The FCC approved Kuiper Systems’updated orbital debris mitigation plan, thereby satisfying a condition of the 2020 approval for Kuiper to deploy and operate its non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite constellation.
Kuiper Systems is a subsidiary of Amazon.
Kuiper is approved to operate its fixed-satellite service (FSS) system in the 17.7-17.8 GHz, 17.8-18.6 GHz, 18.8-19.3 GHz, 19.3-19.7 GHz, 19.7-20.2 GHz, 27.5-28.6 GHz, 28.6-29.1 GHz, 29.1-29.5 GHz, and 29.5-30.0 GHz bands, and to provide Mobile Satellite Service (MSS), in addition to FSS, in the 19.7-20.2 GHz and 29.5-30.0 GHz bands, and to use MSS feeder links in the 19.4-19.6 GHz and 29.1-29.5 GHz bands, subject to certain conditions.
The FCC notes that Kuiper has provided a worst-case single satellite large object collision risk that can be approximated as 0.0007212 and a targeted mission lifetime of seven years. Over a 15-year license term, and assuming replenishment on a five-year cycle, there would be the initial launch plus a replenishment cycle for the 3,236 satellites, for a total of 6,472 satellites, not counting satellites used to replace failed satellites. At a 5% failure rate, there would be 326 failed satellites for 6,472 satellites launched, with a corresponding cumulative collision risk of 0.230784 (approximately 1 in 4.3).