Attachment 1991Order DA 90-1879

1991Order DA 90-1879

ORDER submitted by CCB, FCC

Order DA 90-1879

1991-01-04

This document pretains to SAT-MOD-19900926-00054 for Modification on a Satellite Space Stations filing.

IBFS_SATMOD1990092600054_1060662

Federal Communications Commission DA 90—1879 3. Moving Satcom 1R, however, would leave the 139° Before the W.L. location unoccupied. GE Americom notes that the Federal Communications Commission Aurora 2 satellite —— which is assigned to 139° W.L. and Washington, D.C. 20554 which will eventually serve the Satcom 1R customers —— will not be launched until mid—1991. GE Americom therefore proposes to locate its Satcom C—1 satellite, which In the Matters of was launched in November 1990 and is assigned to 137° W.L.. at 1399 W.L. on a temporary basis." It states that it will move Satcom C—1 to its assigned location when Au— GE AMERICAN File Nos. 65—DSS—ML—90 rora 2 becomes operational. GE Americom submits that COMMUNICATIONS, INC. this plan is less disruptive than requiring customers to Application for repoint their antennas twice —— once to Satcom C—1 at 137° Orbital Reassignment W.L. and then back to Aurora 2 at 139° W.L. —— at a cost of Satcom 1R of approximately $1.25 million. 4. Finally, Alascom requests authority to test Aurora 2 GE AMERICAN 64—DSS—MISC—90 at 136° W.L. before it is moved to 139° W.L. Alascom states that if Satcom C—1 is operating at 139° W.L. when COMMUNICATIONS, INC. Aurora 2 is launched, as proposed, testing Aurora 2 at its Application for assigned location will prematurely and unnecessarily dis— Temporary Assignment rupt customers receiving service from 139° W.L. Alascom of Satcom C—1 states that 136"° W.L. is the most feasible location for testing Aurora 2 since it will be separated by three degrees from Satcom C—1. which will be operating on the same ALASCOM, INC. 1—DSS—MISC—91 polarization, and two degrees from Hughes‘s Galaxy 1 Application for satellite, which is cross—polarized with Aurora 2. Alascom Temporary Assignment states that Aurora 2 should be fully tested and on station of Aurora 2 at 139° W.L. no later than July 1991. 5. No oppositions to the proposed orbital rearrangements were filed. HCG, however, filed com— ORDER ments in which it alleges that the operation of Satcom C—1 from its assigned 137° W.L. location presents a serious Adopted: December 28, 1990; Released: January 4, 1991 potential for disrupting millions of cable television view— ers on HCG‘s Galaxy 1 satellite. Galaxy 1 is currently By the Domestic Facilities Division: operating at 134° W.L. although it is assigned to the 133° W.L. location. HCG suggests that we require GE Americom to monitor the earth station antennas transmit— I. BACKGROUND ting to Satcom C—1 and require power reductions in their 1. GE American Communications, Inc. (GE uplink transmissions, as necessary, during the transition Americom) and Alascom. Inc. (Alascom) have filed three period to HCG‘s next generation satellite in 1994. related applications pertaining to their Satcom and Au— rora domestic fixed—satellite systems. In the first, GE Americom requests authority to relocate its in—orbit II. DISCUSSION Satcom 1R satellite from 139° W.L. to 131° W.L. In the 6. Granting the GE Americom and Alascom requests second, GE Americom requests authority to operate its will serve the public interest, convenience and necessity. recently launched Satcom C—1 satellite at the vacated 139° No new orbital locations are involved. The proposed or— W.L. location on a temporary basis. In the third, Alascom bital plan and temporary assignments will allow GE requests authority to test its Aurora 2 satellite at 136° Americom and Alascom to provide continued service and W.L. for an eight—week period when the satellite is will eliminate the need for customers to repoint their launched in mid—1991. Hughes Communications Galaxy, antennas. Moreover, no party has objected to any of the Inc. (HCG) filed comments with respect to GE relocations requested in the applications at issue. We Americom‘s applications. For the reasons discussed below. therefore grant the requests. the three applications are granted. 7. With respect to HCG‘s comments, the allegations of 2. All three requests stem from the impending retire— potential interference from Satcom C—l‘s operations at ment of GE Americom‘s Satcom 3R satellite, which is 1378 W.L. are not properly raised in this proceeding. operating at 131° W.L. Satcom 3R was launched in 1981 Satcom C—1 was assigned to 137° W.L. in January 1990, and is currently operating beyond its eight—year nominal after its application was placed on public notice and after design life. The satellite is used exclusively to distribute opportunity for public comment. 3 HCG did not object to video programming primarily to cable television systems Satcom C—l‘s operations at that time. Its comments here and, according to GE Americom, serves approximately 50 may be considered as an untimely petition for reconsider— million homes. GE Americom states that the least disrup— ation of that decision and dismissed on those grounds.* tive means of maintaining programming for its customers 8. In any event, HCG has not presented any potential is to move its in—orbit spare satellite, Satcom 1R, from interference concerns that warrant placing any extraor— 139° W.L., where it is currently operating, to 131° W.L. dinary conditions regarding the monitoring of uplinking Satcom 1R would then operate at 131° W.L. until Satcom earth stations or other coordination requirements on 3R‘s authorized replacement, Satcom C—3, is launched in Satcom C—1‘s license. HCG‘s concerns stem not from the early 1993." operations of Satcom C—1 per se, but from problems

