GNSS Hotspots | March 2014
1. WHAT’S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT?
Detroit, Michigan USA
1. WHAT’S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT?
Detroit, Michigan USA
With the optimism of college-bound seniors touring the Ivy League, GPS managers have been weighing options to dramatically change the GPS constellation. Now, after studying the costs, considering the benefits, and assessing the funding climate, officials have made the starkly fiscal decision to stick close to home and take a few extra years to finish.
By Dee Ann DivisThe world’s GNSS systems are entering a phase of transformation — modernization of existing systems (the U.S. Global Positioning System and Russia’s GLONASS) and development of new systems (China’s BeiDou and Europe’s Galileo) that benefit from the lessons learned from the original GNSSs.
Notable among the modernization initiatives is an interest in implementing new satellite signal designs. These include the GPS L5, L2C, and L1C signals as well as those signals designed for Galileo and BeiDou. GLONASS designers are also working on modernized signals.
By Inside GNSSRules proposed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to improve the ability to locate cell phone users placing emergency calls from indoors could affect firms providing chipsets and location-focused infrastructure as well as phone companies.
By Inside GNSSAviation officials are looking at combining data from the Air Force’s planned GPS ground system with services from other monitoring systems — or even relying on other systems entirely — to save money on monitoring the GPS civil signals.
By Inside GNSSWorking Papers explore the technical and scientific themes that underpin GNSS programs and applications. This regular column is coordinated by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Günter Hein, head of Europe’s Galileo Operations and Evolution.
By Inside GNSSIn this article, we will take a look at the various GNSS signals from the perspective of their cost-benefit tradeoffs. First, we’ll look at the evolution of consumer GPS architecture to date — where acquisition speed and sensitivity have been the main drivers of receiver architecture. That architecture has evolved rapidly to take full advantage of the characteristics of the GPS C/A code.
By Inside GNSSUnmanned aerial vehicles or UAVs comprise a category of aircraft that fly without a human operator onboard. They are more popularly referred to by the misleading moniker “drones,” which masks the wide variety in their design and capability.
By Inside GNSSThe head of Air Force Space Command (AFSC) told lawmakers today (March 12, 2014) that the GPS system could be put at risk by what appears to be a new anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon being developed by China.
“The November 2013 U.S.–China Economic and Security Review Commission (report) raises concerns about China’s efforts to militarize space and develop an anti-satellite weapon capability,” Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Alabama, ranking member on Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, told hearing attendees.
By Inside GNSSA number of user conferences for customers of Hexagon AB’s precise measurement brands and products will be combined in the Swedish corporation’s fourth international conference this summer.
It will take place at MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada from June 2 through June 5, 2014.
Registration is now open. Early bird rates end April 25, 2014.
By Inside GNSSThe Air Force is slowing GPS modernization and dropping part of the funding for dual launch of satellites, said defense officials describing the President’s Fiscal Year 2015 (FY15) budget on Wednesday (March 5, 2014).
Air Force Undersecretary Eric Fanning said the Air Force would continue to “honor our investments and obligations” regarding the Global Positioning System but would “reprofile” the GPS III program so that it meets constellation sustainment demands.
By Inside GNSSIn a Federal Register notice issued today (March 5, 2014), the U.S. Department of Transportation (DoT) invited public comments on U.S. Air Force plans to implement preoperational L2C and L5 civil navigation (CNAV) messages on GPS Block IIR-M and IIF satellites next month.
By Inside GNSSWith the war in Afghanistan winding down and the pressure against federal spending increasing, the Pentagon is reconfiguring itself for leaner peacetime operations and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are among the programs being affected.
By Inside GNSS