An Overview and Assessment of Today’s U.S. Satellite Telemetry, Tracking and Telecommand (TT&C) Spectrum Allocation Needs

EasyChair Preprint 10100

Abstract

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee have recently focused attention on spectrum utilization and allocations for low earth orbit (LEO) broadband or direct-to-device satellites. In a recent Hearing, Congress additionally stressed the need for efficient authorization for our satellite and launch industry and spectrum allocations specifically for launch vehicles – noting that rockets are now launching at an impressive weekly cadence. On-board each of these rockets is generally a satellite payload, which requires spectrum for telemetry, tracking and telecommand (TT&C) regardless of its application (broadband, direct-to-device, earth exploration, research, in-orbit servicing and manufacturing (ISAM). Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly challenging to identify swaths of spectrum for TT&C in the United States. This is forcing operators to consider filing and deploying parts of their networks overseas, potentially posing economical and national security challenges. As the space sector continues to grow at an unprecedented rate, it is imperative that the FCC consider TT&C allocations that align with the ITU, and a method for sharing these bands. This paper provides an overview of FCC and International Telecommunications Union (ITU) frequency allocations in the UHF, S-, L-, C- and X-band for space operations, and identifies the regulatory advantages and hurdles of each band which may potentially be identified for TT&C use. Lastly, this paper provides policy recommendations for potential allocations, sharing frameworks and methods for maintaining leadership in U.S. spectrum regulations.

Keyphrases: FCC, Space Operations, TT&C, Telemetry, US Spectrum, spectrum

@booklet{EasyChair:10100,
  author    = {Anargyros Kriezis and Whitney Lohmeyer},
  title     = {An Overview and Assessment of Today’s U.S. Satellite Telemetry, Tracking and Telecommand (TT&C) Spectrum Allocation Needs},
  howpublished = {EasyChair Preprint 10100},
  year      = {EasyChair, 2023}}