In an effort to emerge from bankruptcy, wireless network company LightSquared Inc. has proposed a new plan for sharing radio signals utilized by weather facilities to accurately track storms like Hurricane Sandy. The new plan is salvaged from an earlier proposal for a satellite-based wireless broadband network that was blocked by the FCC over concern that it would interfere with global-positioning system navigation technology.
According to Peter Minnett, a professor of meteorology and physical oceanography at the University of Miami, the frequencies that LightSquared is interested in sharing are a “really important component of successful hurricane forecasting, responsible for producing the [satellite] imagery on all the TV broadcasts.” A U.S. agency stated that frequencies used for weather forecasting should not be shared for wireless mobile services purposes due to the potential for interference, while weather forecasters are concerned that the public could be deprived of critical information if the frequencies are shared.
The company aims to begin offering limited high-speed data service over the radio signals it would share with weather facilities and increase use over a wider range of frequencies after the FCC develops a plan to avoid the interference concerns that stalled the wireless company’s initial proposal.
