Satellite Update – May 19, 2011

By Doug Lung
published


From FCC Report SAT-00770:

  • •The FCC accepted an application from SES Americom to modify its license for Ku-band AMC-4 at 67 degrees west longitude (WL) to allow a 0.1 degree change in the azimuth of the satellite's North American beam from the orientation previously authorized. AMC-4 has been operating with the modified azimuth under special temporary authority (STA) from the FCC during tests to see if the change improved AMC-4's signal in the southeast U.S.


From FCC Report SAT-00777:

  • •The FCC announced the 3700-4200 MHz and 11.7-12.2 GHz (space-to-Earth) and 5925-6425 MHz and 14.0-14.5 GHz (Earth-to-space) frequencies previously licensed to PanAmSat Licensee Corp. at 76.85 degrees WL are available for reassignment pursuant to the Commission's first-come, first-served licensing process effective 2:00 PM on Tuesday, May 17. The FCC said at that time. applicants may file applications for new space stations, market access by non-U.S. licensed space stations, modifications to licensed space stations, or amendments to pending applications that take this announcement into account. PanAmSat is no longer operating a space-station at 76.85 degrees WL.
  • •The FCC granted Sirius XM Radio STA for 30 days, starting May 6, 2011, to activate the communications payload of its Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service (SDARS) XM-5 at 85.15 degrees WL for in-orbit performance testing purposes using the 2332.5-2345.0 MHz (space-to-Earth) frequency band.
  • •The FCC granted XM Radio, Inc. and Sirius XM Radio, Inc. STA for 180 days to continue to operate SDARS terrestrial repeaters previously authorized in the 2332.5-2345 MHz and 2320-2332.5 MHz (respectively) frequency bands. The repeaters will operate with an EIRP of less than 12,000 watts (average) at various locations throughout the United States.
Doug Lung
Doug Lung

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack.
A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.