Glossary
Satellite & space industry glossary
Short, plain-language definitions of the terms you meet when buying satellite connectivity.
Ka-band
Satellite frequency band occupying 26.5–40 GHz, with uplinks typically at 27.5–31 GHz and downlinks at 17.3–20.2 GHz, offering approximately 13.5 GHz of available bandwidth — twice as wide as Ku-band — at the cost of greater susceptibility to rain fade.
Kessler Syndrome
A theoretical cascade scenario, described by NASA scientist Donald Kessler in 1978, where the density of objects in LEO becomes high enough that collisions generate debris faster than it naturally decays, creating a self-sustaining chain reaction that could render certain orbital shells unusable.
Ku-band
Satellite frequency band at 12–18 GHz (uplink 14–14.5 GHz, downlink 11.7–12.75 GHz) used extensively for direct-to-home (DTH) broadcasting, maritime VSAT, aeronautical connectivity, and government communications, offering good rain resilience compared to Ka-band.