KDDI will partner with SpaceX on providing mobile supplemental coverage from space (SCS) service starting as early as 2024, the Japanese telco said Wednesday. It said the SCS service, using SpaceX's Starlink satellites and KDDI wireless spectrum, will start with SMS texting and eventually expand to voice and data services. KDDI said almost all existing smartphones on its network will be compatible with the new service since it will use the devices' existing radio services.

Advanced Space's Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment (Capstone) satellite has operated successfully for close to 10 months in orbit around the moon, Advanced blogged Wednesday. During that time, Capstone demonstrated spacecraft-to-spacecraft navigation services that allow future spacecraft to determine their location relative to the moon without relying exclusively on tracking from Earth; and explored using one-way navigation through an onboard atomic clock, Advanced said.

Globalstar signed a perpetual licensing agreement with XCom Labs for exclusive access to some technologies and personnel, the Globalstar said Tuesday. The deal also sees XCom founder and CEO Paul Jacobs replace Dave Kagan, who's retiring, as Globastar CEO. Globalstar said the licensing agreement includes XComp, XCom’s commercially available coordinated multipoint radio system, and the company's peer-to-peer connectivity technologies that could have applications for cellular and satellite devices. Jacobs, who previously was Qualcomm CEO, said joining Globalstar's terrestrial spectrum and XCom's technology "creates a significant opportunity to deliver for private network customers with mission-critical needs."

Oppositions to a OneWeb reconsideration petition on the FCC's non-geostationary orbit spectrum sharing order are due Sept. 12, with replies to oppositions due Sept. 22, per a notice in Monday's Federal Register. The petition, filed last month, challenges the interference protection sunset provisions given first Ka-/Ku-band processing round applicants (see 2307210037).

Satellite-delivered broadband "offers particular promise," advocacy groups said, urging the U.S. to push at the 2023 World Radiocommunication Conference for expanded spectrum access for low earth orbit constellations. In a letter Monday to the FCC, NTIA and State Department, the signatories said modernizing "outdated" ITU coexistence criteria would allow more-efficient and equitable access to shared spectrum. The signatories include the American Library Association, Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, Center for Rural Strategies, Information Technology Industry Foundation, Open Technology Institute at New America, Public Knowledge and R Street Institute.

SpaceX's Starlink Group 6-11 mission launch Saturday marked a milestone 100th FAA licensed space operation of launches and reentries so far this fiscal year, the agency said Monday. It said more are to be added before the year ends Sept. 30. SpaceX said FY 2022 saw 74 FAA-licensed commercial space operations in total.

Meeting with FCC Space and Wireless Bureau staffers, SpaceX supported using existing mobile service allocations, flexible-use policies and technical sharing rules for mobile supplemental coverage from space, said a docket 23-65 filing Monday. It said a framework using existing technical sharing rules and coordination also would protect other spectrum users from harmful interference "without the need to overbuild a command-and-control regulatory apparatus or mire the industry in decades of unnecessary proceedings."

Satellite operators will likely start facing challenges in getting insurance due to the recent spate of expensive geostationary orbit (GSO) satellite anomalies, William Blair analyst Louie DiPalma wrote investors Friday after Viasat's announcement of an Inmarsat-6 F2 malfunction. Viasat said the I6 F2, which launched Feb. 18, had a power subsystem anomaly during its orbit raising. It said it and satellite manufacturer Airbus will determine the cause and whether the satellite "will be able to perform." It was launched to provide spare L-band and Ka-band capacity, Viasat said, noting the I6 F2 was insured, and the twin I6 F1 launched in December 2021 is operational and is performing as expected. Viasat said it has three L-band satellites and seven more Ka-band satellites under construction. The I6F2 anomaly follows Viasat reporting problems last month with a reflector on its ViaSat-3 satellite (see 2307130003) and Astranis' delayed start of service by its Arcturus satellite, launched in April, due to solar array drive assembly problems (see 2307210017). DiPalma said the impact of the Viasat losses is mitigated by the redundancy of the ViaSat and Inmarsat networks. The overall market opportunity for insurers is shrinking as low earth orbit becomes more important, with insurance providers dropping out altogether, meaning it "may become all but impossible to insure the most expensive ... satellites," satellite and spectrum consultant Tim Farrar posted on X, formerly Twitter. "Another major insurance claim imminent ... adding to the likely US$420 million Viasat 3 claim," space data firm Seraadata tweeted. "It is going to be a losing year for the space insurance market."

Loft Orbital Solutions hopes to launch a 10-satellite low earth orbit constellation, YAC-1, in launches in June and October 2024, it told the FCC Space Bureau in an application last week. The 10 satellites would host an earth observation system for Loft customer EarthDaily Analytics Corp., with Loft operating the constellation for EarthDaily, it said.

Satellite maker Sidus Space acquired Exo-Space in what it said was a bid to tap into the AI sector and expand its offerings in the earth and space observation services market, Sidus said Tuesday. Exo-Space specializes in edge AI software and hardware for space applications.