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Review of the Space Communications Program of Nasas Space Operations Mission Directorate
Assessment of Other Program Elements
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Review of the Space Communications Program of Nasas Space Operations Mission Directorate
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Review of the Space Communications Program of Nasas Space Operations Mission Directorate
4
Spectrum Management
INTRODUCTION
NASA has extensive communications and remote sensing systems, and the availability of adequately protected electromagnetic (EM) spectrum enables the implementation of these systems. NASA headquarters and various field centers play key roles by ensuring that NASA has access to EM spectrum and that it complies with U.S. and international regulations regarding spectrum use.
There are approximately 150 spacecraft in NASA’s purview that rely on access to various passive and active spectral bands to conduct space research, space operations, passive and active Earth exploration, meteorological monitoring, intersatellite communications, radionavigation, and deep-space research. Achieving NASA’s mission and vision relating to space exploration, scientific discovery, and aeronautics research implicitly requires the involvement of the spectrum management element in the planning and implementation of these programs.
NASA’s spectrum policy and planning organization at NASA headquarters and supporting centers represents and advocates for NASA’s needs for electromagnetic spectrum in national and international spectrum regulatory forums, obtains operational authority for NASA programs, supports the federal government’s four-stage review process, obtains domestic assignments and international registration, advances U.S. requirements globally, formulates spectrum policies in national and international regulatory bodies, provides technical advocacy in support of U.S. commercial aerospace industries, facilitates private-sector use of spectrum, and encourages commercialization of space.
Spectrum Management Organization
The spectrum management program element and critical personnel are defined in that element’s policy directive1 and management manual.2 The NASA spectrum management organization is shown in Figure 4.1.
The associate administrator for the Space Operations Mission Directorate (AA/SOMD) is designated the NASA spectrum manager and is responsible for ensuring compliance with pertinent international and national rules and regulations affecting all NASA radio frequency spectrum users. The AA/SOMD has delegated authority for the overall planning, policy, and administration of the NASA Spectrum Management program to the director, Spectrum Policy and Planning (HQ/SOMD), who is also the NASA representative to the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee (IRAC), which assists the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) in the allocation, management, and use of spectrum by the U.S. government. Other personnel include the deputy director, Spectrum Policy; national and international spectrum program executives; center spectrum managers; and various staff members.3
The director, Spectrum Policy and Planning (HQ/ SOMD), establishes policies and procedures, and the national and international program executives implement them. The international program executive directs activities related to the electromagnetic spectrum that involve entities external to the United States, including the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), other non-NASA civilian space agencies (e.g., European Space Agency, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and others), and the Space Frequency Coordination Group (SFCG). The national program executive directs domestic EM spectrum activities involving entities internal to the United States, including the NTIA and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The national program executive also ensures that the spectrum operational plan, 5-year plan, and long-range plan are updated and cooperates in assisting the NTIA in its federal spectrum strategic planning effort.
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Review of the Space Communications Program of Nasas Space Operations Mission Directorate
FIGURE 4.1 NASA spectrum management organization. SOURCE: David Struba, NASA, “NASA Spectrum Management,” briefing to the NRC Committee to Review NASA’s Space Communications Program, Washington, D.C., January 26-27, 2006, p. 8.
Headquarters Spectrum Management Forum
The Headquarters Spectrum Management Forum (HSMF) was established to ensure NASA’s compliance with Office of Management and Budget Circular A-11, Section 33.4, which provides that agencies should consider the economic value of radio spectrum used in major telecommunication, broadcast, radar, and similar systems when developing economic and budget justifications for procurement of these systems. In addition, the HSMF identifies and validates future spectrum requirements and ensures intra-NASA compatibility by coordinating spectrum requirements among the various mission directorates. Members of the HSMF include liaisons from the Space Operations Mission Directorate, Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, Science Mission Directorate, and Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, and the external relations spectrum liaison, the legislative affairs spectrum liaison, and the general counsel spectrum liaison. The director, Spectrum Policy and Planning (HQ), chairs the HSMF with support from the national and international spectrum program executives. The HSMF meets at least once every 90 days.
NASA Spectrum Management Group
The NASA Spectrum Management Group (NSMG) provides a forum for the exchange of information on spectrum management requirements, actions, and issues. The NSMG is composed of spectrum managers from each center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex (DSCC), and various test facilities. The NSMG meets annually under the leadership of the national spectrum program executive at NASA headquarters.
Field Centers
The Glenn Research Center (GRC) spectrum management organization, which reports to NASA headquarters but is located at GRC, is responsible for working all spectrum issues with the center spectrum managers on a shared, but complementary, basis with the national and international regulators.
