Iridium to Test Nanosatellite TechEdSat-8

The FCC Office of Engineering and Technology signed off on Iridium's low earth orbit Technical Educational Satellite-8 tests, in a special temporary authority grant Monday. Iridium said it plans to start testing Jan. 2, with NASA operating an Iridium satellite phone on TechEdSat-8 that will transmit to and from satellites in Iridium's low earth orbit constellation. The company said TechEdSat-8 is to launch Dec. 1 on SpaceX-16, which is to deliver cargo to the International Space Station.