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Satellite radio is broadcast over clear, static-free digital signals from orbiting satellites. The signal can reach your car, home stereo system, or portable boombox and gives you a CD-quality sound. It’s available coast-to-coast in the United States and parts of Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean, and it’s free from commercials—the main source of revenue for local radio stations. You can also listen to a huge selection of channels offering music from every genre, as well as sports, news, traffic, and weather information.
Satellite broadcasts are received by specialized receivers on the ground (usually located in cars or home component systems). The receiver demodulates the signal, corrects errors, and downlinks it to your antenna for transmission to the satellite. The satellite retransmits the digital audio signal to terrestrial repeaters on Earth, which boost the signal to overcome obstacles such as hills or tall buildings.
Unlike internet streaming services, satellite radio providers maintain an extensive network of satellites. The two biggest satellite radio providers are XM and Sirius, which merged in 2007 to form the SiriusXM Radio network. Both XM and Sirius offer a wide variety of music, news, talk, and entertainment channels to fit nearly every taste.
Many of the popular music channels on XM and Sirius feature themes or playlists that focus on specific musical styles or eras. For example, XM21—Little Steven’s Underground Garage—broadcasts songs by the Ramones and bands they influenced, as well as new releases in the punk rock genre.
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