters in the television and radio industries have been forced to survive many emergencies, including Y2K, 9/11 and several weather-related emergencies. By making an ongoing commitment to disaster preparedness planning activities and drills, it is possible to keep stations up and running even in the event of such an emergency.
One good example of business continuity in action for the broadcast industry is the Public Radio Satellite System (PRSS). According to the PRSS, the general view of the industry is that the future likely holds many more challenges for all.
The PRSS says it has made a number of efforts to provide for the continuity of operations. Some of that organization's achievements include:
Antenna at NPR headquarters
Conducted Network Operations Center (NOC) evacuation drills and operated the NOC using offsite emergency operations procedures
Installed a new fully steerable uplink antenna at the NOC to provide seamless coverage on alternative satellites should a spacecraft failure occur
Concluded work on the Earth Terminal Refurbishment Project (ETRP) to bring the ability to access other satellites to all PRSS Interconnected Stations
Tested the 1st level audio restoral procedures
Added enhancements to the backup uplinking facility at WCVE-FM in Richmond, Virginia, to allow for the prss.org website to be backed up by this facility in addition to the program distribution functions that were already part of the facility
Updated emergency contacts for stations and distributors
Released an online BCP planning module for stations to use in their own BCP planning activities
Participated in ongoing coordination of Distribution's BCP plans with the rest of the PRSS and NPR
Started a project to review and update the Backup Operating Procedures.
Tested the Richmond backup site, both for equipment readiness and to "proof" our procedures
Going forward, PRSS says it will review and refine its procedures to make certain it is best able to handle a variety of potential problems.
But the organization warns that even the best plans will not succeed without a solid communications strategy. In this case, NPR Distribution continues to test and evaluate our emergency communications procedures. The PRSS's current plan uses a combination of system messaging, fax, PRSS.org and industry email lists to provide the widest possible coverage of information should a disaster occur.
(http://www.prss.org/news/bcp_for_prss.cfm)
BC, DR and Military Applications Lead Satellite Applications in 2007
The satellite market will see stable growth in 2007, particularly in emerging economies and for business continuity, disaster recovery and military applications, according to UDcast, a worldwide provider of solutions enabling full IP over broadcast media.
"The satellite IP communications market is relatively mature, presenting a stable growth of about 10 to 20 percent per year," says Filip Gluszak, vice president of marketing, UDcast.
Among the predictions for satellite in 2007 are:
Market Growth: Emerging economies will remain the fastest growing markets for satellite data in 2007, including Latin America, Africa and the Middle East and certain regions of Asia. The mature markets will continue to represent significant opportunities for satellite deployments, as there will still be a number of white spots with insufficient access to terrestrial data services.
Applications: The fastest growing IP applications are business continuity (enabling back-up links for corporate WANs), disaster recovery solutions (FEMA disaster communications projects in the US) and military applications, where the demand is driven by unstable political situations and terrorist threats in many countries.
Technology: The DVB-S2 standard will continue to be adopted by more service providers and equipment vendors, enabling higher data rates and lower cost per kilobyte, while standardization and interoperability should drive the cost of satellite terminals down. In the enterprise market, UDcast says it foresees a growing penetration of the advanced Satellite IP acceleration and VPN solutions that are becoming a must-have requirement of highly demanding corporate and governmental satellite users.
Society Aims to Promote Satellite Professionals
The Society of Satellite Professionals International is a nonprofit member-benefit society that serves satellite professionals throughout their careers. Specifically, this means:
Promoting the development of - and access to - high-quality, satellite-related education on the post-secondary and continuing (adult) levels through scholarships, development of curricula, hosting conferences and publishing the world's first online journal on space communications
Helping satellite professionals advance their careers by creating opportunities for them to do business with each other and learn from each other through Chapter programs, social networking, our membership database and publications
Working to increase the professionalism and professional standing of members in every sector of the global satellite industry through partnerships with leading educational institutions and the private sector
Honoring extraordinary achievement by satellite professionals and the companies they work for through the Satellite Hall of Fame and Industry Innovators awards programs
(http://www.sspi.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=2)
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