Definition
Medium-Earth Satellite
A satellite in the medium-earth orbit, meaning at an altitude of around - .
Sometimes they are called Intermediate Circular Satellite (ICO).
Properties
- The velocity of the satellite is slower.
- Only few of these satellites are required.
- Doppler effect is not that impactful.
- Connections are mostly possible without handover.
- MEO satellites have longer latencies, circa 70 - 80 ms.
- MEOs require a higher sender performance.
- More focussed (= larger) antennas are required for small coverage areas.