§ 25.136 - Earth Stations in the 24.75-25.25 GHz, 27.5-28.35 GHz, 37.5-40 GHz, 47.2-48.2, GHz and 50.4-51.4 GHz bands.

§ 25.136 Earth Stations in the 24.75-25.25 GHz, 27.5-28.35 GHz, 37.5-40 GHz, 47.2-48.2, GHz and 50.4-51.4 GHz bands.

Cross Reference

Link to an amendment published at 89 FR 58072, July 17, 2024.

(a) FSS is secondary to the Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service in the 27.5-28.35 GHz band. Notwithstanding that secondary status, an applicant for a license for a transmitting earth station in the 27.5-28.35 GHz band that meets one of the following criteria may be authorized to operate without providing interference protection to stations in the Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service:

(1) The FSS licensee also holds the relevant Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service license(s) for the area in which the earth station generates a power flux density (PFD), at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz;

(2) The FSS earth station was authorized prior to July 14, 2016; or

(3) The application for the FSS earth station was filed prior to July 14, 2016 and has been subsequently granted; or

(4) The applicant demonstrates compliance with all of the following criteria in its application:

(i) There are no more than two other authorized earth stations operating in the 27.5-28.35 GHz band within the county where the proposed earth station is located that meet the criteria contained in either paragraph (a)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section. For purposes of this requirement, multiple earth stations that are collocated with or at a location contiguous to each other shall be considered as one earth station;

(ii) The area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m2/MHz, together with the similar area of any other earth station authorized pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, does not cover, in the aggregate, more than the amount of population of the UMFUS license area within which the earth station is located as noted in table 1 to this paragraph (a)(4)(ii):

Table 1 to Paragraph (a)(4)(ii)

Population within UMFUS license area	Maximum permitted aggregate population within −77.6 dBm/m2/MHz PFD contour of earth stations
Greater than 450,000	0.1 percent of population in UMFUS license area.
Between 6,000 and 450,000	450 people.
Fewer than 6,000	7.5 percent of population in UMFUS license area.

(iii) The area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz does not contain any major event venue, urban mass transit route, passenger railroad, or cruise ship port. In addition, the area mentioned in paragraph (a)(4)(ii) of this section shall not cross any of the following types of roads, as defined in functional classification guidelines issued by the Federal Highway Administration pursuant to 23 CFR 470.105(b): Interstate, Other Freeways and Expressways, or Other Principal Arterial. The Federal Highway Administration Office of Planning, Environment, and Realty Executive Geographic Information System (HEPGIS) map contains information on the classification of roads. For purposes of this rule, an urban area shall be an Adjusted Urban Area as defined in section 101(a)(37) of Title 21 of the United States Code.

(iv) The applicant has successfully completed frequency coordination with the UMFUS licensees within the area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz with respect to existing facilities constructed and in operation by the UMFUS licensee. In coordinating with UMFUS licensees, the applicant shall use the applicable processes contained in § 101.103(d) of this chapter.

(b) Applications for earth stations in the 37.5-40 GHz band shall provide an exhibit describing the zone within which the earth station will require protection from transmissions of Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service licensees. For purposes of this rule, the protection zone shall consist of the area where UMFUS licensees may not locate facilities without the consent of the earth station licensee. The earth station applicant shall demonstrate in its application, using reasonable engineering methods, that the requested protection zone is necessary in order to protect its proposed earth station.

(c) The protection zone (as defined in paragraph (b) of this section) shall comply with the following criteria. The applicant must demonstrate compliance with all of the following criteria in its application:

(1) There are no more than two other authorized earth stations operating in the 37.5-40 GHz band within the county within which the proposed earth station is located that meet the criteria contained in paragraph (c) of this section, and there are no more than 14 other authorized earth stations operating in the 37.5-40 GHz band within the PEA within which the proposed earth station is located that meet the criteria contained in paragraph (c) of this section. For purposes of this requirement, multiple earth stations that are collocated with or at a location contiguous to each other shall be considered as one earth station;

(2) The protection zone, together with the protection zone of other earth stations in the same PEA authorized pursuant to this, does not cover, in the aggregate, more than the amount of population of the PEA within which the earth station is located as noted in table 2 to this paragraph (c)(2):

Table 2 to Paragraph (c)(2)

Population within Partial Economic Area (PEA) where earth station is located	Maximum permitted aggregate population within protection zone of earth stations
Greater than 2,250,000	0.1 percent of population in PEA.
Between 60,000 and 2,250,000	2,250 people.
Fewer than 60,000	3.75 percent of population in PEA.

