Microwave telecommunications relay tower powered by an array of photovoltaic solar panels in Libya Sahara. These antennas receive, amplify and retransmit phone, telex and data communications via microwave radiation. Relay stations are needed as microwaves travel in straight lines and need a clear line of sight between stations. Microwaves are widely used for point-to-point communications because their small wavelength allows conveniently-sized antennas to direct them in narrow beams, which can be pointed directly at the receiving antenna. This allows nearby microwave equipment to use the same frequencies without interfering with each other. Another advantage is that the high frequency of microwaves gives the microwave band a very large information-carrying capacity; the microwave band has a bandwidth 30 times that of all the rest of the radio spectrum below it. .