Thirty-six satellites have arrived at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in India, and their launch will mean OneWeb will have more than 70% of its planned first-generation low earth orbit broadband constellation in orbit, the company said Tuesday. OneWeb said it should have global coverage in 2023. OneWeb told us it expects the launch to happen in October.

Capellla Space wants to add a satellite to its Earth Exploration Satellite Service license. In an FCC International Bureau application Monday, Capella asked to modify the orbital characteristics of its Capella-9 satellite and to add Capella-10, which would operate with identical technical parameters and in the same orbital plane. Capella said it has launched seven of the eight satellites the FCC authorized, and Capella-10 would be its ninth, to be launched simultaneously with Capella-9.

Viasat and SpaceX disagree how the FCC should look at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit decision backing the agency's modifying SpaceX's first-generation constellation operating parameters (see 2208260035). That ruling doesn't resolve SpaceX not complying with the FCC's interference protection requirements, Viasat, which was a plaintiff in the litigation, told the International Bureau Monday. The decision also doesn't cancel "the need for a fulsome review of the adverse environmental impacts" of the proposed second-generation Starlink system, it said. The court dismissed Viasat's complaint on procedural grounds, but the satellite operator said it didn't address the merits of Viasat's claims or deny "the need for careful environmental review in this proceeding of the much larger and more environmentally problematic second-generation Starlink system." SpaceX urged the FCC last month to reject the arguments raised in the commission proceeding on its pending second-generation constellation that also was part of the litigation. Even with FCC equivalent power flux density rules being "overly protective" of geostationary orbit operators to the detriment of non-geostationary ones, "SpaceX has certified that the Gen2 system will comply," it said. SpaceX said the court made a point of rejecting critics' "bespoke EPFD analysis" and that Viasat's environmental arguments fail on their merits and should be rejected.

Amazon's Kuiper and SpaceX back a reduction of the 25-year post-mission disposal requirement if the proposal on the FCC's Sept. 29 commissioners' meeting agenda (see 2209080057) is tweaked. Representatives of Amazon's Kuiper told aides to FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington there should be exceptions for some failure scenarios that prevent deorbit and reentry maneuvers, per a docket 18-313 post Monday. SpaceX representatives, meeting with an aide to Commissioner Brendan Carr, said the agency doesn't need to require satellite operators to file a modification when a license or market access grant doesn't already specify a five-year disposal because it would inundate agency staff with filings. They said ambiguous language in the draft order about possibly different post-mission disposal requirements someday for mega constellations "hangs an unnecessary cloud of uncertainty over the industry."

Three satellites in SpaceX's first-generation low earth orbit constellation lost maneuverability above injection altitude on Aug. 8 and 10 and Sept. 6, the company told the FCC International Bureau in a status report last week. SpaceX said sensitive components leading to the altitude control or communications systems failures were replaced for future designs. It said its past status reports over-reported the number of Starlink satellites that lost maneuverability. SpaceX said the erroneously reported satellites are more than 25% of the total failures reported.

The FCC should deny or indefinitely defer SpaceX's pending second-generation constellation application pending scientific studies and international discussions that would allow an assessment of the risks -- environmental and otherwise -- it poses, an astronomy professor wrote the International Bureau Sunday. SpaceX and similar proposals would undoubtedly hurt astronomy, public stargazing and indigenous access to the sky, and be a serious debris risk and raise commercial fairness issues that should be addressed, University of Edinburgh's Andy Lawrence said. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit's ruling against environmental-based challenges to SpaceX's plans (see 2208260035) didn't show the agency was right to ignore ordering a National Environmental Policy Act review, but rather that the appellants didn't demonstrate actual injury, he said. Lawrence said the decision also didn't seem to rule out including the effect of harm from activities in orbital space as part of an environmental review. SpaceX didn't comment Monday.

Lynk Global said Friday the FCC granted the company the “first-ever commercial license for a satellite-direct-to-standard-mobile-phone service.” The license allows the company to “launch commercial services for its global constellation of satellites later this year, paving the way for universal mobile connectivity,” Lynk said. “We agree with Lynk that it is in the public interest to begin making its services accessible with the goal of providing connectivity in remote areas during emergencies, contingent upon obtaining appropriate approval in the relevant jurisdiction and contingent upon completion of coordination with other operators,” said a Friday order by the International Bureau: “Lynk has provided information that demonstrates that, with the operations authorized by this license, it would be able to provide limited but useful connectivity in some areas.” The approval of Lynk to use frequencies in parts of the UHF bands is “limited to transmissions with earth stations outside the United States, and is based on a consideration of the specific facts and circumstances of this case,” the bureau said. The order doesn’t speak to “action on any applications to provide similar service in the United States,” the bureau said: “Nothing in this decision is intended to prejudge whether it is in the public interest to permit the provision of similar services within the United States, such as the pending AST&Science application.” GSMA supported the decision. “Technologies such as Lynk's satellite-direct-to-standard-mobile-phone service are an important part of the evolving mobile ecosystem and will be essential in enabling coverage in underserved geographies,” said Alex Sinclair, the group’s chief technology officer.

SpaceX “strongly supports” recently circulated draft orbital debris rules, proposed for a vote at the Sept. 29 FCC meeting (see 2209080057), said a filing posted Friday in docket 18-313. “SpaceX has long advocated for strong policies that drive more efficient and sustainable use of orbital resources, and has supported a five-year post-mission disposal timeframe for years,” the company said: “SpaceX particularly appreciates that the draft rule would apply equally to U.S.- and non-U.S.-licensed operators, initiating long-overdue efforts toward closing the foreign operator loophole, which non-U.S.-licensed operators have repeatedly weaponized to harm U.S. operators and American consumers while escaping scrutiny of their own high-risk systems.” The company said it met with staff for Commissioner Geoffrey Starks.

Globalstar opposed a SpaceX proposal to add 1.6 and 2.4 GHz-band transceivers to its first-generation satellites to give it more options in offering mobile satellite services (see 2209070003). “The Commission should reject this request, which lacks sufficient technical justification, contradicts settled Commission precedent, and jeopardizes important public interest-enhancing services including emergency services provided by Globalstar and its partners for more than two decades,” Globalstar said in a Thursday filing: “Globalstar is utilizing each of our licensed MSS spectrum channels at 1610-1617.775 MHz/2483.5-2500 MHz for a broad range of services including critical communications. Globalstar has extended voice, messaging and emergency services to areas not within economic reach for terrestrial networks and supported thousands of life-saving rescues in the United States and around the world.”

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel plugged FCC proposals on orbital debris, (in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing (ISAM) and the agency’s new focus on space, in remarks at the Global Aerospace Summit Wednesday. “Right now there are thousands of metric tons of orbital debris in the air above,” Rosenworcel said of the draft item set for the agency’s September meeting. The item proposes shortening deorbiting requirements from 25 years to five. “We need to address it. Because if we don’t, this space junk could constrain new opportunities,” she said. “I hope my colleagues will join me in this effort.” The FCC’s focus on space matters is intended to help the U.S. “lead in this new space age and emerging space economy,” she said. “I am proud to say that we have increased the size of the agency division responsible for satellite matters by 38 percent.”