Choice Review

A book with a practical orientation that covers the fundamentals of satellite communications. Topics ranging from orbital mechanics to error- correcting digital data transmission codes are discussed by the coauthors, both college professors. The book can serve as a concise satellite communications handbook, as well as an introduction to many communications subjects such as modulation and mutliplexing techniques, multiple access methods, encoding and decoding, and data link design. Each chapter has a good list of references and a problem set. There are numerous worked-out examples. All figures, tables, and equations are clear and understandable. Included is a glossary of terms, a list of symbols, and a useful index. A notable feature of the book is the frequent reference to actual satellite systems as part of the explanations. For libraries serving upper-division undergraduate and graduate engineering students.-T.J. Jones, formerly Trinity University