broadband constellations
Satellites eligible for FCC’s $9 billion 5G Fund for Rural America
The Federal Communications Commission approved the creation Oct. 27 of a 5G Fund for Rural America to distribute as much as $9 billion over the next decade to extend 5G wireless broadband connectivity to rural communities.
SpaceX, Hughes and Viasat qualify to bid for $20.4 billion in FCC rural broadband subsidies
SpaceX, Hughes Network Systems and Viasat are eligible to compete for a share of the $20.4 billion in broadband subsidies the FCC plans to dole out under the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund starting later this month.
Raytheon wins contract to connect military aircraft to commercial internet satellites
Raytheon is one of several major defense contractors selected by the U.S. Air Force for the program known as “defense experimentation using commercial space internet."
L3Harris, Northrop Grumman win contracts to connect Air Force hardware with commercial space broadband
The contracts are the latest awarded under a project called Defense Experimentation Using the Commercial Space Internet
China could launch another Long March 5 by year’s end
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. will probably resume flights of its heavy-lift Long March 5 rocket this year, said Xing He, executive vice presidentof China Great Wall Industry Corp., a subsidiary of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.
Swissto12 raises $18.44 million, works with Tyvak on mini geostationary satellites
Swissto12, a European telecommunications component company, raised 18.1 million Swiss francs ($18.44 million), established a U.S. offices and signed an agreement with Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems to offer miniature satellites for geostationary orbit.
FCC to introduce new simplified licensing regulations for smallsats
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, speaking at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce event here, said the regulations will make licensing small satellites cheaper and faster in order to better match cost and pace at which smallsat operators often function.
Telesat says ideal LEO constellation is 292 satellites, but could be 512
Satellite fleet operator Telesat says the desired size of its future low Earth orbit broadband constellation is more than twice the number of satellites authorized by U.S. regulators, and could ultimately scale to 512 spacecraft.
MEO startup Methera plans “high density” HTS constellation
In medium Earth orbit, the only system providing satellite broadband today is SES Networks’ constellation of 16 O3b satellites. A British startup with its own 16-satellite constellation idea wants to change that.
Maxar creating new smallsat division as it shrinks SSL
Maxar Technologies is setting up a new organization focused solely on small satellites while continuing to downsize its geostationary satellite manufacturing business at Space Systems Loral.
NBN preps business broadband offer with underused Sky Muster capacity
An NBN executive estimated the business service will use 15 percent of the capacity on the Sky Muster satellite system.
SpaceX won’t seek U.S. rural broadband subsidies for Starlink constellation
SpaceX says it will not go after any of the $2 billion in rural broadband subsidies the U.S. Federal Communications Commission will begin doling out this summer under its Connect America Fund II program.
ViaSat and O3b, now distant neighbors, eye confrontation in medium-Earth orbit
ViaSat Inc and SES-owned O3b Ltd., two satellite fleet operators providing commercial Ka-band broadband from different orbital vantage points, look to become direct competitors based on new satellite constellations both are proposing to U.S. regulators.
Dish Network battles OneWeb and SpaceX for Ku-band spectrum rights
A coalition of 5G terrestrial mobile broadband companies led by Charlie Ergen’s Dish Network on June 8 asked U.S. regulators to strip future low-orbiting satellite Internet constellations of their priority access to 500 megahertz of Ku-band spectrum – spectrum coveted by prospective fleet owners including OneWeb LLC and SpaceX.
