EMC Analysis

0255-EX-CN-2018 Text Documents

Old Dominion University

2018-09-26ELS_216807

                                                                          VCC Cubesat Mission
                           FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018


                             EMC Analysis for VCC Cubesats

Introduction and Summary of Results
The Virginia CubeSat Constellation (VCC) is a collaborative, student-led project, of four Virginia
Universities: University of Virginia (UVA), Old Dominion University (ODU), Virginia Tech
(VT), and Hampton University. Supported by NASA through the Virginia Space Grant
Consortium as part of NASA Undergraduate Student Instrument Project (USIP) program, the
project will launch three similar CubeSats into low Earth orbit from the International Space
Station, and transmit data to ground stations on the UVA, ODU, and VT campuses for less than
two years. The primary mission is to collect atmospheric data to improve deorbit predictions.
   Radio operating licenses have been requested from the FCC as follows:

                      Lower frequency       Center frequency    Upper frequency     Bandwidth
                          [MHz]                 [MHz]               [MHz]             [kHz]
         UVA               401.030              401.040             401.050             20
         ODU               401.070              401.080             401.090             20
          VT               401.110              401.120             401.130             20

This report provides a domestic and international electromagnetic compatibility study with the
existing users, as required by the FCC. The FCC OET and FCC International Bureau databases
were searched, as were the ITU SNS and MIFR databases. These are documented in later sections
of this report.

Table 1 summarizes the identified relevant operators with whom coordination actions were taken,
and the outcome of the coordination efforts. Details for each are provided in later sections of the
report, and in Appendices at the end of the report.

       Operator                       Action                              Outcome
 NOAA GOES                     EMC Analysis Completed        No objections, Coordination
                                                             Complete, NOAA concurs with
                                                             VCC analysis. VCC agrees to not
                                                             more than 3 years of operation.
 National Radio Quiet Zone     NRAO Evaluation               No objections,
                                                             Coordination Complete
 GHG                           Contacted GHG, supplied       No objections,
                               data.                         Coordination Complete
 Spire                         Contacted Spire               No objections identified,
                                                             Coordination in progress.
 Kepler Communication          Contact Kepler                No objections identified,
                                                             Coordination in progress.


                                          Page 1 of 16


                                                                           VCC Cubesat Mission
                            FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018




Power Flux Density at Earth Surface, In Band and Out of Band
    In the downlink (CubeSat to ground station) the Lithium-II radios with broad beam antennas
will provide a transmit power of 3.9 W EIRP. According to AstroDev, the manufacturer of the
radio, the roll off of the transmitting spectrum is:

       -3 dB at 12 kHz;
      -20 dB at 18 kHz;
      -40 dB at 50 kHz;
      -60 dB at 100 kHz.

This is shown in the following figure:




Converting the transmitting spectrum roll off in absolute units provides the following plot:




                                           Page 2 of 16


                                                                          VCC Cubesat Mission
                           FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018




In the uplink (ground station to CubeSat), a Universal Software Radio Peripheral (USRP) B200
software defined radio from Ettus Research will be used with directional antennas and power
amplifiers to deliver a transmit power of 13.98 dBW (25 W). A similar roll-off characteristic for
the transmitting spectrum is assumed in the uplink, which can be easily implemented as a digital
root-raised cosine (RRC) filter in the B200 USRP.
Power Spectral Density Analysis
       Downlink:
Considering the total power of the transmitting signal to be approximately uniformly distributed
over the operating bandwidth of 20 kHz, this results in a power spectral density (PSD) of 1.9 W /
20 kHz = 79.49 x 10-5 W/Hz or -40.23 dBW/Hz.

The out-of-band power of the transmitting signal is radiated through the 0 dBi CubeSat antenna
mostly in the adjacent 20 kHz bandwidth to the left and to the right of the operating band. The
out-of-band PSD at frequencies located beyond 100 kHz away from the carrier frequency is
attenuated by 60 dB relative to the in-band frequencies resulting in an out-of-band PSD of -40.23 -
60 = -100.23 dBW/Hz for these frequencies.

