International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 28-31, 1996 / Town and Country Hotel and Convention Center, San Diego, California / Orbiting satellites can be tracked by following preprogrammed ephemeris data in the ground station controller. This tracking method is advantageous, because of the reduced acquisition cost of non-autotracking receiver and antenna feed components. Further, widely separated frequency bands can readily be tracked, without the complexity of a frequency specific auto-track system. Two types of mobile tracking systems are described. They are composed of elevation-over-azimuth-over-tilt and of an X-Y axis pedestal configuration. The calibration methods for establishing time and geographical references are discussed, as well as the challenges of minimizing the effects of system and environment induced error contributors.