(3) The protection zone does not contain any major event venue, urban mass transit route, passenger railroad, or cruise ship port. In addition, the area mentioned in the preceding sentence shall not cross any of the following types of roads, as defined in functional classification guidelines issued by the Federal Highway Administration pursuant to 23 CFR 470.105(b): Interstate, Other Freeways and Expressways, or Other Principal Arterial. The Federal Highway Administration Office of Planning, Environment, and Realty Executive Geographic Information System (HEPGIS) map contains information on the classification of roads. For purposes of this rule, an urban area shall be an Adjusted Urban Area as defined in section 101(a)(37) of Title 21 of the United States Code.

(4) The applicant has successfully completed frequency coordination with the UMFUS licensees within the protection zone with respect to existing facilities constructed and in operation by the UMFUS licensee. In coordinating with UMFUS licensees, the applicant shall use the applicable processes contained in § 101.103(d) of this chapter.

(d) Notwithstanding that FSS is co-primary with the Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service in the 47.2-48.2 GHz band, earth stations in the 47.2-48.2 GHz band shall be limited to individually licensed earth stations. An applicant for a license for a transmitting earth station in the 47.2-48.2 GHz band must meet one of the following criteria to be authorized to operate without providing any additional interference protection to stations in the Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service:

(1) The FSS licensee also holds the relevant Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service license(s) for the area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz; or

(2) The earth station in the 47.2-48.2 GHz band was authorized prior to February 1, 2018; or

(3) The application for the earth station in the 47.2-48.2 GHz band was filed prior to February 1, 2018; or

(4) The applicant demonstrates compliance with all of the following criteria in its application:

(i) There are no more than two other authorized earth stations operating in the 47.2-48.2 GHz band within the county where the proposed earth station is located that meet the criteria contained in paragraph (d)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section, and there are no more than 14 other authorized earth stations operating in the 47.2-48.2 GHz band within the PEA where the proposed earth station is located that meet the criteria contained in paragraph (d)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section. For purposes of this requirement, multiple earth stations that are collocated with or at a location contiguous to each other shall be considered as one earth station;

(ii) The area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz, together with the similar area of any other earth station authorized pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section, does not cover, in the aggregate, more than the amount of population of the PEA within which the earth station is located as noted in table 3 to this paragraph (d)(4)(ii):

Table 3 to Paragraph (d)(4)(ii)

Population within Partial Economic Area (PEA) where earth station is located	Maximum permitted aggregate population within −77.6 dBm/m2/MHz PFD contour of earth stations
Greater than 2,250,000	0.1 percent of population in PEA.
Between 60,000 and 2,250,000	2,250 people.
Fewer than 60,000	3.75 percent of population in PEA.

(iii) The area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz does not contain any major event venue, any highway classified by the U.S. Department of Transportation under the categories Interstate, Other Freeways and Expressways, or Other Principal Arterial, or an urban mass transit route, passenger railroad, or cruise ship port; and

(iv) The applicant has successfully completed frequency coordination with the UMFUS licensees within the area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz with respect to existing facilities constructed and in operation by the UMFUS licensee. In coordinating with UMFUS licensees, the applicant shall use the applicable processes contained in § 101.103(d) of this chapter.