The out-of-band frequencies of the transmitted signal will be further attenuated by propagation
pathloss from the VCC CubeSat orbiting in low Earth orbit at 400 km, to the GOES satellite
orbiting in geosynchronous orbit at 35,768 km. The minimum value of the corresponding pathloss
for 401 MHz band with a wavelength of 0.748 m is 175.48 dB, and corresponds to the minimum
distance of 35,468 km between the VCC CubeSat and a GOES satellite. Thus, the out-of-band

                                          Page 3 of 16


                                                                          VCC Cubesat Mission
                           FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018

PSD at a potential satellite receiver operating in a bandwidth that is 100 kHz away or more from
the operating bandwidth of the CubeSat radio is -100.23 - 175.48 = -275.81 dBW/Hz, equivalent
to -255.81 dBW per 100 Hz.
        Uplink:
Considering that the in-band power of the transmitting signal is approximately uniformly
distributed over the operating bandwidth of 20 kHz, this results in a power spectral density of 25
W / 20 kHz = 1.25 x 10-3 W/Hz or -29.03 dBW/Hz.
The out-of-band power of the transmitting signal is radiated through a 13.80 dBi Yagi ground
station antenna mostly in the adjacent 20 kHz bandwidth to the left and to the right of the
operating band. The out-of-band PSD at frequencies beyond 100 kHz away from the carrier
frequency is attenuated by 60 dB relative to the in-band frequencies resulting in an out-of-band
PSD of 13.80 -29.03 - 60 = -75.23 dBW/Hz for these frequencies.
The out-of-band frequencies of the transmitted signal will be further attenuated by propagation
pathloss from the VCC ground station to the GOES satellite orbiting in geosynchronous orbit at
35,768 km, which for the 401 MHz band (0.748 m wavelength) is equal to 175.58 dB. Thus, the
out-of-band PSD at a potential satellite receiver operating in a bandwidth that is 100 kHz away or
more from the operating bandwidth of the CubeSat radio, is -75.23 - 175.58 = -250.81 dBW/Hz,
which is also equivalent to -230.81 dBW per 100 Hz.
The interference analysis calculations are summarized in the following table:
                                        Downlink                         Uplink
                                 CubeSat  Ground Station       Ground station  CubeSat
 Peak transmit power [dBW]                  2.80                           13.98
         In-band radiated PSD            – 40.23                         – 29.03
                    [dBW/Hz]
  Transmitting spectrum roll               – 60.00                        – 60.00
 off at frequencies >100 kHz
 away from VCC bands [dB]
 Transmit antenna gain [dBi]                 0                             13.80
   Path loss to DCS receiver              –175.48                        –175.58
                          [dB]
    Out-of-band PSD at DCS                –275.81                        –250.81
           receiver [dBW/Hz]
  Interfering signal power at             –255.81                        –230.81
   DCS receiver in reference
   bandwidth [dBW per 100
                           Hz]




                                          Page 4 of 16


                                                                            VCC Cubesat Mission
                             FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018


Domestic Operator Search

From the FCC OET and FCC International Bureau databases, lists of satellite systems using the
401 to 402 MHz band was collected and shown in Tables 1 and 2 below. None of these
operations are expected to have interference for reasons cited in the Comments associated with
each..


                   Table 1: OET Experimental Licensing System Files, 401 to 401.2 MHz

   Search Criteria: All Services, Frequency Range = 400.8 MHz through 401.7 MHz, Box
   Search: Start Coordinates = 24° 33' 18" N 81° 46' 43" W End coordinates=47° 36' 28" N
   122° 20' 6" W, Currently Licensed and Pending Facilities


                   OET Experimental Licensing System Database
              File
                           Licensee:            Issue                       Radio
 Callsign: WI Number:                FRN: 00249             Expiration: 02/         Status: Gr
                           Blue                 Date: 02/06                 Service
 2XSC         0039-EX-               40371                  01/2019                 anted
                           Origin               /2017                       : XT
              CN-2017

