US committee warns over sharing of satellite data channels

Disruption of critical weather data transmissions could put people and property “in peril”, say lawmakers

Senior lawmakers from both major US parties have issued a warning over government plans to share a chunk of the radio spectrum, which they say could lead to disruption of crucial satellite weather data.

On 21 November, the Democratic chair of the House of Representatives science committee, Eddie Bernice Johnson, and the most senior Republican committee member, Frank Lucas, urged the Federal Communications Commission to row back on a proposal to share a band of frequencies with commercial wireless carriers.