The Federal Communication Commission wants to require operators of low Earth orbit satellites to deorbit their spacecraft within five years after their mission ends, a much shorter timeframe than currently required.The FCC issued a draft order Sept. 8 setting a “five-year rule” for post-mission disposal of LEO satellites. The commission will take up the order at its Sept. 29 open meeting.The order, if adopted by commissioners, would require spacecraft that end their missions in or passing through LEO — defined as altitudes below 2,000 kilometers — dispose of their spacecraft through reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere as soon as practicable and no more than five years after the end of the mission. The rule would apply to satellites launched two years after the order is adopted, and include both U.S.-licensed satellites as well as those licensed by other jurisdictions but seeking U.S. market access.
If the satellite will occupy an orbit for which the natural decay deorbit will require more than five years(the companies signing this document think that we should all aspire to a goal of one year), oncea standard has been defined for active debris removal any necessary interfaces should be installedon your satellite to allow straightforward active debris removal of your satellite should it becomeinoperable.
No special interface is needed, tho. I mean it’s nice, but not essential.
Use a general purpose grasper, and you already have a common interface.
How would this actually be enforced?Providers will be required to show a design that "reliably" return a satellite within 5 years. But what happens if the system fails in a 1000km orbit? Are there going to be fines or will they just be required to update the design?In theory if OneWeb were to go bankrupt and leave all of it's satellites in orbit they could remain there essentially forever.
A group of satellite operators has asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reconsider its proposed five-year window to remove orbital junk by adding language that would let them request waivers to exceed the limit. Iridium Communications, HughesNet operator EchoStar, Luxembourg-based SES, and OneWeb, currently building a satellite constellation it said will provide global broadband, penned the letter [PDF] earlier this week. The group asked that the FCC "adopt explicit language recognizing that operators may seek and obtain waivers of the five-year post-mission disposal rule for good cause," as well as establish "objective criteria" for evaluating waiver requests.
Satellite operators want option to exceed deorbiting rulesQuote from: theregister.comA group of satellite operators has asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reconsider its proposed five-year window to remove orbital junk by adding language that would let them request waivers to exceed the limit. Iridium Communications, HughesNet operator EchoStar, Luxembourg-based SES, and OneWeb, currently building a satellite constellation it said will provide global broadband, penned the letter [PDF] earlier this week. The group asked that the FCC "adopt explicit language recognizing that operators may seek and obtain waivers of the five-year post-mission disposal rule for good cause," as well as establish "objective criteria" for evaluating waiver requests.
Can someone tell me where Congress delegated such rule making authority to the FCC? If there is none, it is likely subject to a court challenge should someone care to do so.
If original Starlinks are still operational and still have the ability to deorbit, why not let them continue working? Seems like this rule is contrary to LEO constellations for internet service whether it be Starlink, One Web or another company. In my opinion, this rule isn't law, and should be deorbit at the end of life of the particular satellite. Satellites can be robust enough to last for many more years. What is their reasoning for this?
SEPTEMBER 27, 2022SCIENCE COMMITTEE LEADERS SEND LETTER TO FCC ON ORBITAL DEBRIS MITIGATION STANDARDS(Washington, DC) – Today, Chairwoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), Ranking Member Frank Lucas (R-OK), Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics Chairman Don Beyer (D-VA), and Ranking Member Brian Babin (R-TX) sent a letter to Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding the FCC's potential consideration of new regulations for orbital space debris at its upcoming open Commission meeting. The letter is a follow up to a letter sent from the bipartisan leadership of the Science Committee to the FCC in 2020. In the letter, the Committee leaders reassert their concern about the FCC’s proposal and request the Commission postpone consideration of this matter.“As leaders of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee, we understand the importance of supporting a safe, sustainable space environment. However, we are concerned that the Commission’s proposal to promulgate rules on this matter could create uncertainty and potentially conflicting guidance,” the Members said in the letter.They continued, “Internationally, NASA has led coordination on space debris mitigation guidelines with other space agencies over several decades. This U.S. leadership in coordinating orbital debris guidelines provides a strong foundation for leading other areas of space sustainability. Actions on orbital debris mitigation that stand apart from or conflict with Federal government guidelines could lead to confusion that, in effect, undermines, rather than strengthens, national and international efforts to reduce and mitigate the risk of orbital debris.”A full copy of the letter can be found here.Read the 2020 letter here.
could be very useful in beating back space NIMBYs' attempt to kill constellations via FCC.