Each field center, JPL, the Goldstone DSCC, and the various test facilities has a spectrum manager to ensure that all electromagnetic emissions comply with U.S. regulations and to ensure the electromagnetic integrity of their facility. The center spectrum managers provide national, international, on-center, and miscellaneous support. They are involved in the pre-acquisition and acquisition processes and provide briefings on spectrum management to new projects.
The Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is responsible for the spectrum management of the Ground Network and the Space Network, and JPL is responsible for spectrum management of the Deep Space Network. Spectrum management for a mission is a shared and complementary responsibility: GSFC or JPL is responsible for network spectrum management, and the program center is responsible for spacecraft spectrum management.
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Review of the Space Communications Program of Nasas Space Operations Mission Directorate
Budget
The annual budget for the spectrum management program element is approximately $6 million per year and includes 17 full-time-equivalent civil service employees and 24 work-year-equivalent contractors.4
ASSESSMENT
Formulation of the Program Plan
While NASA’s strategic plan5 does not specifically address spectrum management, all of NASA’s space communications programs rely on the availability of spectrum and NASA’s ability to meet the complex national and international regulatory requirements.
NASA’s Headquarters Spectrum Management Forum, chaired by the director, Spectrum Policy and Planning, identifies and validates future spectrum requirements and coordinates spectrum management across all of NASA’s space communications programs.
The spectrum management program element has multiple short- and long-term goals and objectives:6 (1) obtain adequate spectrum to support NASA programs, (2) ensure compliance with national and international rules and regulations, (3) ensure timely processing of spectrum allocations and frequency assignment requests and dissemination of regulatory changes, (4) provide guidance to NASA mission program managers, (5) identify and mitigate radio frequency interference, either from or to NASA programs, (6) plan and obtain new allocations or enhanced radio regulations through national and international organizations, (7) provide spectrum planning and support for NASA’s technology transfer mission, and (8) advocate rules and rule changes that support the lowest-life-cycle-cost technical solutions to NASA programs for meeting their communications needs. These goals and objectives require an ongoing and long-term commitment of funding.
The spectrum management program element is different from typical NASA development programs in that there is no hardware development, and the program requires a long-term and ongoing commitment. NASA has made a significant commitment to spectrum management in both the national and international communities, and the committee expects that this commitment of agency resources will continue in the future. In addition, progress is dependent on the processes of external domestic and international agencies such as the NTIA and ITU. Although compliance with existing regulatory policies and procedures is generally straightforward, the allocation of new bands and services requires years of effort, given that World Radio Conferences (WRCs) meet infrequently. NASA has a long-term relationship with other space-faring nations and international organizations and has been successful in advocating its spectrum management goals. The committee expects these relationships to continue in the future.
The spectrum management program element is regularly involved in national and international meetings to advance its long-term spectrum management goals. NASA’s success can be indirectly assessed in terms of the adoption of its positions through the frequent national WRC preparatory meetings, periodic international WRCs, annual SFCG meetings, and periodic Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL) meetings.
Connection to the Broader Community
NASA is a member of the NTIA Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee, the International Telecommunication Union Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R), SFCG, and CITEL, and it coordinates spectrum utilization with other government agencies, the commercial space industry, and international space-faring nations. NASA interfaces with multiple internal, national, and international venues in the area of spectrum management (Figure 4.2).7 NASA chairs ITU-R U.S. Study Group 7 (Science Services) and two U.S. working parties on space science, and it contributes to various other ITU-R U.S. study groups and working parties.
Domestically, the national spectrum program executive is the NASA representative to the Spectrum Planning Subcommittee, Frequency Assignment Subcommittee, and Technical Subcommittee of the Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee of the NTIA. These subcommittees independently review NASA’s requests for frequency authorization and may request additional analysis to support requests for frequency authorization.
Internationally, the FCC International Telecommunication Advisory Committee (ITAC) General Guidance Document8 governs U.S. participation in the ITU-R and in the CITEL PCC II (radio communication, including broadcasting) organizations. In particular, prior to submission of any U.S. document to an international meeting of the ITU-R, or to the Radio Regulations Board, or to meetings of CITEL PCC II, the document must be reviewed and approved by the U.S. Department of State in consultation with the FCC and NTIA. The U.S. ITAC-R review process ensures that U.S. government inputs are technically sound and comply with national policy.
