ET Explainer| LEO, MEO & GEO: The dawn of a new broadband era?

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

OneWeb recently said it can launch fast broadband services in India using its low earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation as early as end-November. Reliance Jio too said it can roll out JioSpaceFiber services using its Luxembourg-based JV partner, SES’s medium earth orbit (MEO) satellite constellation within weeks of being allotted the spectrum.
US-based Hughes already offers satcom services in India using geostationary earth orbit (GEO) satellite systems while Elon Musk’s Starlink is revving up to launch internet-from space services using its LEO satellites once it has necessary approvals from the Indian government. But what are LEO, MEO and GEO satellite constellations? And what is their role in providing broadband connectivity in remote and inhospitable regions?
Here’s an ET explainer.

Simply put, these are global satellite systems that operate at very different altitudes above the earth’s surface and can be used to provide high-speed broadband in remote and inaccessible regions where it’s a challenge to roll out terrestrial networks (read: landline and mobile networks).

How far are these satellite constellations from earth?

As per International Telecom Union (ITU) and Trai data, LEO satellites operate in space, less than 2,000 km above the earth, MEOs operate between 2,000 and 20,000 km above while GEO satellites operate from far greater distances, almost 36,000 km above the earth.

How do the different orbital positions of these satellite systems define their operational scope?

A long-distance GEO satellite can cover a larger area, almost an entire country like India, with a single, wide beam. By contrast, LEO and MEO satellites operate through narrow beams, with roughly 250 km spans, as they orbit much closer