Rebirth: Starting from Lighting Up the Tech Tree

Chapter 183 Frequency Track Resources

Autumn comes early to Geneva; when Zuo Cheng stepped out of the airport, the wind was already chilly.

Three people followed behind him. Yu Ying carried a laptop containing the complete technical plan for the StarNet project. Chen Hao carried a silver briefcase containing physical samples of satellite communication modules. Han Lu brought up the rear, carrying a stack of meeting materials.

The headquarters of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is located on the shores of Lake Geneva, a gray granite building with the flags of its member states flying at the entrance. Zuo Cheng and his group passed through security and entered the conference room on the third floor.

The meeting room was arranged in a fan shape, with representatives from various countries seated in groups according to their regions. Zuo Cheng glanced around; the US delegation sat in the front row on the right, led by a gray-haired official. The European delegation was on the left, with Russia and India in the middle. The Chinese delegation was in the second row. Zuo Cheng walked over and nodded to their leader.

The meeting moderator struck the gavel, announcing the start of the special meeting on low-orbit spectrum allocation.

"Today's agenda is to review the frequency and orbital resource applications for new low-Earth orbit satellite constellations," the moderator said. "Currently, there are three applications pending review, from SpaceX (USA), OneWeb (UK), and China 402 Technology Co., Ltd."

Zuo Cheng sat up straight.

The SpaceX representative spoke first. He was a white man in his forties, dressed in a sharp suit, and spoke very quickly.

"Of the 12,000 Starlink satellites already approved, over 1,500 are in orbit. We have applied for an additional 30,000 frequency and orbital resources, at altitudes of 340 to 550 kilometers, primarily using the Ka and Ku bands."

A murmur rippled through the conference room. Thirty thousand, plus the existing twelve thousand, totaling over forty thousand.

The representative from OneWeb in the UK then spoke, stating that they had applied for 6,000 satellites at an orbital altitude of 1,200 kilometers, using the V-band.

It's 402's turn.

Zuo Cheng stood up and walked to the podium at the front of the conference room. He didn't bring any notes; the large screen behind him displayed the presentation prepared by 402.

"Distinguished delegates, I am Zuo Cheng from 402 Technology Company," he said in English. "Today, we are applying for frequency and orbit resources for 12,000 low-Earth orbit satellites."

He clicked on the remote control, and a global map appeared on the screen, marking the orbits of the 480 satellites currently in the 402 Sky Dome Project.

"Unlike the previous two companies, 402 already possesses a satellite network in orbit. The fourth phase of the Sky Dome project has been completed and accepted, with 480 satellites covering China and surrounding areas. The AI ​​scheduling system has been tested and proven stable. We are not just talking on paper; we have already demonstrated our ability to operate a large-scale constellation."

The US representative raised his hand to interrupt.

"Mr. Zuo, your satellite count is only three percent of Starlink's. How can you prove you have the capability to manage the frequency and orbit coordination of twelve thousand satellites?"

Zuo Cheng looked at Chen Hao. Chen Hao opened his briefcase, took out a palm-sized silver device, and connected it to the demonstration system.

"This is a spaceborne communication module independently developed by 402," Zuo Cheng said. "It supports dynamic spectrum sensing, detecting surrounding spectrum occupancy in milliseconds and automatically switching to an idle channel. Even if the density of low-Earth orbit satellites increases in the future, our system can avoid signal interference instead of solving the problem by competing for spectrum."

Test data pops up on the screen. Dynamic spectrum switching delay is 0.8 milliseconds, and interference avoidance success rate is 99.7%.

Some members of the European delegation were talking in hushed tones, and a female delegate wearing glasses nodded slightly.

"More importantly," Zuo Cheng switched screens, "402 proposed a spectrum-sharing solution. Our satellites use intelligent beamforming technology to precisely project signals to designated areas on the ground, rather than providing wide-area coverage. The same frequency band can be reused in different geographical areas, increasing spectrum utilization by more than four times."

The murmurs in the meeting room grew louder.

The Russian representative raised his hand and asked, "The sharing solution requires the cooperation of all operators. If SpaceX doesn't cooperate, how can you guarantee the results?"

"So we're not here today to grab spectrum," Zuo Cheng said, "but to set standards. 402 is willing to submit the complete technical specifications of this spectrum sharing protocol to the International Telecommunication Union as an industry reference for future low-Earth orbit constellation coordination."

This statement silenced the meeting room for a few seconds.

Sharing core technologies is not a standard practice for commercial companies. But Zuo Cheng understands that with the low-orbit spectrum becoming increasingly congested, whoever sets the coordination standards holds the power.

During halftime, Zuo Cheng stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window in the corridor, looking out at Lake Geneva. The lake water was deep green, and sailboats could be seen sailing by in the distance.

Yu Ying walked over and handed him a cup of coffee.

"The SpaceX representative was on the phone in the corner just now, and his tone wasn't very friendly."

"They didn't expect us to bring up the spectrum-sharing proposal," Zuo Cheng said. "They wanted monopoly; we wanted rules."

"Will it work?"

"Sixty percent."

The afternoon session proceeded to the voting stage. The chairperson announced that, after review by the technical committee, the application for frequency track 402 had been approved in principle.

"The frequency and orbital resources for the first batch of 5,000 satellites have been allocated, with orbital altitudes ranging from 550 to 1,100 kilometers, in the V-band and extended Ka-band. The approval process for the subsequent 7,000 satellites will be prioritized after the first batch of satellites has been successfully launched and verified."

Zuo Cheng remained expressionless, merely nodding slightly. But Yu Ying noticed that his right hand was clenched into a fist under the table.

Five thousand. Not the full twelve thousand, but this is already the largest frequency rail allocation that a Chinese private enterprise has obtained from the International Telecommunication Union. More importantly, the subsequent seven thousand have priority review rights, which means that 402 has already moved to the front of the frequency rail resource queue.

After the meeting, the leader of the Chinese delegation came over and shook hands with Zuo Cheng.

"Well done," the team leader said. "Even the ministry didn't expect this standard-sharing strategy."

"The more spectrum is contested, the less available it becomes; the more standards are shared, the more valuable it becomes," Zuo Cheng said.

That evening, news that 402 had secured 5,000 frequency orbit resources reached China. Social media buzz quickly rose to prominence. Some media commentators remarked that this was the first time a Chinese private enterprise had obtained such a large-scale resource in international frequency orbit allocation, marking 402's official entry into the ranks of core players in the global satellite internet.

Zuo Cheng didn't read those reports. He sat in his hotel room with a blank sheet of paper spread out in front of him, writing a new plan.

With the frequency track secured, the next step is funding and policy. The initial budget of 20 billion yuan requires national-level support. However, this national support hinges on policymakers recognizing the strategic value of the StarNet project.

He wrote two words on the paper.

"The 14th Five-Year Plan."

If commercial spaceflight is included in the country's next five-year plan, 402 will receive more than just money; it will receive strategic endorsement from the entire nation.

Zuo Cheng put down his pen and looked out the window.

The night sky over Geneva is clear, and the stars are visible. In a few years, five thousand of them will belong to 402.