Views of the U.S. National Academies of
Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on Agenda Items at Issue at the

WORLD
RADIOCOMMUNICATION
CONFERENCE 2023

Committee on the Views on the
World Radiocommunication Conference 2023

Board on Physics and Astronomy

Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences

A Consensus Study Report of

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
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This study is based on work supported by the Contract No. NNH16CE01B/80HQTR20F0216 with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and Grant No. AST-1720392 with the National Science Foundation. This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the U.S. government. Neither the U.S. government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the U.S. government or any agency thereof. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any agency or organization that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-30714-7
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-30714-7
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/26080

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Suggested Citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Views of the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on Agenda Items at Issue at the World Radiocommunication Conference 2023. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26080.

The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to bring the practices of engineering to advising the nation. Members are elected by their peers for extraordinary contributions to engineering. Dr. John L. Anderson is president.

The National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) was established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to advise the nation on medical and health issues. Members are elected by their peers for distinguished contributions to medicine and health. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president.

The three Academies work together as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. The National Academies also encourage education and research, recognize outstanding contributions to knowledge, and increase public understanding in matters of science, engineering, and medicine.

Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.nationalacademies.org.

Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and the committee’s deliberations. Each report has been subjected to a rigorous and independent peer-review process and it represents the position of the National Academies on the statement of task.

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COMMITTEE ON THE VIEWS ON THE WORLD RADIOCOMMUNICATION CONFERENCE 2023

LIESE VAN ZEE, Indiana University, Chair

NATHANIEL LIVESEY, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Vice Chair

NANCY BAKER, Naval Research Laboratory

DARREL EMERSON, Consultant (retired)

WILLIAM EMERY, University of Colorado

DARA ENTEKHABI, NAE,¹ Massachusetts Institute of Technology

PHILIP J. ERICKSON, Haystack Observatory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

TOMAS GERGELY, Consultant (retired)

KELSEY JOHNSON, University of Virginia

KAREN MASTERS, Haverford College

MAHTA MOGHADDAM, NAE, University of Southern California

SCOTT N. PAINE, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

FRANK K. SCHINZEL, National Radio Astronomy Observatory

GAIL SKOFRONICK-JACKSON, NASA Headquarters

Staff

GREGORY MACK, Senior Program Officer, Study Director

NEERAJ P. GORKHALY, Associate Program Officer

AMISHA JINANDRA, Research Associate

MEG KNEMEYER, Financial Officer

RADAKA LIGHTFOOT, Senior Financial Assistant

LINDA WALKER, Program Coordinator

COLLEEN N. HARTMAN, Director, Board on Physics and Astronomy (from April 2021)

JAMES C. LANCASTER, Director, Board on Physics and Astronomy (through April 2021)

___________________

¹ Member, National Academy of Engineering.

BOARD ON PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY

ABRAHAM LOEB, Harvard University, Chair

ANDREW LANKFORD, University of California at Irvine, Vice Chair

WILLIAM BIALEK, NAS,¹ Princeton University

JILL DAHLBURG, Naval Research Laboratory

LOUIS DiMAURO, The Ohio State University

FRANCIS DiSALVO, Cornell University

WENDY FREEDMAN, NAS, University of Chicago

TIM HECKMAN, NAS, Johns Hopkins University

WENDELL HILL III, University of Maryland

ALAN HURD, Los Alamos National Laboratory

NERGIS MAVALVALA, NAS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

LYMAN PAGE, JR., NAS, Princeton University

STEVEN RITZ, University of California, Santa Cruz

SUNIL SINHA, University of California, San Diego

WILLIAM A. ZAJC, Columbia University

Staff

GREGORY MACK, Senior Program Officer

CHRISTOPHER J. JONES, Program Officer

NEERAJ P. GORKHALY, Associate Program Officer

AMISHA JINANDRA, Research Associate

MEG KNEMEYER, Financial Officer

RADAKA LIGHTFOOT, Senior Financial Assistant

LINDA WALKER, Program Coordinator

COLLEEN N. HARTMAN, Director (from April 2021)

JAMES C. LANCASTER, Director (until April 2021)

___________________

¹ Member, National Academy of Sciences.

Acknowledgment of Reviewers

This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process.

We thank the following individuals for their review of this report:

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Martha Haynes, NAS,¹ Cornell University. She was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.

___________________

¹ Member, National Academy of Sciences.

Contents

1 INTRODUCTION

2 VIEWS OF THE U.S. NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES, ENGINEERING, AND MEDICINE ON SELECTED WRC-23 AND WRC-27 AGENDA ITEMS

Agenda Item 1.2: Allocations for International Mobile Telecommunications

Agenda Item 1.4: High-Altitude Platform Stations as IMT Base Stations

Agenda Item 1.5: Spectrum Use in the Frequency Band 470-694 MHz in Region 1

Agenda Item 1.8: Use of Fixed Satellite Service Networks by Control and Non-Payload Communications of Unmanned Aircraft Systems

Agenda Item 1.9: Review Appendix 27 of the Radio Regulations to Accommodate Digital Technologies

Agenda Item 1.10: Allocations to the Aeronautical Mobile Service

Agenda Item 1.11: Modernizing the Global Maritime Distress System

Agenda Item 1.12: EESS Radar Sounders at 45 MHz

Agenda Item 1.13: Allocations to the Space Research Service

Agenda Item 1.14: Allocations to the Earth Exploration-Satellite Service in 231.5-252 GHz

Agenda Item 1.15: GSO Earth Stations in Motion in the FSS 12.75-13.25 GHz

Agenda Item 1.16: Non-GSO Earth Stations in Motion

Agenda Item 1.17: Inter-Satellite Links at 11.7-12.7 GHz, 18.1-18.6 GHz, 18.8-20.2 GHz, and 27.5-30 GHz

Agenda Item 1.19: FSS 17.3-17.7 GHz in Region 2

Agenda Item 9.1a: Review of Space Weather Sensors

Agenda Item 9.1b: Review of the Amateur Service and Amateur-Satellite Service in the Frequency Band 1240-1300 MHz

Agenda Item 9.1c: International Mobile Telecommunications Using Fixed Service Allocations

Agenda Item 9.1d: Protection of EESS from Non-GSO FSS

WRC-27 Agenda Item 2.1: The Radiolocation Service at 231.5-275 GHz and 275-700 GHz

WRC-27 Agenda Items 2.2 and 2.3: Ka-Band and V-Band

WRC-27 Agenda Items 2.4, 2.5, and 2.7: 71-76 GHz and 81-86 GHz

WRC-27 Agenda Item 2.6: Space Weather

WRC-27 Agenda Items 2.8 and 2.9: L Band and S Band

APPENDIXES

A Statement of Task

B Acronyms and Abbreviations

Dedication

This report is dedicated to the memory of Gail Skofronick-Jackson (1963-2021), whose deep dedication to advancing Earth science and mentoring current and future scientists and engineers serves as an inspiration to all.

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