Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engineering, Policy, and Design
Article EquationsWorking 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 GNSS
In 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 GNSS
ESA Galileo IOV Test campaign authors, from left: Jörg Hahn, Stefano Binda, Edward Breeuwer, Roberto Prieto-Cerdeira, Marco Falcone, Alexander Mudrak, Gustavo Lopez- Risueño, Francisco Javier Gonzalez Martinez, and Daniel Blonski.The objective of the IOV phase was to launch the first four operational Galileo satellites and to deploy the first version of a completely new ground segment. During this phase, the European Space Agency (ESA) needed to validate — in the operational environment — all space, ground, and user components and their interfaces, prior to full system deployment. With the assistance of industry partners, ESA had to analyze the performance of the Galileo system and its components with the objective to refine the full operational capability (FOC) system.
By Inside GNSS
Unmanned 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 GNSS
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Space Policy Douglas LoverroThe 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 GNSS
A 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 GNSS
The 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 GNSS
Message Type 30: satellite clock data, and corrections for ionospheric and group delay. From IS–GPS–200GIn 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 GNSS
With 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
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is building a new lab that will support work on securing the use of GPS signals.
“We are currently standing up a smart grid cybersecurity test lab, and one of our future research cases for later in this year or early next year, depending on when we finish building this lab, is GPS security,” said Victoria Pillitteri, an advisor for information system security at NIST, which is under the U.S. Department of Commerce.
By Inside GNSS
Modifications in the battery charging protocol of on-orbit GPS satellites are expected to substantially extend the mission life of the spacecraft — a particularly timely development as technical and financial difficulties have raised doubts about keeping the system’s next-generation Block III satellites on schedule for launch readiness.
By Inside GNSS
Sabine Dannelke, GSA Administrative Board chairperson. Inside GNSS photo by Peter Gutierrez Road transport has always been a key sector for European GNSS, but safety- and security-related applications bring special challenges along with the opportunities. European Union (EU) officials speaking at a conference in Brussels last week explained why.
“Road transport is largest GNSS market opportunity,” said Gian-Gherardo Calini, head of market development at the European GNSS Agency (GSA). “This is 46.2 percent of the current GNSS market. Road transport is the key market.”
By Inside GNSS
Satellite image of Tampa Bay, Florida, USA. The tenth annual GEOINT Symposium and exhibition will take place on April 14-17 2014 at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida.
Registration is now open.
The symposium’s theme is “Operationalizing Intelligence for Global Missions.”
By Inside GNSS
