SpaceX's request that applications in 2 GHz band be held in abeyance during any 2 GHz rulemaking, as well as the proposed rulemaking itself (see [Re:2402230027]), should be rejected, EchoStar told the FCC Space Bureau this week. SpaceX hasn't offered any basis for stopping action on applications in the 2 GHz band, while such a hold would be "extraordinarily burdensome," EchoStar said. It added that a proceeding allowing SpaceX into the 2 GHz band would mean "annihilation of all current uses of the band through harmful interference." In addition, EchoStar said SpaceX's presence also "would imperil" EchoStar efforts in the band such as direct-to-device services.

A NASA satellite studying the atmosphere and Russia's Cosmos 2221 satellite safely passed one another without incident early Wednesday, NASA blogged. The agency warned previously that the two satellites, which lack maneuvering capabilities, could collide. A collision "could result in significant debris generation," NASA said.

Any opening of the 17 GHz band to non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite operations should come with interference protections, DirecTV and EchoStar said. In a meeting with FCC Space Bureau staffers recapped Wednesday in docket 22-273, the geostationary orbit operators urged revised footnotes in the U.S. Table of Frequency Allocations requiring that NGSO fixed satellite service operations in the 17 GHz band not claim interference protections from geostationary orbit (GSO) FSS networks. They also called for requirements that those NGSO operations not cause interference to or claim protection from GSO FSS and broadcast satellite service networks. The two pushed for the same equivalent power flux density limits applicable to NGSO FSS downlinks and inter-satellite links in the 17.8-18.6 GHz band being extended to those links in the 17 GHz band.

An inaugural customer order for Globalstar's Xcom Ran multipoint radio system will be fulfilled largely this year and has the potential to materially scale up, Globalstar CEO Paul Jacobs said Wednesday. In a call with analysts as the company announced Q4 2023 results, Jacobs said Globalstar intends to incorporate its Band 53 spectrum into the multiband XCOM RAN service. The company didn't name the Xcom Ran user, but said it was a major U.S. retailer deploying the service for warehouse automation. Globalstar said fiscal year 2023 revenue, at $224 million, rose $149 million year over year.

The FAA accepted the 17 corrective actions SpaceX identified following the failed Starship super heavy rocket test launch in November, the agency said Monday. It said seven corrective actions were identified for the booster, including hardware redesigns, while 10 others were identified for the Starship vehicle, such as installing additional fire protection. The FAA said closing the mishap investigation doesn't signal an immediate authorization of the next Starship launch. SpaceX first must make the changes and get agency approval for its pending license modification request. During the test flight, the booster exploded after separation from the second stage, and the second stage minutes later caught fire.

Ligado is fighting efforts by Iridium and aviation associations to file an amicus brief supporting dismissal of Ligado litigation against the U.S. government regarding the company's planned L-band use (see 2402120009). In a U.S. Court of Federal Claims opposition Friday (docket 1:23-cv-01797), Ligado said it would be improper for Iridium to participate as an amicus for the defense since Iridium "is not a friend of this Court [but] is a friend (and business partner) of a party -- the United States Government." Ligado said Iridium "is merely another arm of the United States Government in this matter, parroting the Government’s arguments with interests that are perfectly aligned." Ligado said Iridium's disputing of FCC findings and facts alleged in the complaint is irrelevant for now, as at the current stage of the litigation the court must accept as true the allegations in Ligado's complaint. Ligado said Iridium's advancement of legal arguments infringes on DOJ's "statutorily mandated exclusive authority and responsibility to litigate on behalf of the United States."

Supplemental coverage from space services could require "a very high degree of isolation" from the National Radio Quiet Zone (NRQZ), the National Radio Astronomy Observatory said Monday in docket 23-135. Before SCS service starts, it should provide technical analyses showing how it will achieve the isolation needed to protect radioastronomy operations in the NRQZ while also assessing its impact on instruments like the observatory's Very Large Array in New Mexico that don't get the formal protections of the NRQZ.

Umbra Lab is eyeing Q4 for launch of two earth exploration satellite service microsatellites into low earth orbit. In an FCC Space Bureau application Thursday, Umbra said the pair would have the same RF and orbital characteristics as the eight previously granted licenses. The eighth was launched in November, it said.

R2 Space will pay an $8,000 civil penalty and implement a compliance plan to resolve an FCC Enforcement Bureau investigation into whether the company transferred a satellite license without prior authorization, a bureau consent decree said Wednesday. The bureau said the transfer came in connection with Meta Aerospace's acquisition of R2 and its conversion of the business to an LLC without prior FCC OK. It said sale of the satellite license to Iceye is pending the outcome of a bureau investigation.

The FCC's denial of reconsideration of its 2020 orbital debris order is effective Thursday, said a notice for Thursday's Federal Register. The commissioners approved the orbital debris reconsideration order 5-0 in January (see 2401250064). The order rejected three petitions seeking reconsideration of the 2020 order but provided clarification and guidance on some issues the petitions raised.