FCC Gets More Advice on Space Launch Coordinator
SpaceX stressed the importance of the FCC proceeding with care in selecting a space launch frequency coordinator for the agency's space launch service (see 2501230025). “As a company that launched more than 130 rockets to orbit in 2024 and must regularly coordinate its launch operations with other spectrum users, SpaceX has a strong interest in ensuring that any third-party coordinator improves upon the existing post-licensing launch spectrum coordination processes that launch service providers and other spectrum users have refined over years of experience,” said a filing this week in docket 13-115.
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Applicants should demonstrate that they “can and will facilitate coordination between spectrum users in the most efficient, expeditious, and unbiased manner possible to keep pace with increasing launch cadence and growing demand from American consumers for next-generation space-based services," SpaceX said.
GE HealthCare also offered advice, saying the coordinator should be required to work on any launches using 2360-2395 MHz spectrum with the Enterprise Wireless Alliance for medical body area networks (MBANs) within 200 miles of a launch site. “As the Commission-designated frequency coordinator for MBAN equipment, EWA can efficiently evaluate whether proposed space launch operations would interfere with MBANs that exist within the coordination zone,” the company said. MBANs use the 2360-2400MHz band. “The number of MBAN deployments is increasing, and GEHC expects this trend to continue,” it said.