NASA is one of the foremost leaders in spectrum management and is certainly on a par with the European Space Agency (ESA), Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales, Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, the Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, and the Indian Space Research Organisation. NASA generally operates in the space research and deep-space bands, which are different from the bands used by military and commercial space systems. In 2000, a NASA report evaluated whether commercial space systems could replace the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS), and the report concluded that commercial systems cannot provide wide-range, continuous coverage of low-Earth-orbit satel-
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Review of the Space Communications Program of Nasas Space Operations Mission Directorate
FIGURE 4.2 NASA spectrum management program element involvement with national and international groups. SOURCE: David Struba, NASA, “NASA Spectrum Management,” briefing to the NRC Committee to Review NASA’s Space Communications Program, Washington, D.C., January 26-27, 2006, p. 10.
lites and support NASA’s real-time communications requirements.9 NASA’s Space Network is, however, interoperable with satellites from other space agencies. NASA is a member of the SFGC, which provides a forum for multilateral discussion and coordination of spectrum matters concerning space research, space operations, and so on.
In anticipation of future missions, NASA has submitted to the ITU-R and SFCG several documents that address spectrum standards for missions to the Moon and Mars. These include:
The definition of frequency bands for human and robotic exploration of the Moon compatible with deep-space missions as well as other guidance for spectrum management in the lunar region, and
A proposed telecommunication relay network for Mars exploration and guidelines for the assignment of radio frequency spectrum for communications in the Mars region.
NASA is also coordinating its utilization of the radio frequency spectrum in the lunar region with the international community of space-faring nations at technical and intergovernmental meetings.
Methodology
NASA has extensive policies, procedures, and processes regarding spectrum management in order to provide the overall radio frequency spectrum implementation and administration policies necessary to support present and future programs. These include:
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NASA Electromagnetic (EM) Spectrum Management Policy Directive, NPD 2570.5D;10
NASA Radio Frequency (RF) Spectrum Management Manual, NPD 2570.1;11
NASA Long Range Electromagnetic Spectrum Forecast;12
NASA EM Spectrum Operational Plan;13 and
Implementation plans unique to each NASA center.
The committee met with the Goddard spectrum manager to assess the spectrum management program at a representative field center. Goddard was selected because the TDRSS constellation and many Earth science programs are managed there. The committee’s assessment is that the Goddard spectrum management program is well managed, and there is a clear and unambiguous understanding of roles and responsibilities and of how the center spectrum management program fits into the overall NASA spectrum management program. The Goddard spectrum manager is an integral part of the pre-acquisition and acquisition process for new missions; he briefs every new mission on national and international spectrum management requirements. The Goddard spectrum manager has 4.5 support personnel, and these personnel are used effectively and efficiently. They routinely perform intersystem interference analyses to assess the ability of NASA systems to share the frequency spectrum with other users and services.
There is continuing demand for spectrum for mobile voice, high-speed data, and Internet-accessible wireless services that subjects NASA crosslinks and downlinks to potential interference from other services. Two examples are (1) the TDRSS crosslink and downlink and (2) the Deep Space Network S-band uplinks.
TDRSS crosslink and downlink. The TDRSS downlink band is shared with government spaceborne active sensors on low-Earth-orbiting satellites, commercial Earth-to-space very-small-aperture terminals (VSATs),14 and air-borne,15 land-mobile satellite,16 and shipboard17 systems. NASA has not experienced unacceptable interference from government spaceborne active sensors, and the Goddard spectrum manager negotiates agreements with commercial systems to protect the TDRSS downlink. In addition, portions of the band are protected by U.S. footnotes. While non-geosynchronous orbit (NGSO) systems are allowed to operate uplinks in this band, which can potentially result in unacceptable interference to TDRSS, there are no operational or known planned NGSO systems in this band.
The TDRSS forward crosslink band is shared with commercial Earth-to-space uplinks; however, TDRSS is protected by both ITU-R18 and U.S. footnotes.19
Although there has been some historical concern about increasing interference to the TDRSS forward crosslink20 and downlink, this interference has not yet materialized.
Deep Space Network S-band uplinks. NASA operates Deep Space Network uplinks from Madrid (Robledo), Spain; Goldstone, California; and Canberra (Tidbinbilla), Australia, in the 2110-2120 MHz band, and this band overlaps the IMT-2000/UMTS band; however, few existing NASA deep-space missions currently operate in this band, and no future missions will operate in it.21 In Canberra, this band is not allocated for IMT-2000 spectrum licensing,22,23 and, in a 2001 report,24 the Australian Communications Authority concluded that 3G mobile services would be able to successfully operate in the Canberra area without any significant short-term interference. In Goldstone, the FCC25 recognized that NASA will continue to operate in this band, and it directed that advanced wireless services licensees must accept any interference received from the Goldstone Deep Space Network facility. In Madrid, the use of this band is constrained because of certain actions taken by Spain in support of its national auctions; however, NASA will be able to access and use the band based on ongoing negotiations and agreements with the Spanish Ministry of Telecommunications.
