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Seasonal Sun Transit May Disrupt Satellite Telecommunications Services
Northern telecommunications users served by satellite may be experiencing brief service disruptions this month, which are caused by sun transit.
Sun transit is a natural phenomenon that occurs twice a year, when the sun crosses the earth’s equatorial plane during the spring and fall equinoxes. This year’s fall equinox disruptions are expected to occur in the North between October 9th and 19th.
During that period, remote communities which receive their telecommunications services by satellite may experience short periods of signal interference due to sun transit.
“The disruptions will be very brief, only from two to fourteen minutes long,” said Anne Kennedy, Northwestel Director Communications. “They will occur in the middle part of the day, between approximately 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., depending on the latitude and time zone of the community. There will be only one disruption per day, and because the disruptions are so short, many people don’t even notice them.”
The exact time of the sun transit disruption depends on the location of the satellite being affected and the earth station receiving the signals.
If people do have trouble when trying to place long distance calls, or with data or Internet transmissions, it is recommended that they try again after a few minutes, when the disruption is likely to be over. Local telephone service is not affected.
During sun transit periods, the sun aligns directly behind satellites for a few minutes each day. When a satellite is directly between the sun and a receiving satellite dish on earth, the enormous natural radio frequency noise from the sun can overpower the desired signal from the satellite. This results in a brief service disruption. The disruption may take the form of noise, fading, or interruptions to any long distance, data and television and radio services whose signals are carried via satellite.
For more information on the effect of sun transit on satellite transmissions, check Telesat’s website at http://www.telesat.ca/satellites/sun-transit-preditcs.htm.
Northwestel provides complete telecommunications solutions and entertainment services in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Yukon, northern British Columbia and High Level, Alberta. The company’s operations span nearly 4 million square kilometres of the most remote and rugged areas of Canada.