 Site Address: State: TX County: CULBERSON Mobile Coordinates: 31° 25' 23" N, 104° 45' 26" W
Frequency: 401.20000000 M Comment: Experimental, out of Band


              File         Licensee:
                                                Issue                       Radio
 Callsign: WJ Number:      The       FRN: 00015             Expiration: 04/         Status: Gr
                                                Date: 10/17                 Service
 9XNY         1452-EX-     Boeing    83483                  17/2018                 anted
                                                /2017                       : XT
              ST-2017      Company

 Site Address: Fixed
                                              Fixed Coordinates: 45° 44'     Mobile Coordinates: 45° 44'
 operations within 1 kilometer    State: OR
                                              54" N 119° 47' 38" W           54" N, 119° 47' 38" W
 radius
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
 Site Address:        State: WA       Fixed Coordinates: 45° 42' 24" N 121° 27' 30" W
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
 Site Address: Boardman Bombing                           Mobile Coordinates: 45° 44' 54" N, 119° 47' 38"
                                              State: OR
 Range                                                    W
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
              File          Licensee
                                                Issue                       Radio
 Callsign: WL Number:       : The    FRN: 00015             Expiration: 12/         Status: Gr
                                                Date: 06/05                 Service
 9XGW         0656-EX-      Boeing   83483                  06/2017                 anted
                                                /2017                       : XT
              ST-2017       Company




                                               Page 5 of 16


                                                                           VCC Cubesat Mission
                            FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018


                  OET Experimental Licensing System Database
Site Address: Fixed
                                             Fixed Coordinates: 45° 44'     Mobile Coordinates: 45° 44'
operations within 1 kilometer    State: OR
                                             54" N 119° 47' 38" W           54" N, 119° 47' 38" W
radius
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
Site Address:        State: WA       Fixed Coordinates: 45° 42' 24" N 121° 27' 30" W
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
Site Address: Boardman Bombing                           Mobile Coordinates: 45° 44' 54" N, 119° 47' 38"
                                             State: OR
Range                                                    W
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
             File          Licensee
                                               Issue                       Radio
Callsign: WL Number:       : The    FRN: 00015             Expiration: 06/         Status: Gr
                                               Date: 12/19                 Service
9XGW         1646-EX-      Boeing   83483                  07/2018                 anted
                                               /2017                       : XT
             ST-2017       Company

Site Address: Fixed
                                             Fixed Coordinates: 45° 44'     Mobile Coordinates: 45° 44'
operations within 1 kilometer    State: OR
                                             54" N 119° 47' 38" W           54" N, 119° 47' 38" W
radius
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
Site Address:        State: WA       Fixed Coordinates: 45° 42' 24" N 121° 27' 30" W
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired
Site Address: Boardman Bombing                           Mobile Coordinates: 45° 44' 54" N, 119° 47' 38"
                                             State: OR
Range                                                    W
Frequency: 401.00000000 - 415.00000000 M Comment: Expired




                       Table 2: IB Licensing System Files, 401 to 401.2 MHz

                   International Bureau Filing System Database
                                                                              Status: AT
            File             Applicant: O            Grant
Callsign: E                                FRN: 0004            Expiration: 0 PN Sub-
            Number: SESMOD20 RBCOMM                  Date: 12/1
940536                                     379202               5/17/2020     System: S
            13093000856      License Corp.           6/2013
                                                                              ES

                                                                           Coordinates: 31° 30' 3" N,
Site: 1 Description: CONUS City: OCILLA State: GA County: IRWIN
                                                                           83° 11' 58" W
Frequency: 00000137.00000000-00000401.00000000 Comment: Does not Overlap




                                              Page 6 of 16


                                                                                VCC Cubesat Mission
                                 FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018


                     International Bureau Filing System Database
                                                                               Status: AT
             File             Applicant: O            Grant
 Callsign: E                                FRN: 0004            Expiration: 0 PN Sub-
             Number: SESMOD20 RBCOMM                  Date: 12/1
 940537                                     379202               5/17/2020     System: S
             13093000854      License Corp.           7/2013
                                                                               ES

