Satellite Update

By
published

Many of the actions in last Friday’s Report No. SAT-00508 listing, FCC International Bureau Satellite Policy Branch actions appear to be related to the launch of AMC-14, which as noted earlier did not make it to geosynchronous orbit. On March 12, the Policy Branch granted authority to EchoStar to launch and operate AMC-14 at 61.5 degrees West Longitude (WL) using the 17.3-17.8 GHz (Earth-to-space) and 12.2-12.7 GHz (space-to-Earth) frequency bands on channels 1-22 and 25-32. It also granted special temporary authority (STA) to operate AMC-14 at 56.5 degrees WL for 60 days for in-orbit testing on channels 1-32. See Report No. SAT-00508 for more information on these and other actions relating to withdrawal of certain EchoStar STAs.

Sirius Satellite Radio requested STA to increase the effective isotropically radiated power (EIRP) of 15 terrestrial repeaters to 2,000 watts for a period of 180 days. These repeaters are currently operating at the power levels between 150 to 800 watts EIRP, as previously approved. Sirius said the power increase was necessary to improve terrestrial repeater coverage in various locations throughout the United States (from FCC Report SAT-00507).

Doug Lung
Doug Lung
Contributor

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack. A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.