Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engineering, Policy, and Design
Martin Faga, a former assistant secretary of the Air Force for space. GPS.gov photo.The battle lines over restructuring the management of military space were drawn sharply Sept. 18 when the Senate passed its version of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018.
By Inside GNSS
One of 12 magnetograms recorded at Greenwich Observatory during the Great Geomagnetic Storm of 1859
1996 soccer game in the Midwest, (Rick Dikeman image)
Nouméa ground station after the flood
A pencil and a coffee cup show the size of NASA’s teeny tiny PhoneSat
Bonus Hotspot: Naro Tartaruga AUV
Pacific lamprey spawning (photo by Jeremy Monroe, Fresh Waters Illustrated)
“Return of the Bucentaurn to the Molo on Ascension Day”, by (Giovanni Antonio Canal) Canaletto
The U.S. Naval Observatory Alternate Master Clock at 2nd Space Operations Squadron, Schriever AFB in Colorado. This photo was taken in January, 2006 during the addition of a leap second. The USNO master clocks control GPS timing. They are accurate to within one second every 20 million years (Satellites are so picky! Humans, on the other hand, just want to know if we’re too late for lunch) USAF photo by A1C Jason Ridder. 
Detail of Compass/ BeiDou2 system diagram
Hotspot 6: Beluga A300 600ST
1. Mangrove Tree-Planting Drones
Myanmar (Southeast Asia)
Lockheed Martin announced that its second-generation satellite-based augmentation system (2nd Gen SBAS) testbed started broadcasting in dual frequency, multi-constellation (DFMC) during testing this week that was moved up from originally scheduled dates.
By Inside GNSS
Denver, Colorado-based Lockheed Martin announced that the U.S. Air Force awarded the company a $45.5 million contract to provide Military Code (M-Code) Early Use (MCEU) capability to the Global Positioning System (GPS). Part of the Air Force’s overall modernization plan for the GPS, M-Code is an advanced, new signal designed to improve anti-jamming and protection from spoofing, as well as to increase secure access, to military GPS signals for U.S. and allied armed forces.
By Inside GNSS
Navigating the globe was once done using the sun, moon and stars as references, but modern times bring modern methods, and the majority of the world now relies on GPS — or another GNSS — for its navigation needs.
But what happens when GPS isn’t available?
A collection of Department of Defense (DoD) units and U.S. universities recently found out when they gathered at Edwards Air Force Base to evaluate various aerial platforms in a degraded GPS environment.
By Inside GNSS
After several years of shifting plans the competition to build the next tranche of GPS III satellites is poised to start, though the context in which that contest will take place has changed markedly from when planning first began.
By Dee Ann Divis
Bernhard Richter, Leica Geosystems GNSS business director
Enrico Salvatori, Qualcomm Europe
Carlo Bagnoli, STMicroelectronicsMultinational semiconductor and telecommunications company Qualcomm is a world leader in the design and marketing of 3G, 4G and next-generation wireless technologies. Headquartered in San Diego, California, Qualcomm has been widening its footprint in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region, with a core focus in Europe.
“We expect to grow Qualcomm’s presence in Europe, becoming a major EU (European Union) player in the digitization of European industries,” said Qualcomm senior vice president and president of Qualcomm Europe, Enrico Salvatori.
By Inside GNSS
Improvements to the nation’s air traffic control system, including a shift to more efficient GPS-based routing and GPS-enabled aircraft surveillance, are largely on track and within budget, according to a recent watchdog report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
By Dee Ann Divis
Four of the latest set of Galileo navigation satellites will be launched on Ariane 6 rockets as the European Space Agency has announced it will become Arianespace’s first customer for Europe’s new vehicle.
The launches are scheduled between the end of 2020 and mid-2021, using two Ariane 62 rockets – the configuration of Europe’s next-generation launch vehicle that is best suited to haul the two 750-kilogram navigation satellites that operate in a 23,000-kilometer medium-Earth orbit.
By Inside GNSS
Yoshiyuki Murai, Director of QZSS Promotion Office (Supporting to the Cabinet office of Japan), NEC Corporation. Early this summer, news out of Japan announced a significant step toward providing a boost to the accuracy and reception of the existing GPS in Japan and to delivering a better positioning reading for the people in that country. More recent reports now indicate additional information on Japan’s goals to rely less on the United States’ GPS and more on the country’s own Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS).
By Inside GNSS
Per EngeSatelles, a Virginia-based secure time and location solutions company, this week announced the appointment of Dr. Per Enge to its Board of Directors.
By Inside GNSS
Federal watchdogs examining automakers’ privacy practices are urging a key regulatory agency to step up and clarify its role in protecting the location and other personal information of those operating connected vehicles. The report, posted on August 28, was just one of a number of location-privacy developments including advances in pro-privacy laws in some states and a pullback by Uber on its tracking of its customers.
By Inside GNSS
