Rule2021-20193
Mitigation of Orbital Debris in the New Space Age
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 20, 2021
Effective
October 20, 2021
Issuing agencies
Federal Communications Commission
Abstract
In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years, the information collections associated with certain rules adopted in the Report and Order, Mitigation of Orbital Debris in the New Space Age, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the Federal Register announcing the effective date of those rules.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 179 (Monday, September 20, 2021)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 179 (Monday, September 20, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 52101-52102]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-20193]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
47 CFR Parts 5 and 97
[IB Docket No. 18-313, FCC 20-54; FR ID 48757]
Mitigation of Orbital Debris in the New Space Age
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Final rule; announcement of effective date.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission announces that the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) has approved, for a period of three years,
the information collections associated with certain rules adopted in
the Report and Order, Mitigation of Orbital Debris in the New Space
Age, which stated that the Commission would publish a document in the
Federal Register announcing the effective date of those rules.
DATES: The amendments to 47 CFR 5.64(b) and 97.207(g)(1), published at
85 FR 52422 on August 25, 2020, are effective October 20, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Merissa Velez, International Bureau,
Satellite Division, at (202) 418-0751. For information regarding the
PRA information collection requirements contained in the PRA, contact
Cathy Williams, Office of Managing Director, at (202) 418-2918 or
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f1b290859988dfa6989d9d98909c82b1979292df969e87"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6b280a1f0312453c020707020a06182b0d0808450c041d">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document announces that OMB approved
the information collection requirements in 47 CFR 5.64(b) and
97.207(g)(1), on July 21, 2021. These rules were modified in the Report
and Order in IB Docket No. 18-313, FCC 20-54, Mitigation of Orbital
Debris in the New Space Age, published at 85 FR 52422 on August 25,
2020. The Commission publishes this document as an announcement of the
compliance date of the rules. The Report and Order also modified rules
in part 25 and there is a separate PRA information collection review
for the part 25 rules. Rule amendments adopted in the Report and Order
which did not require OMB approval became effective on September 24,
2020.
If you have any comments on the burden estimates listed below, or
how the Commission can improve the collections and reduce any burdens
caused thereby, please contact Cathy Williams at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1b587a6f7362354c727777727a76685b7d7878357c746d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b2f1d3c6dacb9ce5dbdededbd3dfc1f2d4d1d19cd5ddc4">[email protected]</span></a>
or Office of Managing Director, Federal Communications Commission, 45 L
Street NE, Washington, DC 20554, regarding OMB Control Number 3060-
1013. Please include the applicable OMB Control Number(s) in your
correspondence. The Commission will also accept your comments via email
at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1c4c4e5d5c7a7f7f327b736a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f3a3a1b2b3959090dd949c85">[email protected]</span></a>.
To request materials in accessible formats for people with
disabilities (Braille, large print, electronic files, audio format),
send an email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#96f0f5f5a3a6a2d6f0f5f5b8f1f9e0"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="690f0a0a5c595d290f0a0a470e061f">[email protected]</span></a> or call the Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY).
Synopsis
As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
3507), the FCC is notifying the public that it received final OMB
approval on July 21, 2021, for the information collection requirements
contained in 47 CFR 5.64(b) and 97.207(g)(1). Under 5 CFR part 1320, an
agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it
displays a current, valid OMB Control Number.
No person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply
with a collection of information subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act
that does not display a current, valid OMB Control Number. The OMB
Control Number for the information collection requirements in these
rules is 3060-1013.
The foregoing notice is required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995, Public Law 104-13, October 1, 1995, and 44 U.S.C. 3507.
The total annual reporting burdens and costs for the respondents
are as follows:
OMB Control Number: 3060-1013.
OMB Approval Date: July 21, 2021.
OMB Expiration Date: July 31, 2024.
Title: Mitigation of Orbital Debris.
Form Number: N/A.
Respondents: Business or other for-profit, not-for-profit
institutions.
Number of Respondents: 46 respondents; 46 responses.
Estimated Time per Response: 8 hours.
Frequency of Response: On occasion reporting requirement.
Obligation to Respond: Required to obtain or retain benefits. The
statutory authority for this information collection is contained in 47
U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, and 310.
Total Annual Burden: 368 hours.
Annual Cost Burden: $88,550.
Privacy Act Impact Assessment: No impact(s).
