CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
Scientists from different countries conceived various ideas for communications through space
along with the technological breakthroughs in different fields of science. The Russian scientist
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky (1857-1935) was the first person to study space travel as a science and in
1879 formulated his Rocket Equation, which is still used in the design of modern rockets. He
also wrote the first theoretical description of a man- made satellite and noted the existence of a
geosynchronous orbit. But he did not identify any practical applications of geosynchronous orbit.
The noted German Scientist and rocket expert, Hermann Oberth, in 1923 proposed that the crews
of orbiting rockets could communicate with remote regions on earth by signaling with mirrors.
In 1928, Austrian Scientist Hermann Noordung suggested that the geostationary orbit might be
a good location for manned space vehicle. Russian Scientists in 1937 suggested that television
images could be relayed by bouncing them off the space vehicles. During 1942-1943, a series of
articles by George O Smith were published in Astounding Science Fictions concerning an
artificial planet, Venus Equilateral, which functioned as relay station between Venus and Earth
Station when direct communication was blocked by Sun. However, Arthur C. Clarke, an
electronic engineer and the well-known science fiction writer is generally credited with
originating the modern concept of Satellite Communications. In 1945, Clarke, in his article
`Extra Terrestrial Relays: Can Rocket Stations give Worldwide Radio Coverage?’ published
in Wireless World outlined the basic technical considerations involved in the concept of satellite
communications. Clarke proposed orbiting space stations, which could be provided with
receiving and transmitting equipment and could act as a repeater to relay transmission between
any two points of the hemisphere beneath. He calculated that at an orbital radius of 42,000 km.
the space station’s orbit would coincide with the earth’s rotation on its axis and the space station
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