Finding: NASA has been very effective in protecting its access to the radio frequency spectrum needed for space communications. In addition, the potential interference from a proliferation of Ku-band non-geosynchronous orbit (NGSO) very-small-aperture terminals (VSATs) has not been realized because these systems have not, as yet, been deployed, and NASA is reducing its use of S-band uplinks from its Deep Space Network sites.
Recommendation: Although there is no compelling reason for NASA to vacate the Ku band, it would be prudent for NASA to consider relocating its future Ku-band downlinks to a band with a primary allocation and to encourage users to transition from the Ku band to the Ka band. This approach would provide insurance against unacceptable interference arising from the future proliferation of commercial very-small-aperture terminal uplinks and could offer the secondary benefit of a higher-capacity downlink.
Spectrum management is a long-term effort and commitment, and NASA is diligently working through the NTIA, ITU, and SFCG to protect its interests and implement the President’s Vision for Space Exploration.26 NASA has identified three spectrum allocation deficiencies in forecasting its future requirements for radio frequency spectrum27 that it would like to propose as WRC-2010 agenda items, and these goals and time spans are consistent with future program needs and the national and international regulatory processes.
Overall Capabilities
NASA’s spectrum management work is comparable to
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that performed by other space-faring nations and organizations. NASA is a founding member of the SFCG. In comparison to the ITU Radiocommunication Bureau and Study Groups, the SFCG was established to provide a less formal and more flexible environment for the solution of frequency management problems encountered by member space agencies.
Through its many years of effort in the SFCG, U.S. ITU-R Study Group 7, and the NTIA, NASA has been successful in promoting and preserving the allocation of spectrum for its science missions. NASA has submitted several documents to the ITU-R and SFCG addressing spectrum management for missions to the Moon and Mars in anticipation of its future exploration requirements. These include the definition of frequency bands for human and robotic exploration of the Moon compatible with deep-space missions, other guidance for spectrum management in the lunar region, a proposed telecommunication relay network for Mars exploration and frequency assignment guidelines for communications in the Mars region, and the initiation of recommendations for optical communications.
NASA civil service employees have significant experience and expertise in spectrum management. As an example, a center spectrum manager worked in the Systems Review Branch (SRB)28 of the NTIA for several years and was the chief of the SRB during this period. Prior to his tenure in the NTIA, he worked in spectrum management for the DOD including the DOD spectrum management policy office.
NASA employs the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation Management Services (ASRCMS) and ITT as support contractors. ASRCMS provides both national and international spectrum engineering support to NASA headquarters, and ITT provides international spectrum engineering support to NASA’s Spectrum Engineering Office located at Glenn Research and other centers. Both contractors have significant spectrum management experience, and many of their employees were previously employed by the FCC, State Department, USAF, NASA, and the intelligence community. Their personnel appear to provide excellent support to NASA, skillfully representing NASA interests at SFCG meetings, for example, and complement government capabilities. Both support contractors provide technical support in the areas of frequency coordination, interference analysis, and preparation of documentation to support both national and international meetings. In addition, they monitor new national and international spectrum filings to determine if there is any potential impact on operational and future NASA systems.
The committee visited GSFC as a representative center and found the equipment, facilities, and working environment similar to those of other government laboratories and facilities.
NOTES
1. NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), NASA Electromagnetic Spectrum Management Policy Directive, NPD 2570.5D, October 17, 2005, available at http://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.govdisplayDir.cfm?Internal_ID=N_PD_2570_005D_&page_name=main.
2. NASA, NASA Radio Frequency (RF) Spectrum Management Manual, NPD 2570.1, April 24, 2003, available at http://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.gov/npg_img/N_PR_2570_0001_/N_PR_2570_0001_.pdf.
3. NASA Spectrum Personnel, available at http://spectrum.nasa.gov/about/personnel.aspx.
4. Struba, David, “NASA Spectrum Management,” briefing to the NRC Committee to Review NASA’s Space Communications Program, Washington, D.C., January 26-27, 2006.
5. NASA, 2006 NASA Strategic Plan, NP-2006-02-423-HQ, available at http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/142302main_2006_NASA_Strategic_Plan.pdf.
6. NASA, NASA Radio Frequency (RF) Spectrum Management Manual, NPD 2570.1, April 24, 2003, available at http://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.gov/npg_img/N_PR_2570_0001_/N_PR_2570_0001_.pdf.