                                   City: ST.                                    Coordinates: 34° 27' 21" N,
 Site: 1 Description: CONUS                         State: AZ County: APACHE
                                   JOHNS                                        109° 33' 17" W
Frequency: 00000137.00000000-00000401.00000000 Comment: Does not Overlap


                                                                               Status: AT
             File             Applicant: O            Grant
 Callsign: E                                FRN: 0004            Expiration: 0 PN Sub-
             Number: SESMOD20 RBCOMM                  Date: 12/1
 940538                                     379202               5/17/2020     System: S
             13093000855      License Corp.           6/2013
                                                                               ES

                                   City: EAST                                            Coordinates: 47° 33'
 Site: 1 Description: CONUS                            State: WA County: DOUGLAS
                                   WENATCHEE                                             4" N, 120° 10' 30" W
Frequency: 00000137.00000000-00000401.00000000 Comment: Does not Overlap


International Operator Search
From the ITU Space Network Systems Online (SNS), a list of satellite systems using the 401 to
402 MHz frequency range is shown in Table 3. For each satellite system, the Comment column
in the table indicates an assessment of the impact of the VCC CubeSats’ operation on the system.

   Table 3: List of Satellite Systems from ITU SNS, 401 to 401.2 MHz with USA, CAN or
                                       MEX ADM/ORG.
                                   BR     Center       Min      Max     Bandw
                     Satellite
 ADM     ITU ID                    IFC    Freq.       Freq.    Freq.     idth   Status             Comment
                      Name
                                    ID    (Mhz)       (Mhz)    (Mhz)    (Khz)
                                                                                           Coordination Complete; No
 CAN    113540650   GHGSAT-D       2773    402         401      403     2000    Active
                                                                                           Expectation of Interference
                                                                                           CSA and JAXA. On Hold
 CAN    108540431    JC2SAT        2640    402         401      403     2000    Active
                                                                                                    Indefinitely.
                                                                                            Kepler Communications
 CAN    118545050   KELYPSIS       2871    401.5       401      402     1000    Active
                                                                                           Coordination in Progress
                                                                                             Inuvik Canada ground
 CAN    117545422    MULTUS        2874   401.075     400.15    402     1850    Active          station beyond our
                                                                                              footprint. No Impact.
                                                                                            DORIS instrument, uses
 USA    108540735     OSTM         2682   401.245     400.25   402.24   1990    Active          401 as an auxiliary
                                                                                                     frequency
                                                                                             Redmond Washington
                    ARKYD-6A,                                                              ground station beyond our
 USA    117545411                  2870    401.5      401.43   401.57    140
                    ARKYD-6B                                                               footprint, out of band. No
                                                                                                       Impact.
                                                                                                SpaceX CRS UHF
                    CUCU, ISS-                                                              Communication Unit on
 USA    110540475                  2865   400.575     400.15    401      850
                      CUCU                                                                 ISS; Beyond our footprint,
                                                                                             out of band, No Impact
 USA    113540068    DOVE1         2759    401.3       401      402     1000    Demised              No impact
 USA    113540069    DOVE2         2759    401.3       401      402     1000    Demised            No impact



                                                    Page 7 of 16


                                                                                VCC Cubesat Mission
                                 FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018

                                   BR     Center         Min        Max       Bandw
                     Satellite
 ADM     ITU ID                    IFC    Freq.         Freq.      Freq.       idth       Status           Comment
                      Name
                                    ID    (Mhz)         (Mhz)      (Mhz)      (Khz)
 USA    113540400    DOVE3         2766    401.3         401        402       1000       Demised           No impact
                                                                                          Was
                                                                                          Never
 USA    113540401    DOVE4         2766    401.3         401        402       1000                         No impact
                                                                                         Deploye
                                                                                            d
 USA    113540399    INSIGHT       2764    397.5         390        405       15000       None               Note 1
 USA    115545100    MARCO         2823    397.5         390        405       15000       None               Note 1
 USA    116545103   MARS 2020      2831    397.5         390        405       15000       None               Note 1
 USA                  MRO                   405                     405       405000                         Note 1
 USA                  MSL                   410                     410       410000                         Note 1
                                                                                                     Spire, coordination in
 USA    117545328   LEMUR-2-3      2867    401.5         401        402       1000        Active
                                                                                                            progress.
 USA    113540070    MER-R         2757   401.5856     401.4356   401.7356     300                     Note 1, Out of Band

