Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engineering, Policy, and Design
A debate on global navigation satellite systems and their vulnerability to space weather effects will take place at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, November 29 at the Palais des Congres in Namur, Belgium. It is free and open to the scientific community and the public.
By Inside GNSS
This annual conference on the Croatian Adriatic aims at GNSS experts and covers the risks and vulnerabilities of the global navigation satellite systems and efforts to improve accuracy and reliability.
It will take place at Baska on the resort island of Krk in Croatia from May 21 to May 24, 2012.
[Updated November 8, 2011] Europe’s first two Galileo satellites have reached their final operating orbits, opening the way for activating and testing their navigation payloads.
By Inside GNSS
The Dongara facility in Western Australia is part of Prioranet, a commercial tracking network operated by Universal Space Network, Inc., Newport Beach, California, USA, that is being used to track the Galileo IOV satellites. Photo USN, Inc.Preparations to bring the first operational Galileo satellites on-line are continuing apace.
The Launch and Early Orbit Phase (LEOP) phase will end tomorrow (November 2, 2011) for the In-Orbit Validation (IOV) spacecraft that were launched on October 21, and transmission of the first navigation signal can be expected in about 10 days from now, according to a European Space Agency (ESA) source.
By Inside GNSS
First two Galileo IOVs head into orbit from EU’s Kourou space center (ESA photo)The 4th high-level EU conference on European Space Policy will take place at the Parliament Hemicycle, 43 rue Wiertz, in Brussels on November 8 and 9, 2011.
The theme is "A Space Policy for Society and Citizens," and the program will emphasize future funding and applications of the Galileo navigation system and the GMES, the European earth observation and monitoring system.
By Inside GNSS
President Jerzy Buzek, European Parliament[UPDATED November 1] The presidents of the European Parliament and European Council and the president and vice-president of the European Commission have issued an urgent call to EU business and government leaders and citizens to complete Galileo, the EU satellite navigation system, and other space-based initiatives even in the face of the current economic crisis.
They are patrons of a high-level European space policy conference to be held in the Hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium on November 9 and 10.
By Inside GNSS
Russian Soyuz rocket lifts off Europe’s Kourou spaceport pad with first two Galileo IOV satellites on board. ESA photo. Photo: ESA/CNES/ARIANESPACE/Optique Video Du CSGAs the first two operational Galileo satellites enter orbit following this morning’s launch (October 21, 2011), a closely knit team of engineers from the European Space Ageny (ESA) and CNES, France’s space agency, assumed control.
By Inside GNSS
Galileo IOVs being installed inside Soyuz Fregat upper stage. ESA, CNES, Arianespace, Optique Video du CSG, S.MartinA faulty valve that caused a fuel leak has delayed today’s (October 20, 2011) planned launch of the first Galileo in-orbit vehicle (IOV).
Arianespace said the would be postponed until Friday (October 21, 2011) because a problem in a valve used to disconnect the rocket’s fueling system on take-off had led to the disconnection mechanism being triggered ahead of the take-off.
The Soyuz ST-B had moved to its launch pad last week and the Upper Composite containing twin Galileo IOVs placed on top of it.
By Inside GNSS
Galileo IOV satellites attached to their launch dispenser and encapsulated beneath the fairing of their Soyuz ST-B launcher Credit: ESA – P. CarrilLaunch of two Galileo in-orbit validation (IOV) satellites next week will bring Europe’s long-awaited (and much-delayed) GNSS program into a new phase.
Liftoff from the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, is scheduled for Thursday, October 20, at 11:34 GMT (7:34 a.m. local time). Progress in the operations and news updates can be viewed online at the European Space Agency website.
By Inside GNSS
The Galileo In-Orbit Validation (IOV) ProtoFlight Model (PFM) and Flight Models (FM-2, FM-3 and FM-4) undergoing assembly and testing at Thales Alenia Space’s facility in Rome during May 2011. ESA – S. CorvajaThe first Galileo navigation satellite arrived Wednesday (September 7, 2011) in Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, ready to begin preparations for launch on 20 October.
Packed within its protective, air-conditioned container, the satellite — known as Known as Flight Model 2, or FM2 — landed at Cayenne Rochambeau Airport aboard an Antonov aircraft, having departed from Thales Alenia Space Italy’s Rome facility, where it was built.
By Inside GNSS
ICG Program Officer Sharafat Gadimova[Updated Sept 7, 2011] The United Nations and the United States will co-sponsor a special meeting to commemorate 10 years of achievement on the global navigation satellite systems on December 12-16, 2011 at the United Nations office Vienna International Center in Vienna, Austria.
The main discussion will center around the International Committee on GNSS (ICG), created by The UN Office of Outer Space Affairs (OOSA) in 2005 to bring together all system providers and smooth the way for global development of the satellite navigation systems.
By Inside GNSS
IET headquarters, Savoy PlaceThe head of the Galileo program division of the UK’s space agency, the PRS expert at the European GNSS agency and the director of the Nottingham Geospatial Institute are just a few of the speakers at a one-day seminar in central London on October 5 called "Modernized Satellite Navigation: The Implementation of GNSS Programmes and Future Challenges."
The Wednesday event will take place at the IET Savoy Place conference center from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m
By Inside GNSS
ENAC campus courtyardThe fifth European workshop on GNSS signals and signal processing will take place at ENAC headquarters (École Nationale de l’Aviation Civile), in Toulouse, France on December 8 and 9, 2011.
The workshop will give an overview of GNSS signals, characteristics, and performances related to any of the navigation, positioning, timing, attitude determination and scientific GNSS services. Papers have been accepted on the use of EGNOS (3,4) and GALILEO (1,2) signals, and all other GNSS signals for operational and/or scientific applications, with 1 to 5 frequencies.
By Inside GNSS
