A new generation of 90 Mb/s systems: bandwidth efficient, field tested 16-QAM

16-QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) digital satellite broadcast equipment and satellite communications (SATCOM) systems that double the spectral efficiency of currently operational satellite links is described. It is shown that with this field-proven system, data transmission at a rate of 90 Mb/s (two multiplexed DS-3 signals) is feasible in a transmission bandwidth of 30 MHz. Extensive operational satellite tests performed over the T-303 satellite of AT&T demonstrated a BER <10^-10 and no errors for several days. The practical bandwidth efficiency of these SATCOM systems is 3 b/s/Hz, i.e. double the currently used 1.5 b/s/Hz QPSK (quadrature phase-shift keyed) systems. The doubling of the spectral efficiency is attained with advance modem (modulation-demodulation), adaptive equalization robust synchronization, high-power amplifier (HPA) linearization (predistortion), and low redundancy powerful forward-error-correction (FEC) subsystems. The systems may make possible the conversion of currently operational analog FM links into bandwidth efficient digital systems. In one 30 MHz satellite transponder three to four digitized high quality TV signals could be broadcast, or two standard rate DS-3 signals time-division multiplexed with a DS-1 rate signal and additional auxiliary data streams