 USA    107540739    NPOESS        2831     402          401        403       2000       Inactive          No impact
 USA    108540735     OSTM         2682    401.25       400.25     402.25     2000       Inactive            No impact
                                                                                                       Pasadena CA ground
                                                                                                        station beyond our
 USA    117545438   RAINCUBE       2875   400.795       400.78     400.81      30         Active
                                                                                                    footprint. Out of band. No
                                                                                                               impact.
                                                                                                       Pasadena CA ground
                                                                                                        station beyond our
 USA    117545438   RAINCUBE       2875    401.15      401.135     401.165     30         Active
                                                                                                    footprint. Out of band. No
                                                                                                               impact.
                    USASAT-
 USA    95540430                   2842    401.5        401.47     401.53      60                          Out of Band
                      30A
                                                                                                      Fairbank AK Ground
                    USASAT-
 USA    113540648                  2788    401.5         401        402       1000        Active        station beyond our
                      30F
                                                                                                      footprint. No impact.
                     USASAT-
 USA    117545385     NGSO-        2872   401.675       401.6      401.75      150                         Out of Band
                      ASTC-2
 USA    113540040   USOCEAN        2757     401.25     401.2385    401.2615         23                     Out of Band
 USA                USPOJOQU              401.7455      401.512     401.979      467     Inactive          No Impact
                    E
 USA    112540309   UST4WP         2734     401.05    401.04676   401.05324     6.48                    Entry 6 years old.

   Note 1: The Mars missions use highly directional ground based antennas and our satellites
   will transit quickly if at all, across these highly directional antennas, in roughly 4 seconds
   maximum.



National Radio Quiet Zone Coordination
The University of Virginia ground station in Charlottesville, VA, lies just inside the Eastern
border of the National Radio Quiet Zone (NRQZ), so evaluation for impact on the operation of
the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) was required. The NRAO performed an
evaluation, and found no concerns with the operation as planned. See Appendix 1 for
correspondence supporting this.



                                                     Page 8 of 16


                                                                          VCC Cubesat Mission
                           FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018


NOAA Coordination
NOAA conducts operations of the GOES system in the range of 401 to 402 MHz. Carmelo
Rivera at NOAA was contacted, and an analysis of compatibility of VCC operations with NOAA
operations, was provided. Mr. Rivera replied Sept. 12 that they will probably not have a problem
with operation, and on September 24, he forwarded a letter from Fred Mistichelli, NESDIS. See
Appendix 2 for correspondence showing their recommendations for concurrence with the VCC
position of no interference. This recommendation is conditional on limiting the VCC activity to 3
years or less, which is compatible with our plan to operate for 2 years or less.

GHG Coordination

GHGSat operates in the range from 401 to 403 MHz. Carrie Rhoades at GHG was contacted, and
she stated that there would be no impact on their operations. See Appendix 3 for a letter from
GHG confirming this position.

Spire Coordination
Coordination discussions are ongoing with George John, Lead Legal & Regulatory Counsel
Spire Global, Inc. See Appendix 4 for the latest communication from Spire.


Kepler Coordination
Kepler Communications operates in the range from 401 to 402 MHz. They have ground stations
in Toronto, Canada; Svalbard, Norway; and New Zealand. VCC operation was reviewed with
Nick Spina, Director Launch & Regulatory Affairs at Kepler Communications. His focus was on
potential interference by VCC satellites transmissions, with the receiver at the Toronto ground
station. Discussion ongoing.