Nature and Extent of Confidentiality: In general, there is no need
for confidentiality with this collection of information.
Needs and Uses: On April 24, 2020, the Commission released a Report
and Order in IB Docket No. 18-313, FCC 20-54, Mitigation of Orbital
Debris in the New Space Age, (Orbital Debris Report and Order). In this
Orbital Debris Report and Order, the Commission updated its rules
related to orbital debris mitigation, including application
requirements. The new rules are designed to ensure that the
Commission's actions concerning radio communications, including
licensing U.S. spacecraft and granting access to the U.S. market for
non-U.S. spacecraft, mitigate the growth of orbital debris, while at
the same time not creating undue regulatory obstacles to new satellite
ventures. The action will help to ensure that Commission decisions are
consistent with the public interest in space remaining viable for
future satellites and systems and the many services that those systems
provide to the public. The rule revisions also provide additional
detail to applicants on what information is expected under the
Commission's rules, which can help to increase certainty in the
application filing process. While this information collection
represents an overall increase in the burden hours, the information
collection serves the public interest by ensuring that the Commission
and public have necessary information about satellite applicants' plans
for mitigation of orbital debris.
Specifically, FCC 20-54 contains the new or modified information
collection requirements listed below, applicable to applicants seeking
experimental licenses for satellite operations under part 5 of the
Commission's rules, as well as to license grantees under part 97
submitting notifications to the Commission prior to launch of a
satellite amateur station:
(1) Existing disclosure requirements have been revised to include
specific metrics in several areas, including: Probability that the
space stations will become a source of debris by collision with small
debris and meteoroids that would cause loss of control and prevent
disposal; probability of collision between any non-geostationary orbit
(NGSO) space station and other large objects; and casualty risk
associated
[[Page 52102]]
with any individual spacecraft that will be disposed by atmospheric re-
entry.
(2) Where relevant, the disclosures must include the following: Use
of separate deployment devices, distinct from the space station launch
vehicle, that may become a source of orbital debris; potential release
of liquids that will persist in droplet form; and any planned proximity
operations and debris generation that will or may result from the
proposed operations, including any planned release of debris, the risk
of accidental explosions, the risk of accidental collision, and
measures taken to mitigate those risks.
(3) The existing disclosure requirement to analyze potential
collision risk associated with space station(s) orbits has been
modified to specify that the disclosure identify characteristics of the
space station(s)' orbits that may present a collision risk, including
any planned and/or operational space stations in those orbits, and
indicate what steps, if any, have been taken to coordinate with the
other spacecraft or system, or what other measures the operator plans
to use to avoid collision.
(4) For NGSO space stations that will transit through the orbits
used by any inhabitable spacecraft, including the International Space
Station, the disclosure must include the design and operational
strategies, if any, that will be used to minimize the risk of collision
and avoid posing any operational constraints to the inhabitable
spacecraft.
(5) The disclosure must include a certification that upon receipt
of a space situational awareness conjunction warning, the operator will
review and take all possible steps to assess the collision risk, and
will mitigate the collision risk if necessary. As appropriate, steps to
assess and mitigate the collision risk should include, but are not
limited to: Contacting the operator of any active spacecraft involved
in such a warning; sharing ephemeris data and other appropriate
operational information with any such operator; and modifying space
station attitude and/or operations.
(6) For NGSO space stations the disclosure must describe the extent
of satellite maneuverability.
(7) The disclosure must address trackability of the space
station(s). For NGSO space stations the disclosure must also include:
(a) How the operator plans to identify the space station(s) following
deployment and whether the space station tracking will be active or
passive; (b) whether, prior to deployment the space station(s) will be
registered with the 18th Space Control Squadron or successor entity;
and (c) the extent to which the space station operator plans to share
information regarding initial deployment, ephemeris, and/or planned
maneuvers with the 18th Space Control Squadron or successor entity,
other entities that engage in space situational awareness or space
traffic management functions, and/or other operators.
(8) For NGSO space stations, additional disclosures must be
provided regarding spacecraft disposal, including, for some space
stations, a demonstration that the probability of success of the chosen
disposal method is 0.9 or greater for any individual space station, and
for multi-satellite systems, a demonstration including additional
information regarding efforts to achieve a higher probability of
success.
These information collection requirements are contained in 47 CFR
5.64 and 97.207.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2021-20193 Filed 9-17-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on September 20, 2021.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.