HOLZKIRCHEN, GERMANY—Satellite communications equipment manufacturer Work Microwave today announced it has collaborated with the Technical University of Munich’s (TUM’s) Institute of Astronautics on field testing of DVB-S2X and Adaptive Coding and Modulation (ACM) technologies.

The aim of the test was to demonstrate that DVB-S2X modems using ACM technology can increase data throughput and improve the availability of service regardless of weather conditions.

"High-capacity technology operating in the Ka-band offers major advantages over conventional satellite networks operating in Ku-band and lower frequencies, such as increased bandwidth and higher gain. Yet, diverse weather conditions have a greater impact in the Ka-band than at lower frequencies," said Dr. Jürgen Letschnik, a lecturer at TUM.

However, proper planning and implementation of well-designed ground equipment make it possible to mitigate the effects of adverse weather, said Letschnik. “During this test, we were able to prove that WORK Microwave's DVB-S2X modem is an effective solution."

For the field test, Work Microwave AX-60 DVB-S2X and SK-IP DVB-S2 modems were used to provide a direct comparison of how the latest generation of technology fared against the legacy system, the company said. The test revealed that for the given link budget, ModCods of up to 256APSK could be used.

The tests were conducted under normal weather conditions as well rain. Testing revealed that DVB-S2X performed better than legacy technology in clear-sky and rainy conditions.

TUM found the overall data rate, even with rain fade, is higher with DVB-S2X than DVB-S2 equipment due to DVB-S2X’ support for higher modulation schemes of up to 256APSK. The Work Microwave AX-60 DVB-S2X modem provides for higher modulation schemes and leverages ACM technology to optimize data throughput to existing link conditions.

More information is available on the Work Microwave website.

RIO DE JANEIRO — Live 8K video transmission has come to the 2018 World Cup as part of a museum exhibition with the assistance of satellite communications specialist Intelsat and Brazilian broadcaster Globo.

Museu de Amanhã, a Rio di Janeiro museum of science innovation, is showing off 8K coverage of matches from Russia through July 15. The 8K signal is being transmitted as a 200 Mbps video stream from the Broadcast Center in Moscow and transported to Tokyo. From there it will be carried to Intelsat via the Intelsat point of presence in New York.

The signal will be transmitted via the IntelsatOne terrestrial network to the company’s teleport in Atlanta, where it will be re-encoded at 90 Mbps using an NTT 8K HEVC real-time encoder.

Once compressed the signal will be modulated by a Newtec MDM-6100 modem in DVB-S2 and uplinked to Intelsat 14, part of Intelsat’s HD and 4K content distribution neighborhood for Latin America.

“While 8K technology is still evolving and further advancements in compression technology standards are needed, Intelsat’s premier video neighborhoods have proven that they are equipped to distribute 8K content to millions of viewers around the world,” said Rob Cerbone, Intelsat VP and GM, Media.

Intelsat 14 is the latest of the company’s satellites delivering video to Latin America. Others include Intelsat 11, Intelsat 21 and Intelsat 34. 

More information is available on the Intelsat website.

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