Bankrupt telecommunications satellite company OneWeb has secured support from the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to launch another 1280 satellites for a future Internet service.
OneWeb already received FCC approval in June 2017 to launch a constellation of 720 satellites. The first 720 satellites, of which OneWeb has launched 74, will be in low Earth orbit at an altitude of 1200 km. For another 1280 satellites, permission was obtained to operate in medium earth orbit at an altitude of 8500 km. This is well below the 35 km geostationary orbits used for traditional broadband satellite networks. The use of low geostationary orbits allows you to reduce signal delay for a more convenient interaction with Internet users.
In May 2020, OneWeb submitted another application to launch 47 satellites at an altitude of 844 km, however it is not clear how long it will take to receive FCC approval. OneWeb's application to launch 1200 satellites has been under review by the regulator for more than three years. During this time, the FCC changed the rules regarding satellite broadband several times, including the introduction in April 1280 of new licensing rules for one of the spectrum bands for which OneWeb eventually received approval.
As OneWeb is based in London, it will also need UK regulatory approval. The UK government is part of the consortium, at last month's New York auction to buy OneWeb.
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Source: 3dnews.ru