It is fairly common for satellite companies to verbally spar over constellations, battling over territory such as preferred orbits and the electromagnetic spectrum for data transmission. The venue for such disputes is often the Federal Communications Commission, which has regulatory authority over satellite communications.
Everyone pretty much fights with everyone, but of late, the exchanges between SpaceX and Amazon have turned a bit nasty. And on Wednesday, the FCC chairman weighed in against Amazon.
The issue of the moment is SpaceX’s recent application to the FCC for permission to launch up to 1 million satellites to form a megaconstellation to provide data center services from space.
“Centuries” to deploy
Last Friday, Amazon petitioned the FCC to deny SpaceX’s request. The company founded by Jeff Bezos said SpaceX, in its application, “seems to describe a lofty ambition rather than a real plan.” Amazon told the FCC that SpaceX’s plan was not bounded by reality.
“Timing is likewise uncertain: deploying the proposed million-satellite constellation would take centuries, even assuming the availability of all global launch capacity to do so,” the petition stated.
Amazon and SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk, have sparred for years before the FCC when it comes to megaconstellations.
SpaceX has launched more than 9,000 satellites for its Starlink constellation, and Amazon began launching satellites for its Amazon LEO constellation last year, with about 200 in orbit now. Both of these broadband constellations aim to serve a mix of business and commercial customers. In January, Bezos’ Blue Origin announced plans for another internet constellation, TeraWave, to serve enterprise customers.