Noting an increased possibility of low earth orbit (LEO) becoming unusable due to increased congestion, Inmarsat in a white paper Wednesday made several regulatory and best-practices recommendations. It said the U.N. should adopt binding rules and a formal mechanism for communication and coordination of collision avoidance maneuvers among major satellite constellation operators, and the agency should create an active debris removal capability under Security Council control, akin to peacekeeper operation models. It said national governments collectively should add a "space track" to G7 meetings as a route for high-level space policy coordination, and create formal threat intelligence sharing mechanisms among governments and commercial satellite operators. It said the ITU's authority should expand beyond spectrum to LEO orbital regulation. It recommended national regulators take such steps as tying LEO licensing to LEO orbital carrying capacity criteria, requiring global navigation satellite systems on LEO satellites, and creating a points-based penalty system as part of the licensing process. It said satellite operators everywhere are dealing with incomplete and inaccurate data due to a lack of international standards in object characterization, cataloguing and broader modeling assumptions. "It is time for a 'coalition of the willing' established at the highest political level among participating countries, and which would commit collectively to shared principles, regulations and coordinating mechanisms for safe space operations and orbital development," it said.
The U.K.'s Ofcom is taking comments through Aug. 31 on a proposed extension of the frequencies available to satellite operators under an earth station network license to include the 14.25-14.5 GHz band, it said Tuesday. That part of the Ku band currently is used for fixed wireless links, radio astronomy and fixed satellite services, though fixed links are ceasing or migrating out of the band, it said. The 14-14.5 GHz band is already authorized this way in the U.S., Europe and across the Asia Pacific region, it said.
Amazon's planned Kuiper constellation would likely have to perform two collision avoidance maneuvers per year per satellite, it told the FCC International Bureau last week. With a seven-year lifespan, the 3,236 satellites making up its constellation will likely be launched twice over the course of 15 years, it said.
The FCC restricted earth stations in motion (ESIM) in the 12 GHz band, but "omission is not akin to prohibition" because there's no explicit rule barring them, Kepler told the FCC International Bureau Monday. It said the agency has been clear that its list of sub-bands available for ESIMs communicating with non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite systems isn't exhaustive. Kepler said opposition to its blanket license application for communications between its NGSO system and earth stations on vessels is anti-competitive.
Globalstar launched its FM1-15 spare satellite from Florida's Kennedy Space Center via a SpaceX rocket, it said Monday. FM-15 is the 25th and last satellite of Globalstar's second-generation constellation, it said. The satellite will remain an in-orbit spare for now, to be raised to an operational orbit if needed, it said. Globalstar earlier this year announced purchase of additional satellites to replenish its constellation, with delivery in 2025 (see 2202240006).
Viasat's proposed Inmarsat acquisition (see 2111080038) got approval at a Viasat shareholder special meeting Tuesday. Viasat said it expects the deal to close later this year.
Telesat wants to rejigger its low earth orbit construction plans (see 2204200005), moving 110 satellites from Phase 1 deployment to Phase 2. In an FCC International Bureau application last week, it said the reduction in Phase 1 satellites, to 188, reflects its reducing the number of orbital planes used in its plans. Phase 2 would still see a total constellation size of 1,671 satellites, it said.
Little scientific attention is being paid to how the growing cadence of rocket launches and space debris reentries is affecting the climate and atmospheric ozone, but public interest will grow as the space industry grows in prominence, said Aerospace Corp.'s Center for Space Policy and Strategy Wednesday. Basing policy decisions on the assumption such activities have little global impact "is no longer appropriate," and policymakers are going to want a comprehensive review of environmental consequences of spaceflight, it said. Space industry stakeholders should organize and fund that kind of assessment before there's unwarranted regulation, it said.
The FCC Wireline Bureau, Rural Broadband Auctions Task Force and Office of Economics and Analytics are ready to authorize Connect America Fund Phase II auction support for Viasat's winning bid in Oregon, said a public notice listed in Wednesday's Daily Digest. Viasat has until 6 p.m. EDT June 29 to submit a letter of credit and bankruptcy code opinion letter. The bureaus granted Viasat a waiver of auction rules requiring eligible telecom carrier certification for the census blocks where it received designation but found the company's bids where it has yet to receive designation in default.
SpaceX's arguments in its petition to deny Viasat's purchase of Inmarsat (see 2206130026) are baseless and previously refuted, Viasat emailed us Monday. "There is nothing new here," it said. "We continue to believe that the transaction will serve the public interest and remain confident that the FCC will reach that same conclusion after reviewing the complete record." Viasat said it expects the deal to close in the second half of the year, subject to Viasat shareholder approval on June 21 and regulatory clearances.