Amateur satellites short info paper

Introduction

to be deleted when paper is finished

The 16th International Amateur Radio Union Region 3 General Assembly in 2015 adopted the following Recommendation:

• WG1 Recommendation AI 11.6/XVI That the IARU Administrative Council shall consider to make available some information on use of the amateur satellite service for member societies, satellite groups, amateur satellite operators as well as concerned radio amateurs. This information should include, but not be limited to:
• Criteria for a satellite to be in the amateur satellite service and for use of the relevant amateur satellite service frequency allocations
• The frequency allocations available for the amateur satellite service
• The procedure for the IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination
• Where to turn to for additional information and assistance.

Although this recommendation is addressed to the IARU AC, it would be better if Region 3 directors develop a draft because the adopted Recommendation was established based on the contribution of a Region 3 society. A draft guideline was used to develop the paper below.

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide basic information for national amateur radio societies, serving as Point of Contact for individual amateurs and educational institutes as well as individual amateurs and educational institutes who wish to operate a satellite station operating in bands allocated to the amateur satellite service. This guideline should be read in conjunction with the more detailed information available at the IARU website

IARU frequency coordination

Amateur radio operators maintain an effective tradition of self-regulation, including the coordination of frequencies. Satellite frequencies in bands allocated to the amateur satellite service are coordinated by the IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination Panel. The strong preference is for all satellites using spectrum allocated to amateur-satellite services to operate under amateur licenses and within the definition of the amateur-satellite service and the service-specific Article 25 of the Radio Regulations. The IARU believes the definition is sufficiently broad to encompass nearly all educational satellite projects that include giving students hands-on experience with radiocommunication and are conducted under an amateur license. Educational and university satellite projects will only be coordinated when there is an identified amateur component and the mission is to teach and train students in satellite communication and building and launching satellites. The person responsible for the satellite communications must be a licensed radio amateur. The IARU will only coordinate a non-amateur satellite if an administration directs in writing that it be operated in an amateur-satellite band under an experimental or other non-amateur license.

Different categories of short duration satellite missions

Most amateur satellites will be in a Non Geo Stationary Orbit (NGSO). The majority will be short duration missions, with a maximum lifetime of three years. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has identified three main categories for satellites with a short duration mission.

• Educational and amateur radio missions. These are satellite missions with the sole aim of educating people about space, electronics and all aspects of physics involved in space; as well as satellites used for amateur radio “self-training and communication”, with no pecuniary interest, as defined in Article 1 of the RR.
• Experimental and research missions are missions with one or more of the following purposes:
  • To demonstrate a novel space technology in the space environment
  • To perform a proof-of-concept for a certain application involving one or more nanosatellites and pico satellites
  • To perform space research (primarily earth-orbiting, but also lunar and deep space applications).
  • In general these missions will use frequency bands allocated to the space operation, space research and Earth exploration-satellite services.
• Commercial missions, i.e. delivering a certain service in certain areas of applications with a clear pecuniary interest, will operate in frequency bands allocated to that specific service. Examples include missions for Earth observation and telecommunication.

Features for the amateur-satellite system

An amateur-satellite system which is used for providing an amateur-satellite service consists of amateur earth stations and an amateur space station. Some of the essential characteristics of the amateur-satellite service are platforms with propagation beacons, up-link and down-link transponders between various amateur bands, telemetry platforms that monitor the essential functions of the satellite, and command and control functionality. In building and operating the system the operators (radio amateur license holders) must obtain permission from the administration to which the network/operators belongs. Each administration may have its band plan allocating frequencies to telecommunication services, but in an amateur-satellite system IARU establishes its three Region’s band plans taking into account the sharing between the amateur service and amateur-satellite service and the global nature of the satellite service. Therefore, it is highly recommended that the system builder and operators use frequency bands allocated in each IARU Regional band plan. It should be borne in mind that it is not permitted to operate an amateur-satellite system in combination with other telecommunication services. For example, the operation of the system, in which a maritime mobile service is used in the earth to space direction and an amateur-satellite service is used in the space to earth direction, is not permitted.