(e) Notwithstanding that FSS is co-primary with the Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service in the 24.75-25.25 GHz and 50.4-51.4 GHz bands, earth stations in these bands shall be limited to individually licensed earth stations. An applicant for a license for a transmitting earth station in the 24.75-25.25 GHz or 50.4-51.4 GHz band must meet one of the following criteria to be authorized to operate without providing any additional interference protection to stations in the Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service:

(1) The FSS licensee also holds the relevant Upper Microwave Flexible Use Service license(s) for the area in which the earth station generates a power flux density (PFD), at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6dBm/m²/MHz;

(2) The earth station in the 24.75-25.25 GHz band was authorized prior to August 20, 2018; or the earth station in the 50.4-51.4 GHz band was authorized prior to June 12, 2019; or

(3) The application for the earth station in the 24.75-25.25 GHz band was filed prior to August 20, 2018; or the application for the earth station in the 50.4-51.4 GHz band was filed prior to June 12, 2019; or

(4) The applicant demonstrates compliance with all of the following criteria in its application:

(i) There are no more than two other authorized earth stations operating in the same frequency band within the county where the proposed earth station is located that meet the criteria contained in either paragraph (e)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section, and there are no more than 14 other authorized earth stations operating in the same frequency band within the Partial Economic Area where the proposed earth station is located that meet the criteria contained in paragraph (e)(1), (2), (3), or (4) of this section. For purposes of the requirement in this paragraph (e)(4), multiple earth stations that are collocated with or at a location contiguous to each other shall be considered as one earth station;

(ii) The area in which the earth station generates a power flux density (PFD), at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m²/MHz, together with the similar area of any other earth station operating in the same frequency band authorized pursuant to paragraph (e) of this section, does not cover, in the aggregate, more than the amount of population of the county within which the earth station is located as noted in table 4 to this paragraph (e)(4)(ii):

Table 4 to Paragraph (e)(4)(ii)

Population within the County where earth station is located	Maximum permitted aggregate population within −77.6 dBm/m2/MHz PFD contour of earth stations
Greater than 450,000	0.1 percent of population in county.
Between 6,000 and 450,000	450 people.
Fewer than 6,000	7.5 percent of population in county.

(iii) The area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m2/MHz does not contain any major event venue, urban mass transit route, passenger railroad, or cruise ship port. In addition, the area mentioned in paragraph (e)(4)(ii) of this section shall not cross any of the following types of roads, as defined in functional classification guidelines issued by the Federal Highway Administration pursuant to 23 CFR 470.105(b): Interstate, Other Freeways and Expressways, or Other Principal Arterial. The Federal Highway Administration Office of Planning, Environment, and Realty Executive Geographic Information System (HEPGIS) map contains information on the classification of roads. For purposes of this paragraph (e)(4), an urban area shall be an Adjusted Urban Area as defined in section 101(a)(37) of Title 21 of the United States Code; and

(iv) The applicant has successfully completed frequency coordination with the UMFUS licensees within the area in which the earth station generates a PFD, at 10 meters above ground level, of greater than or equal to −77.6 dBm/m2/MHz with respect to existing facilities constructed and in operation by the UMFUS licensee. In coordinating with UMFUS licensees, the applicant shall use the applicable processes contained in § 101.103(d) of this chapter.

(f) If an earth station applicant or licensee in the 24.75-25.25 GHz, 27.5-28.35 GHz, 37.5-40 GHz, 47.2-48.2 GHz and/or 50.4-51.4 GHz bands enters into an agreement with an UMFUS licensee, their operations shall be governed by that agreement, except to the extent that the agreement is inconsistent with the Commission's rules or the Communications Act.

(g) Any earth station authorizations issued pursuant to paragraph (a)(4), (c), (d)(4), or (e)(4) of this section shall be conditioned upon operation being in compliance with the criteria contained in the applicable paragraph.

(h) Re-coordination. An earth station licensed under this section that is brought into operation later than one year after the date of the license grant must be re-coordinated with UMFUS stations using the applicable processes in § 101.103(d) of this chapter. The earth station licensee must complete re-coordination within one year before its commencement of operation. The re-coordination should account for any demographic or geographic changes as well as changes to the earth station equipment or configuration. A re-coordination notice must be filed in ICFS before commencement of earth station operations.

[81 FR 79937, Nov. 14, 2016, as amended at 83 FR 63, Jan. 2, 2018; 83 FR 34489, July 20, 2018; 84 FR 20819, May 13, 2019; 84 FR 47147, Sept. 9, 2019; 86 FR 11887, Mar. 1, 2021; 88 FR 21440, Apr. 10, 2023]