Norway and the European Commission signed a cooperation agreement on satellite navigation last week (September 22) that will make the Scandinavian nation — which is a member of the European Space Agency (ESA) but not the European Union — a fuller participant in the EU’s GNSS program.
Norway and the European Commission signed a cooperation agreement on satellite navigation last week (September 22) that will make the Scandinavian nation — which is a member of the European Space Agency (ESA) but not the European Union — a fuller participant in the EU’s GNSS program.
René Oosterlinck, ESA’s director of the Galileo program and navigation-related activities, said of the agreement, “Norway has been part of ESA since 1987. It had already contributed technically and financially to the development phase of Galileo as an ESA member State. I am glad that Norway is now also part of the FOC (full operational capability) phase of Galileo.”
With this agreement, Norway will become more actively involved in the institutions and committees that participate in the governance of the Galileo program. Norwegian industry has been involved with the Galileo program since its inception. Two important ground stations are hosted in Norwegian territory: one on the island of Svalbard and one in Antarctica. A third is planned for on the Jan Mayen island.