Combined missions: A combined satellite mission has an amateur payload and a payload that belongs to a different service. Both payloads use their own frequency allocations. They must use these separate frequency allocations for payload downlinks and TT&C.

Frequency bands available for the amateur-satellite service

In the ITU Radio Regulations, some frequency bands are allocated to the amateur-satellite service exclusively or on a shared basis with other radiocommunication services on a primary or a secondary base. Based on these ITU frequency allocations, the IARU designates frequency bands to be used for the amateur-satellite service in the IARU three Region’s band plans, taking into account the sharing between the amateur service and amateur-satellite service and the global nature of the amateur-satellite service. The following table shows frequency allocations to the amateur-satellite service which are extracted from the ITU Radio Regulations and IARU Regions 1, 2 and 3 band plans. It should be noted that more detailed information such as any bandwidth restrictions or permitted modes of operation allowed in each frequency band are not included. The more detailed information is available in each Region band plan, if applicable.

HF bands allocated to the amateur satellite service

• 7.000-7.100 MHz
• 14.000-14.250 MHz
• 18.068-18.168 MHz
• 21.000-21.450 MHz
• 24.890-24.990 MHz
• 28.000-29.700 MHz. Available for satellite use 29.300-29.510 MHz.

2 meter band

available for satellite use

• 144.000-144.025 MHz for downlinks only
• 145.200 and 145.490 MHz for human spaceflight missions only
• 145.800-146.000 MHz

70 cm band

Available for satellite use is the frequency band 435.000-438.000 MHz. In general the maximum bandwidth is 100 kHz.
For larger bandwidths the use of higher frequency bands is recommended.

23 cm band

available for satellite use 1260.000-1270.000 MHz Earth-to-space

13 cm band

available for satellite use 2400.000-2450.000 MHz 2400-2403 narrow band (wifi channel 1 is at 2412)

higher frequency bands

• 3.402-3.410 GHz (Regions 2 and 3 only)
• 5.650-5.670 GHz Earth-to-space
• 5.830-5.850 GHz space-to-Earth
• 10.450-10.500 GHz
• 24.0480-24.0488 and 24.0490-24.0500 GHz
• 47.088-47.090 GHz
• 75.500-76.000 GHz and 77.500-77.501 GHz
• 134.000-134.928 GHz
• 248.000-248.001 GHz

The procedure for the IARU Satellite Frequency Coordination

Member States (countries) of the ITU have agreed to maximise the use of the radio frequency spectrum and to minimise interference through a treaty called the International Telecommunication Convention.

Space stations operating in the amateur satellite service are required to be notified under Article 11.2 of the Radio Regulations (RR) since the use of a frequency assignment may cause harmful interference to a service of another administration. Prior to notification, in accordance with RR Article 9.1, the notifying administration of such networks is required to send to the ITU Radio Communications Bureau (BR) the advance publication information (API) not earlier than 7 years and preferably not later than 2 years before the date of bringing into use. The data to be submitted for the notification of the space station is specified in RR Appendix 4. For the reference there is an exemption from the notification procedure under RR Article 11 for stations in the amateur service and earth stations in the amateur-satellite service. RR Article 11.14 : Frequency assignments to ship stations and to mobile stations of other services, to stations in the amateur service, to earth stations in the amateur-satellite service, and those to broadcasting stations in the high-frequency bands allocated to the broadcasting service between 5 900 kHz and 26 100 kHz which are subject to Article 12 shall not be notified under this Article. However, space stations in the amateur-satellite service are not exempt from the notification procedure under RR Article 11. Prior to the notification of frequencies, coordination for amateur radio satellites is provided by the IARU through its Satellite Advisor, a senior official appointed by the IARU Administrative Council, its top policymaking body. The IARU Satellite Advisor is assisted by an Advisory Panel of qualified amateurs from all three IARU Regions. Some administrations, for example Japan, USA, require frequency coordination by the IARU prior to the API application. A frequency Coordination request for an amateur-satellite service space station is made using the IARU Amateur Satellite Frequency Coordination Request Form. The form is available at: request form The IARU Amateur Satellite Frequency Coordination Request Form has a field for filling in the API number as received from ITU when performing the notification. If the information is not available at the time of filing in the IARU form, it should be forwarded when available. More detailed information is available at ARS-Tutorial

Encryption

With the exception of control signals exchanged between earth command stations and space stations in the amateur-satellite service all amateur signals shall not be encoded for the purpose of obscuring their meaning. To meet this requirement operators of satellites in the amateur satellite service MUST publish their telemetry formats and equations.

