--- title: Geostationary Satellite: Internet From 22,000 Miles Up url: https://hdiss.net/glossary/geostationary-satellite/ business: High Desert Internet Services (HDISS) phone: 775-575-9593, 775-391-5660 email: info@hdiss.net mailing_address: Home base: 200 S Virginia St, Suite 760, Reno NV 89501 (dispatch office, not a walk-in store). Mail: Billing Dept., PO Box 11353, Reno NV 89510 hours: Office open 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, seven days a week. Network watched around the clock. type: Fixed wireless internet service provider (homes and small businesses), web hosting, customer email, domain registration service_area: Northern Nevada - Washoe, Lyon, Storey, Churchill and Douglas counties and Carson City; availability is checked address by address (line of sight to a tower) plans: Bronze $50/mo up to 500 Mbps down, up to 200 Mbps up; Silver $75/mo up to 800 down, up to 200 up; Gold $99/mo up to 1 Gig down, up to 200 up; ask about the up to 1 Gig / 1 Gig ultra-low-latency service no_online_purchase: true (check your address or call; existing customers pay at https://www2.fernley.net/hdiss/onlinepay/paymentform.cfm) since: 2002 --- - [Home](https://hdiss.net/) - [Glossary](https://hdiss.net/glossary/) - Geostationary satellite # Geostationary satellite A geostationary satellite hangs about 22,000 miles up and appears fixed in the sky, so a home dish can stay pointed at it. The long trip adds delay that tower-based service does not have. A rooftop satellite dish. Stock photo: Adobe Stock, not High Desert equipment. [Photo credits](https://hdiss.net/photo-credits/) ## What is a geostationary satellite? NASA's Earth Observatory catalog of satellite orbits puts geostationary orbit about 36,000 kilometers above Earth's surface, roughly 22,000 miles, directly above the equator. At that height one orbit takes a day, matching the Earth's turn. HughesNet and Viasat are the well-known home internet providers that use satellites of this kind. Because one satellite sees a wide region, this service can reach places no tower or cable does. The same distance sets the delay. The FCC's Measuring Broadband America report (Eighth Report, 2018) found that packets travel approximately 44,500 miles from an earth station to the satellite and back, and measured median latencies of 594 ms to 612 ms for satellite services, much higher than the figures for terrestrial service. See [latency](https://hdiss.net/glossary/latency/). ## How does it compare with a tower in Northern Nevada? A tower link crosses miles, not tens of thousands of miles. The FCC noted that the higher latencies of geostationary service may impair the perceived quality of highly interactive applications such as calls and games. Satellite service does not need a clear path to a tower, only to the sky, which helps where hills or trees block a ground link. HughesNet's own FAQ says satellite plans are not recommended for time-sensitive applications because of a small degree of latency (read 10/15/26). Low-earth-orbit service works differently; see [low-earth-orbit satellite](https://hdiss.net/glossary/low-earth-orbit-satellite/). High Desert publishes no latency figure of its own, so this page does not place a number on it. ## What should I do about it? List what you do online. Streaming and browsing work with delay, while video calls, remote work and games notice it. Compare prices, data policies and contract terms on each provider's own site, as the comparison pages show: [HughesNet](https://hdiss.net/compare/hughesnet/) and [Viasat](https://hdiss.net/compare/viasat/). The wider comparison is at [fixed wireless vs satellite](https://hdiss.net/compare/fixed-wireless-vs-satellite/). If you now use a dish and want to know if a tower path reaches you, [Check your address](https://hdiss.net/check-availability/) or call 775-575-9593. The guide [switching from satellite](https://hdiss.net/guides/switching-from-satellite-step-by-step/) covers the steps. ### Sources - [science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/catalog-of-earth-satellite-orbits](https://science.nasa.gov/earth/earth-observatory/catalog-of-earth-satellite-orbits) (NASA Earth Observatory, read 10/15/26) - [fcc.gov/reports-research/reports/measuring-broadband-america/measuring-fixed-broadband-eig](https://www.fcc.gov/reports-research/reports/measuring-broadband-america/measuring-fixed-broadband-eighth-report) (FCC, Eighth MBA Report, read 10/15/26) - [hughesnet.com/faq](https://www.hughesnet.com/faq) (HughesNet FAQ, read 10/15/26) ### Talk to a person - Call [775-575-9593](tel:7755759593) [775-391-5660](tel:7753915660) Open 9-5 every day - Email [info@hdiss.net](mailto:info@hdiss.net) [Check my address](https://hdiss.net/check-availability/#check) ### Related terms - [Geostationary vs low-earth-orbit satellite vs a tower hop](https://hdiss.net/compare/geo-vs-leo-vs-tower-latency/) - [Fixed wireless vs satellite internet](https://hdiss.net/compare/fixed-wireless-vs-satellite/) - [Low-earth-orbit satellite](https://hdiss.net/glossary/low-earth-orbit-satellite/) - [Latency](https://hdiss.net/glossary/latency/) - [Is fixed wireless the same as satellite?](https://hdiss.net/guides/is-fixed-wireless-the-same-as-satellite/) Local since 2002 Fixed wireless from towers in Northern Nevada. Three plans, no contracts, local support, 4.8 on Google from 36 reviews. [About High Desert](https://hdiss.net/about/)