Attachment STA Request

This document pretains to SES-STA-20120917-00826 for Special Temporal Authority on a Satellite Earth Station filing.

IBFS_SESSTA2012091700826_966689

Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20554 In the Matter of Application by ) ) SES AMERICOM, INC. ) Call Sign E970336 ) For Special Temporary Authority to ) Communicate with QuetzSat-1 to Perform ) Additional In-Orbit Testing at 67.1º W.L. ) And for TT&C During Move to 61.5° W.L. ) REQUEST FOR SPECIAL TEMPORARY AUTHORITY By this application, SES Americom, Inc. (“SES Americom,” doing business as “SES”) respectfully requests special temporary authority (“STA”) for a period of up to 30 days, commencing on or about September 24, 2012, to permit SES to use its South Mountain, CA earth station E970336 to communicate with the QuetzSat-1 spacecraft. Specifically, SES proposes to use E970336 to conduct additional in-orbit testing (“IOT”) of QuetzSat-1 at 67.1º W.L. In addition, SES seeks authority to perform Tracking, Telemetry and Command (“TT&C”): (a) while QuetzSat-1 remains at 67.1º W.L.; (b) during a planned relocation of the satellite to 61.5º W.L.; and (c) on-station once the satellite arrives at 61.5° W.L. As discussed below, grant of the requested authority is in the public interest. 1 QuetzSat-1 is a foreign-licensed Direct Broadcast Satellite (“DBS”) spacecraft. The Commission previously authorized the use of the E970336 earth for initial operational 1 QuetzSat-1 is currently operating under a U.K. Outer Space Act license and will be registered as a U.K. space object. The U.K. Space Agency has indicated that it has no objection to the proposed temporary operation of QuetzSat-1 at 61.5° W.L.

testing of QuetzSat-1 at 67.1º W.L. after it was successfully launched on September 29, 2011.2 SES expects to receive instructions from its customer, EchoStar 77 Corporation (“EchoStar”), to relocate the satellite temporarily to 61.5º W.L. and to perform associated testing prior to doing so. At 61.5º W.L, the satellite will provide bridge service pending the delayed launch of EchoStar 16. Transmissions from the E970336 earth station to QuetzSat-1 during the additional IOT will conform to the technical characteristics described in Attachment A. The additional IOT proposed here will evaluate a slightly different configuration for QuetzSat-1. The additional IOT will involve verifying the performance characteristics and antenna patterns of this alternate configuration, and will include the following tests: satellite power amplifier transfer characteristics; satellite transponder characteristics; antenna mapping; and EIRP, SFD, and polarization isolation checks. Some tests will involve transmitting saturating CW carriers to the 3 satellite in the DBS bands. The proposed operations will not adversely affect adjacent satellite operators. Coordination of the additional IOT is underway with adjacent DBS satellite operators. The nearest operational DBS satellites are the EchoStar satellites at the nominal 61.5° W.L. orbital location and the Telesat Canada Nimiq 5 spacecraft at 72.7° W.L. EchoStar (or an affiliate thereof) is the sole customer on QuetzSat-1; the sole licensee of the DBS spacecraft at the nominal 61.5° W.L. orbital location; and the sole customer of all of the DBS capacity on Nimiq 2 See File No.SES-STA-20110729-00873 (grant-stamped Sept. 12, 2011) (“E970336 STA”). The authority was extended in File No. SES-STA-20110928-01151 (grant-stamped Oct. 24, 2011). 3 The technical details regarding QuetzSat-1’s alternate configuration at 61.5° W.L., including a completed Schedule S and a narrative technical appendix, will be filed separately with the Commission. 2

5 at 72.7° W.L. Accordingly, SES expects coordination of IOT to be completed before testing begins. The drift of the spacecraft will be coordinated with other spacecraft operators consistent with industry practice. Furthermore, as with the original E970336 STA, SES will accept interference from any regularly authorized network and will terminate operations if SES is notified that such a network is experiencing harmful interference.4 The positioning of QuetzSat-1 at 61.5° W.L. and the use of E970336 to perform on-station TT&C with QuetzSat-1 has been coordinated with EchoStar Satellite Operating Corporation, the licensee of other DBS satellites at that orbital location. Grant of this request is in the public interest. The additional QuetzSat-1 testing will facilitate evaluation of the spacecraft’s performance and ensure that QuetzSat-1 is fully operational before the satellite commences providing commercial services at 61.5° W.L. The requested TT&C authority will facilitate the safe operation of QuetzSat-1. SES hereby certifies that no party to this application is subject to a denial of federal benefits pursuant to Section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, 21 U.S.C. § 862. 4 See id. 3

For the foregoing reasons, SES respectfully requests special temporary authority to communicate with QuetzSat-1 for a period of up to 30 days in order to perform additional in- orbit testing and conduct TT&C as described herein. Respectfully submitted, SES AMERICOM, INC. By: /s/ Daniel C.H. Mah Of Counsel Daniel C.H. Mah Karis A. Hastings Regulatory Counsel SatCom Law LLC SES Americom, Inc. 1317 F Street, N.W., Suite 400 Four Research Way Washington, D.C. 20004 Princeton, NJ 08540 Tel: (202) 599-0975 Dated: September 17, 2012 4

ATTACHMENT A E970336 Technical Information TT&C Emissions Emission Designator: 1M00G7W Max EIRP: 86.5 dBW Max EIRP Density: 62.5 dBW/4kHz Tx Frequency Range: 17300-17800 MHz Rx Frequency Range: 12200-12700 MHz Polarization: Left and Right Circular IOT Emissions Emission Designator: 1K00K3N Max EIRP: 86.5 dBW Max EIRP Density: 92.5 dBW/4kHz Tx Frequency Range: 17300-17800 MHz Rx Frequency Range: 12200-12700 MHz Polarization: Left and Right Circular Emission Designator: N0N Max EIRP: 86.5 dBW Max EIRP Density: 92.5 dBW/4kHz Tx Frequency Range: 17300-17800 MHz Rx Frequency Range: 12200-12700 MHz Polarization: Left and Right Circular Emission Designator: 24M0G7W Max EIRP: 86.5 dBW Max EIRP Density: 48.7 dBW/4kHz Tx Frequency Range: 17300-17800 MHz Rx Frequency Range: 12200-12700 MHz Polarization: Left and Right Circular Emission Designator: 24M0F3D Max EIRP: 86.5 dBW Max EIRP Density: 48.7 dBW/4kHz Tx Frequency Range: 17300-17800 MHz Rx Frequency Range: 12200-12700 MHz Polarization: Left and Right Circular


Document Created: 2012-09-17 21:37:26
Document Modified: 2012-09-17 21:37:26
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