Advanced Television

FCC spectrum boost for space launches

December 20, 2024

By Colin Mann

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has proposed the allocation of additional spectrum resources necessary for space launch communications needs. The Chairwoman has championed US leadership in space launch activities and making Commission processes simpler and more open to new entrants. These rules would add spectrum to support space launch activities and build upon Commission action in 2023 that will enable companies to conduct launch activities without needing to request temporary authority from the FCC for each space launch. The framework established by the FCC will provide certainty and predictability for commercial space launches.

The Report and Order would, if adopted by a Commission vote, reallocate the 2360–2395 MHz band on a secondary basis for space operations under the existing part 26 space launch regulatory framework. The Chairwoman asks her colleagues to vote on the proposal prior to the December 25th, 2024 statutory deadline set in the Launch Communications Act.

“We are living in a New Space Age with more frequent and lower cost launches creating all kinds of innovative opportunities for space technology,” said Chairwoman Rosenworcel. “By identifying more bandwidth for vital links to launch vehicles, we are making it simpler for new competitors to get consistent access to the spectrum they need. Thanks to Senators Schmitt and Hickenlooper and Representatives Soto and Nunn for their leadership with the Launch Communications Act.”

This proposal builds on the Commission’s prior adoption of significant allocations of spectrum for space operations in the 2025-2110 MHz and 2200-2290 MHz bands. The Launch Communications Act, enacted in September 2024, specified that the 2360–2395 MHz band – the focus of today’s proposal – also be utilised in support of space launches.

The proposal would complete the allocation work required under the Launch Communications Act. Looking ahead, the Act also directs the Commission, by March 25th, 2025, to issue new regulations to streamline the process of granting access to the designated bands for commercial space launch operations. The new regulations must provide a more streamlined process for: (1) authorising multiple uses of the frequencies for multiple launches from one or more private or federal launch and re-entry sites; (2) the electronic filing and processing of applications authorizing space launch operations; and (3) improving inter-agency coordination to increase the speed of review of the applications, including coordination to increase automation.

In recent years, the FCC established its Space Bureau and took action to speed up regulatory review processes, increased the number of staff working on satellite applications, created new opportunities for competition in the delivery of satellite broadband services, and modernised spectrum policy to better meet the needs of the next generation Space Age. The proposal, led by the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau and the Office of Engineering and Technology in consultation with the Space Bureau, highlights the fact that the FCC’s support for space innovation is agency-wide and ongoing.

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