# Communications Satellites, Part 5: Direct to Home Satellite Broadcasting

**URL:** https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/t/communications-satellites-part-5-direct-to-home-satellite-broadcasting/3976
**Category:** Continuity
**Tags:** communication-satellites, direct-broadcast-satellite
**Created:** [10 November 2023 16:53 UTC](https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/t/communications-satellites-part-5-direct-to-home-satellite-broadcasting/3976 "2023-11-10T16:53:28Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![johnwalker](https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/user_avatar/scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/johnwalker/32/17415_2.png) [@johnwalker](https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/u/johnwalker)
#### Post date: [10 November 2023 16:53 UTC](https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/t/communications-satellites-part-5-direct-to-home-satellite-broadcasting/3976/1 "2023-11-10T16:53:28Z")

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[![](https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/uploads/default/original/3X/9/c/9cd4bf9788dfdb6b9afb6336146c732f06471bfd.jpeg "How Satellite TV Went From NASA Experiments Into Millions Of Homes - Comsats Episode 5") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_d2mD_nuCZ8)

Practical satellite broadcasting to individual customers required placing very large and heavy satellites in geostationary orbit, three-axis stabilised, equipped with solar panels able to generate the required power, and a large antenna to direct signals to customers with fixed dish antennas practical to install on a roof. While the first geostationary satellites (see [Part 3](https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/t/communications-satellites-part-3-the-first-geosynchronous-satellites/3904)) had an orbital mass of less than 50 kilograms, some present-day satellites such as the [Hughes Jupiter 3](https://scanalyst.fourmilab.ch/t/spacex-falcon-heavy-hughes-jupiter-3-echostar-24-launch/3511) mass more than 9 tonnes and are as large as a bus.