7. Struba, David, “NASA Spectrum Management,” briefing to the NRC Committee to Review NASA’s Space Communications Program, Washington, D.C., January 26-27, 2006.
8. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), General Guidance Document, U.S. Participation in the ITU Radiocommunication Sector and in CITEL PCC II (radio communication including broadcasting), November 18, 2003, available at http://www.fcc.gov/ib/sand/irb/guidance.html.
9. NASA, Assessment of Commercial Alternatives to TDRS Services, Version 2, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., December 2000.
10. NASA, NASA Electromagnetic (EM) Spectrum Management Policy Directive, NPD 2570.5D, October 17, 2005, available at http://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.gov/npg_img/N_PD_2570_005D_/N_PD_ 2570_005D__main.pdf.
11. NASA, NASA Radio Frequency (RF) Spectrum Management Manual, NPD 2570.1, April 24, 2003, available at http://nodis3.gsfc.nasa.gov/npg_img/N_PR_2570_0001_/N_PR_2570_0001_.pdf.
12. NASA, NASA Long Range Electromagnetic Spectrum Forecast, Annex A, November 1, 2005.
13. NASA, NASA EM Spectrum Operational Plan, Draft, February 9, 2006.
14. In FCC 05-14, the FCC noted that its database indicated that 2,672 authorizations were issued for GSO FSS Earth stations in the 14.0-14.5 GHz band. The authorizations indicate the maximum number of Earth stations or antennas that a licensee may deploy. Since this is a very-small-aperture terminal (VSAT) band, a single GSO FSS authorization could cover several thousand VSAT Earth terminals.
15. In a 2005 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the FCC considered adding a footnote to protect TDRSS; however, the FCC has not yet issued a final report and order.
16. Land-mobile satellite system users in the 14.0-14.2 GHz band are coordinated on a case-by-case basis through the Frequency Assignment Subcommittee of IRAC.
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17. Earth stations on vessels (ESVs) in the 14.0-14.2 GHz (Earth-to-space) frequency band within 125 km of the NASA TDRSS facilities on Guam or White Sands, New Mexico, are subject to coordination through NTIA IRAC per the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 47, Volume 2, Section 25.222, “Blanket Licensing Provisions for Earth Stations on Vessels,” CFR Citation 47CFR25.222, revised October 1, 2005, available from the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr.
18. International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Radio Regulations, Edition of 2004, Articles 5.502 and 5.503, ITU, Geneva, Switzerland, 2004.
19. U.S. Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Manual of Regulations and Procedures for Federal Radio Frequency Management, May 2003 Edition, January 2006 Revision, US Footnotes US337, US356, and US357, available at http://www.ntia.doc.gov/osmhome/redbook/redbook.html.
20. Wong, Yen, and Mark Burns, NASA/GSFC Ground Segment Upgrades for Ka-Band Support to Near-Earth Spacecraft, AIAA SpaceOps 2002 Conference, October 2002.
21. NASA, NASA Long Range Electromagnetic Spectrum Forecast, Appendix 3, NASA, Washington, D.C., November 1, 2005.
22. Australian Minister of Communications, Information and the Arts, Radiocommunications (Spectrum Re-allocation) Declaration No. 2 of 2000, October 7, 2000, available at www.dcita.gov.au/__data/assets/word_doc/9849/Radiocommunications_Spectrum_Re-allocation_Determination_2_2000.doc.
23. Australian Communications Authority, Radio-communications Spectrum Marketing Plan (2 GHz Band), Commonwealth of Australia, December 4, 2000, available at http://www. acma.gov.au/acmainterwr/radcomm/spectrum_auctions/pdf_files/marketing_plan.pdf.
24. Australian Communications Authority, Compatibility Assessment 2 GHz Deep Space Earth Stations with 3G Mobile Services, Spectrum Planning Report SP 09/01, Radiofrequency Planning Group, June 2001, available at http://www.acma.gov.au/acmainterwr/radcomm/frequency_planning/spps/0109spp.pdf.
25. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 47, Section 27.1134(d), “Protection of Federal Government Operations, Recognition of NASA Goldstone Facility Operations in the 2110–2120 MHz Band,” CFR Citation 47CFR27.1134, revised October 1, 2005, available from the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cfr.
26. NASA, The Vision for Space Exploration, February 2004, available at http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/55583main_vision_space_exploration2.pdf.
27. NASA, NASA Long Range Electromagnetic Spectrum Forecast, Annex A, November 1, 2005.
28. The SRB reviews the spectrum requirements and compatibility of all federal government systems that are submitted to the NTIA Spectrum Planning Subcommittee.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
institutional network
