The European Commission wants to establish a ‘timing backbone’, based on a sturdy blend of GNSS capabilities and terrestrial services, designed to bolster resilience when satellite signals fail. A recent market consultation report from the EC’s Joint Research Center (JRC) underscores the urgent need for such a system, calling it essential for EU autonomy, economic resilience, and global standing.
The JRC is now inviting stakeholder input towards shaping the initiative.
Timing has long played third fiddle to positioning and navigation in the PNT triumvirate, in spite of the fact that it underpins every PNT function. Without accurate timing, satellites can’t deliver precise locations, power grids and other critical infrastructure falter, stocks can’t be traded and financial transactions lose sync. Call accurate timing the glue holding all these functions together. At a time when GNSS vulnerability is in the spotlight, resilient timing services via terrestrial networks, fiber, or alternative signals would provide a much-needed safety net.
Piecing together
Underpinning the JRC’s proposed timing backbone are elements in the complementary PNT (C-PNT) ecosystem, comprising a range of terrestrial timing systems, which would:
- Link European infrastructure, interconnecting national metrological institutes (NMIs) and research networks across the EU in a cohesive, resilient network;
- Support critical entities, enhancing timing services for vital infrastructure under the EU’s resilience directive while boosting GNSS redundancy;
- Drive competitiveness, unlocking new commercial applications and cementing Europe’s leadership in timing technologies.
The timing backbone initiative builds on the 2023 European Radio Navigation Plan and reflects years of groundwork by the European Commission (EC), the European Space Agency (ESA), and EU member states. The JRC has also drawn on its own in-depth analyses of Sweden’s distributed timing approach and the UK’s National Physical Laboratory (NPL) clock network, and has studied vulnerabilities recently exposed by Russian GNSS jamming activities in Ukraine.
The EU isn’t alone in its focus on timing resilience. China’s sprawling high-accuracy, ground-based timing system will eventually feature 20,000 km of fiber optics and a nationwide network of eLoran stations. Similar strategies are being pursued in the US and elsewhere.
The JRC market consultation report, issued late last year (2024), emphasizes the JRC’s role in fostering a robust and resilient PNT ecosystem, evidenced by its recent work in support of the development of new, alternative PNT technologies. The need for resilient timing is undeniable. The clock, as they say, is running, and the benefits are likely to be enormous.
