Dish pointing Hylas 2: Zimbabwe & SE Zambia.

Instructions for pointing Ka band antennas at Avanti-Hylas 2 satellite at 31 deg east orbit position.

In the Africa map, around Zimbabwe, put your mouse cursor to your location and then double click or simply drag the map. The map image will move so that the chosen point is in the centre. The latitude and longitude of the dot at the centre of the map is then displayed below the map, together with your satellite dish pointing angles: azimuth, elevation and polarisation or skew angle. To improve accuracy, click on the plus sign at the top left side of the map. The scale changes so that you can home in accurately on your location. Repeat several times. Select Map or Satellite view options and see the satellite photo image of the ground or even a view of your own house as seen from space !

Lusaka, Zambia and Harare and Bulawayo in Zimbabwe are shown. The green contour line of this steerable Ka band spot beam shows the normal approximate limit of operation with a standard size dish. Larger dishes are recommended outside this contour.

Dish pointing

1. In the case of Hylas, the polarisation is circular, so rotational adjustment amount of the feed system is not required. This represents a major simplification for installation.

2. Set the beam elevation angle (up/down) using the up/down scale on the bracket behind the dish. You may find that it helps to initially set the elevation a couple of degrees higher than calculated to allow for sagging of the dish until everything is tight.

3. For the azimuth angle (sideways) use a magnetic compass or the blue line relative to your house wall, roof edge or garden wall or some local landmark to find the approximate bearing and then swing the dish boldly sideways to find the satellite on the first swing. Then spend half an hour peaking up. Peaking up to the exact centre is really important since your 29.5-30 GHz transmit beam is narrower than your 17.7-19.7 GHz receive beam.

Peaking up is really important for long term service quality and minimum outage time during rain fades.

Safety Warning: The results of this page may be in error, The beam centres and beam shapes and sizes are approximate. The latitude and longitude are not intended for the blind navigation of aircraft, ship or other vehicle purposes. Dish pointing angles may be wrong. Magnetic azimuth bearings are approximate. Use is entirely at your own risk. Apply common sense and don't believe every number that comes out of a computer system. Take care with Hylas Freedomsat satellite dish install and pointing not to injure others by dropping tools or hurting yourself by falling down.

Google maps: Please note that from June 2018 there is a now map charge for me whenever you use this page. I have therefore applied quota limits, per 100 seconds and per day, to try and keep usage down. If it says unavailable or is temporarily overloaded please try later.

Feedback please to me eric@satsig.net about any technical errors or problems with this page. Many thanks

Page started 23 Nov 2012. Update 7 April 2021. Amended 2 March 2022.