Satellite Sun outage question

[Richinald]

Hi,

I would like to seek advice if possible from fellow members that have experienced satellite outage, if this is normal to have a long duration or should be short.
The TV station where I do work had recently a few weeks ago a LNB replaced for a brand new one, on one of the satellites that is receiving a newsfeed from a news network on Intelsat 11 using the encrypted SA receiver (receiver is authorized)
When the new LNB was installed about two weeks ago it works like a champ, Wednesday in the morning the receiver was without no signal, about 4 to 5 hours later the signal returned and the receive levels did return to normal.
This morning the signal level is o.k. but reception quality level is quite intermittent so the signal drops on and off but as the sun gradually rises the signal quality improves and the SA receiver tries to lock up the signal faster and gradually locks up right, but the signal level read out on the received is close to normal,
On Monday another satellite we do have at our facility that is pointed towards Galaxy 19 receiving also another feed it's signal also dropped completely from 7am to about 2pm, afterwards the signal gradually returned to normal, and there was no more dropouts or loosing the broadcast up to now.
Our location is the Caribbean located at the north side of Venezuela, dish size 12 feet (mesh type)
Can sun outage have such a severe effect on satellite reception ?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank You.

 

[FTA4PA]

Hi,

I would like to seek advice if possible from fellow members that have experienced satellite outage, if this is normal to have a long duration or should be short.
The TV station where I do work had recently a few weeks ago a LNB replaced for a brand new one, on one of the satellites that is receiving a newsfeed from a news network on Intelsat 11 using the encrypted SA receiver (receiver is authorized)
When the new LNB was installed about two weeks ago it works like a champ, Wednesday in the morning the receiver was without no signal, about 4 to 5 hours later the signal returned and the receive levels did return to normal.
This morning the signal level is o.k. but reception quality level is quite intermittent so the signal drops on and off but as the sun gradually rises the signal quality improves and the SA receiver tries to lock up the signal faster and gradually locks up right, but the signal level read out on the received is close to normal,
On Monday another satellite we do have at our facility that is pointed towards Galaxy 19 receiving also another feed it's signal also dropped completely from 7am to about 2pm, afterwards the signal gradually returned to normal, and there was no more dropouts or loosing the broadcast up to now.
Our location is the Caribbean located at the north side of Venezuela, dish size 12 feet (mesh type)
Can sun outage have such a severe effect on satellite reception ?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank You.

Solar outages occur twice a year (in the Spring and Fall). It has been my experience that they last for only 10-15 minutes each day during the course of the outage and are most severe during the middle days of the outage. Here is more info on the outages themselves and a link to a solar outage calculator to determine when and how long they will last at your location. Just select a satellite, enter your dish size, type and location and click get location from address. Then scroll down to see the dates and times.

Sun outage - Wikipedia
Sun Outage / Sun Interference Prediction for Geostationary Orbit Satellites - Jens T. Sætre - https://www.satellite-calculations.com

 

[Magic Static]

Sun outages last for about 15 minutes. I would say you have another issue to deal with. Sounds like a bad coax connection somewhere.

 

[harshness]

Solar outages in Aruba would be closer to the vernal and autumnal equinoxes as the island is relatively close to the equator.

One of the calculators shows that the sun is overhead around March 15th so you shouldn't expect to see sun interference until the 13th or 14th.

 

[Richinald]

Solar outages in Aruba would be closer to the vernal and autumnal equinoxes as the island is relatively close to the equator.

One of the calculators shows that the sun is overhead around March 15th so you shouldn't expect to see sun interference until the 13th or 14th.

Sun outages last for about 15 minutes. I would say you have another issue to deal with. Sounds like a bad coax connection somewhere.

Hi,
Thank you for the advice it is very much appreciated , the coax has also been replaced to RG 9 75ohm coax cable, from the LNB to the interconnect cable, and the interconnect cable has also been reviewed.
One odd thing is that the first day the signal was completely wiped out till about 4 hours later it did returned , and the next day the signal is intermittent but as the sun gradually rises during the day it did improved, before that the new LNB was running about two weeks with no interruptions.

 

[Richinald]

Solar outages in Aruba would be closer to the vernal and autumnal equinoxes as the island is relatively close to the equator.

One of the calculators shows that the sun is overhead around March 15th so you shouldn't expect to see sun interference until the 13th or 14th.

Hi,
Thank you for the information I appreciate it, good to know about this detail.

 

[Richinald]

Solar outages occur twice a year (in the Spring and Fall). It has been my experience that they last for only 10-15 minutes each day during the course of the outage and are most severe during the middle days of the outage. Here is more info on the outages themselves and a link to a solar outage calculator to determine when and how long they will last at your location. Just select a satellite, enter your dish size, type and location and click get location from address. Then scroll down to see the dates and times.

Sun outage - Wikipedia
Sun Outage / Sun Interference Prediction for Geostationary Orbit Satellites - Jens T. Sætre - https://www.satellite-calculations.com

Thank you for the information, and the links provided, I appreciate it.

 

[FTA4PA]

Thank you for the information, and the links provided, I appreciate it.

You're welcome!

 

[a33]

One odd thing is that the first day the signal was completely wiped out till about 4 hours later it did returned , and the next day the signal is intermittent but as the sun gradually rises during the day it did improved, before that the new LNB was running about two weeks with no interruptions.

Could it be that the new LNB has a slightly different LOF (local oscilator frequency) than the old one? Then such fluctuations do occur, often temperature-dependant.

In that case you usually need to use a LOF some 3 or 4 Mhz lower or higher in your receiver; or change the reception frequencies themselves.
Or (same effect, more drastically): delete the old channels, and do a new blindscan.

That could be a possibility, worth testing.

greetz,
A33

 

[Titanium]

Most electronic failures occur in the first period of usage.

Is the IRD transponder frequency set to the published frequency or is it set higher or lower than the published frequency? is the IRD LO frequency set to the correct frequency matching the LO frequency that is printed on the LNB? Be sure that the IRD transponder frequency is set to the frequency provided for the target transponder.

If the transponder frequency and/or the LO frequency is set correctly, possibly the new LNB frequency was adjusted incorrectly at the factory or is defective.

The LNB LO frequency may be drifting in the heat and cooling of the day. If you find that the new LNB transponder frequency is incorrect or is drifting during the heat of the day or cooling in the evenings, I would contact the LNB manufacturer and get a replacement. If you adjust the receiver's LO frequency or transponder frequency to an incorrect setting to make it work, this is an indication that the LNB is defective and likely will get worse as it ages.

 

[harshness]

Thank you for the advice it is very much appreciated , the coax has also been replaced to RG 9 75ohm coax cable, from the LNB to the interconnect cable, and the interconnect cable has also been reviewed.

For future reference, RG9 is rated at 51ohms. RG6, RG11, R12 and RG59 are rated at or near 75ohm.