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The Radio Spectrum
By Tim Hunter
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The radio spectrum covers a wide range of frequencies and is
important for our every day lives as well as being very
important for astronomical observations. I became frustrated in
my reading about the radio spectrum, because there were no good
charts or tables explaining the spectrum and explaining what
frequencies radio astronomers used versus frequencies for
commercial television, AM radio, FM radio, cell phones, Amateur
radio, and other types of communications. This information is
available in thousands of pieces, but the radio astronomy,
amateur radio, and other references I checked did not do a very
good job of correlating this information.
The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) is the world’s
oldest international organization, established in 1865 to manage
the first international telegraph networks. It is a specialized
agency of the United Nations, and its membership includes almost
all the world’s countries and over 500 private members (ITU,
2004). ITU’s purpose is to develop and manage the world’s
telecommunications resources. The ITU is headquartered in
Geneva, Switzerland, and “ITU's continuing role in managing the
radio-frequency spectrum ensures that radio-based systems like
cellular phones and pagers, aircraft and maritime navigation
systems, scientific research stations, satellite communication
systems and radio and television broadcasting all continue to
function smoothly and provide reliable wireless services to the
world's inhabitants” (ITU,2004).
Under the auspices of the ITU, World Radiocommunication
Conferences (WRC) are held every two to three years to review,
and, if necessary, revise the Radio Regulations, which is the
international treaty governing the use of the radio frequency
spectrum, and satellite orbits and communications (ITU, 2004).
The Unites States Communications Act of 1934 (as revised)
authorizes the United States Commerce Department’s National
Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to manage the use within
the United States of the radio frequency spectrum. Some portions
of the spectrum are managed jointly by NTIA and the FCC and some
are managed exclusively by either one or the other (Schroeder,
2004).Management of the radio spectrum will vary from country
to country. As shown by the Table below, this management is a
very complex issue. Most countries of the world adhere to the
International Telecommunication Union (ICU) treaty which
obligates them to comply with spectrum allocations specified in
the ITU Radio Regulations’ Article 5 (International Table of
Frequency Allocations). US domestic spectrum use may differ from
the international allocations provided domestic users do not
conflict with the radio spectrum in other countries and
otherwise comply with international regulations or bilateral
treaty agreements (Schroeder, 2004). In the US thirty different
radio services are allocated portions of the radio spectrum over
450 separate frequency bands. |
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