Launch provider Rocket Lab cut the ribbon Thursday on the U.S. launch site for its Neutron rocket, which is targeting the satellite megaconstellation market. The launch site is at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Wallops Island, Virginia.

The White House's commercial space launch executive order, issued earlier this month (see 2508140004), will likely lead to the elimination of duplicative analyses that the FAA and other government agencies do, Covington staffers wrote Sunday. Space Force already does extensive analyses, such as calculating the expected casualty risks for every launch mission, and the FAA has said it would defer to federal range-safety processes for launches from the Eastern and Western ranges, wrote Stephanie Barna, Alan Estevez and Ethan Syster. However, they added, in practice the FAA still certifies those Space Force results independently, meaning launch providers and their customers can face two layers of scrutiny for the same safety models and data, which can increase confusion and delay. The FAA's ongoing review of its Part 450 space launch rules, backed by the order, "could address these pain points."

Any changes to the geostationary/non-geostationary orbit spectrum-sharing framework needs more study about the protection of other incumbent services, the National Radio Astronomy Observatory said Monday (docket 25-157). The U.S. should refrain from unilateral changes to the framework, the group said, adding that there's an indication that such rule changes might mean NGSO constellations could be smaller, which would benefit radio astronomy.

Astranis hopes to launch a pair of small geostationary orbit (GSO) broadband satellites as soon as December. In an application Sunday, it asked for permission to launch and operate its Astranis 121W system of two MicroGEOs, small GSOs that would provide broadband to North America and parts of South America. The 121W satellites would operate in the Ka band from 121 degrees west, said the company, which currently operates five other MicroGEO satellites. The 121W MicroGEOs would be the functional equivalent of a GSO system, Astranis said, and thus it applied for both in a single application.

AST SpaceMobile is seeking FCC approval for two years of testing off-the-shelf cellular handsets receiving supplemental coverage from space service using FirstNet's Band 14. In an experimental license application last week, AST said the testing would be done in a 24-kilometer-radius area in Texas using 758-768 MHz downlinks and 788-798 MHz uplinks. Such testing would allow AST to continue evaluating its Bluebird satellites' capabilities to transmit and receive broadband communications to and from mobile handsets in the Band 14 network footprint, it said.

Alaska Airlines said Wednesday that it will start offering SpaceX-provided broadband on its flights starting in 2026, and all its aircraft will be converted to Starlink service by 2027. The company's Hawaiian Airlines aircraft are already equipped with the service, it said. Intelsat currently provides satellite connectivity for Alaska Airlines flights.

Testing done in Colombia -- like previous testing conducted in Romania -- confirms that a non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite system can protect geostationary orbit (GSO) system Ku-band downlinks even when using co-frequency beams, according to SpaceX. In a docket 25-157 filing posted Thursday, SpaceX recapped a meeting with the FCC Space Bureau, saying it will submit a full report of the Colombia testing soon. The company said the test results "deliver direct, real-world evidence" supporting the protection criteria that it proposed. SpaceX has petitioned the commission for a revision of U.S. spectrum-sharing methodology between NGSO and GSO fixed satellite service downlinks (see 2408120018).

SpaceX is seeking FCC OK to significantly rejigger the configuration of its first-generation Starlink satellites. In a Space Bureau application submitted Friday, the company said it wanted to boost the number of planes and satellites per plane for the approved 4,408 first-gen satellites. It added that the new configuration would let it more efficiently deploy broadband coverage and capacity to meet customer demand.

The Trump administration's commercial space launch and novel space mission executive order (see 2508140004) may result in actions that will be challenged in court, Holland & Knight spaceflight lawyer Paul Stimers wrote last week. He said the opposition could come from some environmental groups and state and local governments opposing particular provisions of the EO. Among other things, it directs multiple agencies to notify DOJ of state or local limitations on spaceport development that are inconsistent with federal law.

AST SpaceMobile is clarifying to the FCC that its activities in the 430-440 MHz band will be limited largely to emergencies when other frequency bands are unavailable. In a letter Friday to the agency's Space Bureau, it said the one exception is its FM-1 satellite, in which it will use 430-440 MHz for emergencies; for telemetry, tracking and control; and for launch and early orbit operations. It told the commission much the same earlier this month (see 2508060048). AST is seeing pushback from amateur radio interests to its request to use the band since they also use parts of it (see 2507210031). Pointing to an interference analysis it submitted, AST said it's "extremely unlikely" there will be interference to ham radio operations in the 430-44 MHz band.