GPS Archives - Page 144 of 157 - Inside GNSS - Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engineering, Policy, and Design

May 25, 2009

GAO Report on GPS Satellite Constellation Status: The Pushback

Two weeks after a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report warned of potential gaps in the GPS satellite constellation, reassurances from Department of Defense (DoD), U.S. Air Force, GPS program officials, and industry are slowly restoring calm to an anxious public.

Coupled with a May 7 congressional hearing (and subsequent media coverage) that fanned the flames, the report described scenarios — for instance a two-year setback in launching the first GPS III spacecraft — that could lead to deterioration in the quality of GPS service due to delays in building new generations of satellites and past program management problems. The news coverage drew primarily on the GAO report and prepared statements presented at the hearing and not on the much more interesting dialog with subcommittee members captured on video or on the assumptions and methodology underlying the constellation analysis.

By Inside GNSS

May 22, 2009

First Look: Initial Observations of the GPS L5 Broadcast and L1 Signal Anomaly

(Updated May 22, 2009) Leading researchers from Ohio University, Stanford, and the University of Colorado have released their initial observations of the GPS L5 signal broadcast, including an anomaly in SVN49’s L1 signal reported by the GPS Wing’s chief engineer on May 4.

The U.S. Air Force switched on the eagerly awaited, modernized L5 signal on April 10 after the successful launch of the newest GPS Block IIR-M satellite – SVN49 – in March. This was the first broadcast of a GPS signal in a frequency band dedicated solely for civilian use.

By Inside GNSS

May 21, 2009

New Leaders to Gather for First Obama-Era PNT ExCom Meeting

Mike Shaw, NCO Executive Director

A June 18 meeting of the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) Executive Committee (ExCom) will bring together leaders of the Obama administration in the key interagency setting for GPS issues.

Established under a 2004 National Presidential Security Directive, the ExCom advises and coordinates federal departments and agencies on matters concerning the Global Positioning System and related systems. The deputy secretaries of defense and transportation and co-chair the committee, which includes equivalent-level members from seven other federal agencies.

By Inside GNSS

GPS III Passes Preliminary Design Review

GPS IIIA. Lockheed Martin graphic

The Lockheed Martin team developing the next-generation GPS III satellites has successfully completed a major program milestone, the preliminary design review (PDR) conducted by the U.S. Air Force’s GPS Wing.

Underlining the importance placed on meeting a 2014 first-launch schedule, nearly 150 representatives from the GPS Wing and user communities, including representatives from the Department of Defense, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force Space Command, the Department of Transportation, and the Federal Aviation Agency participated in the four-day Space Vehicle PDR at Lockheed Martin Space Systems facilities in Newtown, Pennsylvania.

By Inside GNSS

Obama 2010 GPS Budget Calls for $1 Billion+

The president’s proposed Fiscal Year 2010 (FY10) budget would provide more than $1 billion for GPS and related U.S. space-based positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) programs.

By Inside GNSS

May 16, 2009

Telematics Detroit 2009

The Telematics Detroit 2009 Conference & Exhibition covers the digital in-car and mobile industries. It will take place on June 2-3 at The Rock Financial Showplace in Novi, Michigan.

The event features senior-level speakers from Ford, Toyota, TomTom, Yahoo!, Garmin, Panasonic, Garmin, U.S. Department of Transportation, Visteon, Google and others.

By Inside GNSS

NIST Time and Frequency Metrology Seminar

The National Institute of Standards and Technology will hold its 34th Time and Frequency Metrology Seminar June 2-5 2009 at NIST Boulder Laboratories in Boulder, Colorado.

By Inside GNSS

2009 Joint Navigation Conference (JNC)

The largest military navigation conference of the year will take place at the Wyndham Orlando Resort in Orlando, Florida. This year’s theme is "Military Navigation Technology: The Foundation for Military Ops."

By Inside GNSS

May 14, 2009

GAO Says GPS III Launch Delay Could Drop Constellation below 24 Satellites

As if a puzzling signal anomaly on the latest GPS Block IIR-M satellite and continued struggles in the long-delayed Block IIF schedule hadn’t created enough pressure, a recent U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report sketches dire prospects for the GPS program.

By Inside GNSS

GPS and the Next Solar Max: Space Weather Study Seeks GNSS Users’ Help

The solar wind plays havoc with GNSS ground and space segments – destroying electrical transformers and the electronic systems on satellites.

In fact, space weather is the single largest contributor to single-frequency GPS errors and also to differential GPS.2. And right now, we have only three years until the next Solar Max.

By Inside GNSS

May 11, 2009

Rosum names Brad Anderson as CEO

Brad Anderson

Rosum Corporation, the Mountain View, California–based supplier of timing and positioning technology that combines GPS and broadcast television signals, has named Brad Anderson as the company’s new chief executive officer.

By Inside GNSS

May 5, 2009

GPS SVN49 and L5 Signal: A Success with Problems

Block IIR-M satellite. Lockheed Martin photo.

Signal anomalies characterized by the U.S. Air Force as “out of family” transmissions will keep the latest GPS satellite from being declared healthy for months, if ever.

The report on space vehicle number (SVN) 49 by the GPS Wing’s chief engineer, Lt. Col. David Goldstein to the European Navigation Conference in Naples, Italy, on May 4 mixed bad news with glad.

Also known as Block IIR-20(M), the spacecraft carries the demonstration payload for the new civil GPS L5 signal. The March 24 launch probably represented the last chance to meet an International Telecommunications Union (ITU) deadline for securing primary rights to use of the RF band by GPS.

By Inside GNSS

May 1, 2009

GPS Wing Calls for Proposals for OCX Phase B

Officials from Air Force Space Command’s Space and Missile Systems Center’s GPS Wing have announced the release of a request for proposal (RFP) for Phase B of the Next Generation GPS Control Segment (OCX) contracts.

By Inside GNSS

GPS

Applanix Introduces New Aerial Digital Photogrammetric System...

Changes in Store for U.S. Military GPS Equipment Development and ...

GAO Report on GPS Satellite Constellation Status: The Pushback

First Look: Initial Observations of the GPS L5 Broadcast and L1 Signal Anomaly

New Leaders to Gather for First Obama-Era PNT ExCom Meeting

GPS III Passes Preliminary Design Review

Obama 2010 GPS Budget Calls for $1 Billion+

Telematics Detroit 2009

NIST Time and Frequency Metrology Seminar

2009 Joint Navigation Conference (JNC)

GAO Says GPS III Launch Delay Could Drop Constellation below 24 Satellites

GPS and the Next Solar Max: Space Weather Study Seeks GNSS Users’ Help

Rosum names Brad Anderson as CEO

GPS SVN49 and L5 Signal: A Success with Problems

GPS Wing Calls for Proposals for OCX Phase B