Conclusion
There is no expectation at this time that VCC experimental satellite and US earth station
operations will interfere with any known systems.




                                          Page 9 of 16


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                                                                        VCC Cubesat Mission
                         FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018

Appendix 2 Evaluation Letter from NOAA



On Tue, 25 Sep 2018 08:47:17 -0400, Carmelo Rivera - NOAA Federal wrote:

Mike,

I concur.

Regards,
Carmelo


On Mon, Sep 24, 2018 at 10:51 PM, Mike
Miller <mlmiller@sterksolutions.com> wrote:
Hi Carmelo,

This is very positive I feel. Do you concur, as recommended by Fred / NESDIS?

Thanks,

Mike
415 385-3842

On Mon, 24 Sep 2018 08:44:36 -0400, Carmelo Rivera - NOAA Federal wrote:
Please see the comments below and the recommendation from our satellite division.

v/r,
Carmelo

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Alfredo Mistichelli - NOAA Federal <alfredo.mistichelli@noaa.gov>
Date: Mon, Sep 24, 2018 at 3:34 AM
Subject: VCC 401-403 MHz interference analysis
To: Carmelo Rivera - NOAA Federal <carmelo.rivera@noaa.gov>
Cc: "Hall, Nathan T" <nhall@alionscience.com>, Al Wissman
<Al.Wissman@noaa.gov>
Carmelo,

We have reviewed the technical specifications of the GOES-R UHF receiver in more detail, and
made the following conclusions on the VCC coordination analysis:


                                       Page 11 of 16


                                                                           VCC Cubesat Mission
                            FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018


Potential Impact to GOES DCS
       -   Their interference analysis (attached), shows acceptable RFI impact to GOES DCS
              o The only issue is the GOES-R satellite receive antenna gain (13.8 dBi) was not included
              in their static calculations; however, that wouldn’t have a significant impact when you
              consider the frequency separation between the VCC signals and the GOES DCPR passband
              o Their analysis cites NOTE 1 within the ITU-R Recommendation SA.1164-2, which states,




               NOTE 1 – The single-entry interfering signal power thresholds in Table 1 are the
               permissible levels of interfering signal power that fall within the specified
               reference bandwidth.

               Accordingly, the total power in interfering signals that are narrower than the
               reference bandwidth should be considered in frequency sharing analyses.In cases
               where the interfering

               bandwidth exceeds the reference bandwidth or does not fully overlap the passband
               of a specific receiver under study, the available frequency dependent rejection
               should be applied

               in conjunction with the specified permissible interference levels.



       - Frequency separation between VCC signals (401.04/401.08/401.12 MHz) and the filter within
       the GOES DCPR receiver (401.7 – 402.4 MHz) is enough to ensure no potential for interference
       (see attached figure)
       -    Regarding the potential for high levels of VCC interference signal power to drive GOES
       receiver LNAs into nonlinearity, we have confirmed there are no potential issues

 Given all of the above, if you do decide to concur with VCC, we plan to track this agreement
(along with all other future agreements with 401-403 MHz smallsats) in order to continually
evaluate the potential for aggregate interference to GOES DCS.



Potential Impact to ARGOS
       - DCS system use on NGSO MetSat/EESS systems is allocated to the bands 401 – 401.2 MHz and
       401.3 – 401.7 MHz (as stated in ITU-R Recommendation SA.2045)
       - The future NOAA Argos A-DCS satellite, scheduled for launch in FY2021, will use the 401 – 401.2
       and 401.3 – 401.7 MHz bands



                                           Page 12 of 16


                                                                              VCC Cubesat Mission
                               FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018

                   o Preliminary dynamic analyses, which evaluated the potential for interference from VCC
                   uplinks/downlinks to the future Argos A-DCS links in 401 – 402 MHz, showed that the ITU-
                   R Recommendation SA.2044 protection criteria is met
                            These analyses assumed VCC’s stated duty cycles for their uplinks/downlinks
                                    Uplinks: 2 passes taken per day, average transmit time per pass of 1.6
                                   minutes
                                    Downlinks: 2 passes taken per day, average transmit time per pass of
                                   6.6 minutes

 Given all of the above, there is concern that, should more and more smallsat constellations use the
401 – 401.2 and 401.3 – 401.7 MHz bands, by the time the Argos A-DCS satellite launches in
2021, the RF signal environment in those bands will have an adverse impact on the satellite’s
operation.