DA 90—1879 Federal Communications Commission caused by earth station uplink transmissions into the sat— FOOTNOTES ellite. As HCG acknowledges, "{wlith proper power limits ‘ GE Americom states that it plans to maintain Satcom 3R as on the operation of small and transportable earth stations, a non—operational in—orbit spare. HCG does not expect that Satcom C—1 will cause * GE Americom states that it will operate Satcom C—1, which unacceptable interference into Galaxy 1."" HCG, how— is equipped with polarization switching capability, in the verti— ever, does not provide any documentation to support its cal polarization sense while it is operating at 139° W.L. to claims that earth station licensees are regularly exceeding conform to the C—band polarization plan at that location. their authorized powers or that licensed earth stations operating at higher powers are causing harmful interfer— 3 Assignment of Orbital Locations to Space Stations in the ence.° As with all licensees of new satellites, it is incum— Domestic Fixed—Satellite Service, 5 FCC Red 179 (1990) (Re— bent on GE Americom to coordinate its operations with consideration Order). the operations of adjacent in—orbit satellites before it * HCG states that its objections are timely because it recently brings its satellite into service at 137° W.L. Satcom C—l‘s learned that Satcom C—1‘s performance specifications are dif— power levels fall within those levels that are routinely ferent from what HCG had understood them to be. This does authorized. Other satellites are operating with comparable not alter the procedural deficiencies of HCG‘s pleading. If HCG specifications and these satellites have been and are con— believes that GE Americom is implementing the Satcom C—1 tinuing to be coordinated among affected licensees with— satellite with technical specifications different from those au— out a special license requirement. There is no reason to thorized, this proceeding —— which involves only Satcom C—I‘s believe that Satcom C—1 will not similarly be successfully temporary assignment to 139° W.L. —— is not the appropriate coordinated with adjacent satellites without the need for place in which to raise these issues. Commission involvement. $ HCG Response at 3. 6 If HCG believes this to be the case in general, it is more appropriately addressed in the context of a Rule Making pro— III. CONCLUSION ceeding. The Commission will take any necessary action in the 9. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that Application File context of that proceeding. Nos. 64—DSS—MISC—90, 65—DSS—ML—90, and 1—DSS—MISC— 91 ARE GRANTED. 10. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Orbital As— signment Plan set forth in the Appendix to Assignment of Space Stations in the Domestic Fixed—Satellite Service, 3 FCC Red 6972 (1988), modified, 5 FCC Red 179 (1990), further modified in American Satellite Company, 5 FCC Rced 1186 (1990), in GTE Spacenet Corporation, 5 FCC Red 1182 (1990), and in Hughes Communications Galaxy, Inc., 5 FCC Red 3423 (1990) IS FURTHER MODIFIED to assign Satcom 1R to 131° W.L. 11. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that GE Americom Communications,. Inc. IS AUTHORIZED to operate Satcom C—1 at the 139° W.L. orbital location on the condition that the satellite be moved to its regularly as— signed location of 137° W.L. not later than the date on which 139° W.L. is ready to be occupied by Alascom. Inc.‘s Aurora 2 satellite. 12. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Alascom, Inc. IS AUTHORIZED to test Aurora 2 at the 136° W.L. orbital location for an eight week period after it is launched. At the expiration of this period, it must begin to move the satellite to its regularly assigned location of 139° W.L. 13. GE American Communications, Inc. and Alascom, Inc. are afforded thirty days from the date of release of this order to decline the authorizations as conditioned. Failure to respond within this time period will constitute formal acceptance of the authorizations as conditioned. FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION James R. Keegan Chief, Domestic Facilities Division Common Carrier Bureau


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