uals one sidereal day, and the inclination angle is near zero. It takes more launch vehicle capability to reach geostationary orbit, and more station keeping fuel than any other telecommunication satellite orbit. The geostationary orbit plane already contains numerous satellites; the ITU regulates the assignment of slot positions. With slot assignments spaced at 2° intervals the physical separation between satellites is a considerable 1,470 km, but the opportunity for frequency interference exists. Comparison with lower earth orbit configuration in regard to RF path losses and propagation delay have been previously discussed. The elevation angle to geostationary satellites reduces to less than 15° at latitudes greater than 67°. In the specific instance of Russia for example, most of the country must operate at low elevation angles; major portions of the region are unacceptably low. The Molniya orbit, which uses a 62.9° inclination angle highly elliptical orbit (apogee of 39,400 km and perigee of 1000 km) addresses this issue. The apogee and perigee values are chosen to yield an orbital period of exactly one-half sidereal day, with apogee at the northern-most segment of the orbit traverse. In this manner four satellites, each used six hours per day, provide continuous presence of a high elevation angle telecommunications satellite in high latitude regions. The Space Environment and Effects The design of any system requires consideration of the environment in which it must operate to ensure performance (availability), reliability, and mission life. The near-Earth space environment is complex and dynamic; its behavior depends upon the characteristics of the earth, activity and events occurring in the Sun, and the nature of the environment in interplanetary and interstellar space. Environmental factors include energetic charged particles, plasmas, neutral atoms and molecules, other orbiting objects, micrometeoroids, and electromagnetic radiation. The relative severity of these environmental factors vary with orbit co