 NESDIS Recommends we concur conditionally for a limited period of time, not to exceed 3
years, with conditions to not interfere with NOAA satellite operations. This should include
stop buzzer POCs for the VCC missions (use me for the Gov side if you want). Due to the
aggregate smallsat use of this band for smallsat TT&C it is recommended VCC transition
out of the band by 2021.

Please note the ITU-R Recommendations cite above are no longer drafts, and have been approved
by SG7. They still need to go through the ITU comment period to Administrations before coming
into in force status and published.

Please call me if you’d like to discuss.




--
Regards,
Fred Mistichelli


Electronics Engineer
US Department of Commerce (DOC)
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service (NESDIS)

Office of Chief Information Officer

-

Satellites (OCIO-S)
1335 East West Hwy, SSMC-1 (Rm. G1-101)
Silver Spring, MD 20910-3283


(O)
 (301) 713-1647
(C) (202)-308-5016




                                               Page 13 of 16


                                                                                VCC Cubesat Mission
                                 FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018




Appendix 3 GHGSAT Coordination Letter

--------- Forwarded message ---------
From: <carrie.herzog@ghgsat.com>
Date: Fri, Sep 14, 2018 at 9:46 AM
Subject: Re: FCC Frequency Coordination for VCC
To: Erin Puckette <ep2hk@virginia.edu>
Cc: Stephane Germain <stephane.germain@ghgsat.com>, Marcela Arias
<mam@ghgsat.com>, Mike Miller <mlmiller@sterksolutions.com>



Hi Erin,
We have completed our analysis.
We believe that your operations will not interfere with GHGSat's Operations.
Given this information, we consider this coordination as complete.
Thank you,
Regards,

Carrie Herzog
Data Processing and Operations Specialist
GHGSat Inc.
3981 St-Laurent, Suite 500
Montréal, QC H2W1Y5>
Tel : +1-514-847-9474 x218
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE - The information contained in this email and any attachment thereto is intended
exclusively for the individual or entity to whom it is addressed and may be legally privileged and/or confidential. If
you have received it by mistake, please delete it and notify immediately the sender. If you are not the addressee,
you are hereby notified that you are not authorized to use copy or disseminate any information contained in this
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strictement réservée à l'usage de son destinataire et peut contenir des renseignements assujettis au secret
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                                                   Page 14 of 16


                                                                       VCC Cubesat Mission
                        FCC Applications 0240-EX-CN-2018, 0252-EX-CN-2018, 0255-EX-CN-2018

Appendix 4 Latest Communications with Spire Global

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: George John <george.john@spire.com>
Date: Tue, Sep 25, 2018 at 6:24 AM
Subject: Re: UVA Cubesat Project - Licensing Coordination
To: Erin Puckette <ep2hk@virginia.edu>
Cc: Robert Sproles <robert.sproles@spire.com>


Don't worry about it. We know it's a rigorous process!

Talked to the engineering team and they are kindly requesting you submit the full
spectral mask for uplink and downlink for the range of 150MHz -1700MHz. They also
need to know your transmit duty cycle for both up and downlink.

Thanks,
George

On Mon, Sep 24, 2018 at 7:56 PM Erin Puckette <ep2hk@virginia.edu> wrote:
Hi George,

Sorry for the delay, I've been at vibration testing. For the markers given, the spectral
density will be insignificant for all but 402.7 MHz. The roll off value there would be on
the order of -128.861 dB.

Let me know if you need anything else.

Erin Puckette




                                     Page 15 of 16



Document Created: 2018-09-25 23:09:28
Document Modified: 2018-09-25 23:09:28

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