Advanced Publication Information (API)

An API is a mandatory first regulatory step before the so called coordination phase or coordination (See RR article 9.1 Submission to ITU should be done through the national radio communication administration. Non GSO amateur satellites are not subject to coordination.

old text from Region 3 proposal

In addition to the articles mentioned in the previous sections the following articles and resolutions should be also taken into account in establishing an amateur satellite system. RESOLUTION 642 (Relating to the bringing into use of earth stations in the amateur-satellite service) resolves:

• 1 that when an administration (or one acting on behalf of a group of named administrations) intends to establish a satellite system in the amateur-satellite service and wishes to publish information with respect to earth stations in that system it may:
  • 1.1 communicate to the Radiocommunication Bureau all or part of the information listed in Appendix 4; the Bureau shall publish such information in a Special Section of its BR IFIC requesting comments to be communicated within a period of four months after the date of publication;
  • 1.2 notify under Nos. 11.2 to 11.8 all or part of the information listed in Appendix 4; the Bureau shall record it in a special list;
• 2 that this information shall include at least the characteristics of a typical amateur earth station in the mateur-satellite service having the facility to transmit signals to the space station to initiate, modify, or terminate the functions of the space station.

Regulatory background

ITU Radio Regulations

• ARTICLE 1 Terms and definitions
  • No. 1.56 amateur service: A radiocommunication service for the purpose of self-training, intercommunication and technical investigations carried out by amateurs, that is, by duly authorized persons interested in radio technique solely with a personal aim and without pecuniary interest.
  • No. 1.57 amateur-satellite service: A radiocommunication service using space stations on earth satellites for the same purposes as those of the amateur service.
  • No. 1.96 amateur station: A station in the amateur service.
• ARTICLE 22 Space services
  • No. 22.1 § 1 Space stations shall be fitted with devices to ensure immediate cessation of their radio emissions by telecommand, whenever such cessation is required under the provisions of these Regulations.
• ARTICLE 25 Section I - Amateur service. This section applies to terrestrial amateur stations as well as amateur satellite stations. Of particular interest for amateur satellite stations:
  • No. 25.2A 1A) Transmissions between amateur stations of different countries shall not be encoded for the purpose of obscuring their meaning, except for control signals exchanged between earth command stations and space stations in the amateur-satellite service. (WRC-03)
• ARTICLE 25 Section II - Amateur-satellite service
  • No. 25.10 § 6 The provisions of Section I of this Article shall apply equally, as appropriate, to the amateur-satellite service.
  • No. 25.11 § 7 Administrations authorizing space stations in the amateur-satellite service shall ensure that sufficient earth command stations are established before launch to ensure that any harmful interference caused by emissions from a station in the amateur-satellite service can be terminated immediately (see No. 22.1). (WRC-03)

Note: The most important things are that amateur stations shall not be used for radiocommunication services other than the amateur-satellite service, shall not be used for any commercial purpose, shall not be operated by a person without an Amateur license issued by the administration of the country to which the station in question is subject and the person shall not be compensated for the operation.

relevant ITU resolutions

• RESOLUTION 642 Relating to the bringing into use of earth stations in the amateur-satellite service

relevant ITU Reports

• Report ITU-R SA.2312-0 Characteristics, definitions and spectrum requirements of nanosatellites and picosatellites, as well as systems composed of such satellites.
• Report ITU-R SA.2348-0 Current practice and procedures for notifying space networks currently applicable to nanosatellites and pico satellites.