The project, Drones2GNSS, also took home the Special Prize offered by the European GNSS Agency (GSA).
Space Geomatica Ltd.’s Tripolitsiotis Achilles joined with Panagiotis Partsinevelos, SenseLab Research, Technical University of Crete, to develop Drones2GNSS.
In the tracking procedure, the engineer with the surveying pole might move around, yet the UAV tracks in real time and provides the GNSS coordinates.
Drones2GNSS includes a prototype drone equipped with a highly accurate GNSS receiver and a camera/laser measuring system that retrieves the coordinates of custom surveying poles featuring Wi-Fi, a prism and a target marker.
The team’s image processing algorithms and error correction techniques provide real-time, centimeter-level coordinate estimation and can simultaneously measure multiple moving surveying poles.
The processing is performed on-board the UAV without any ground-based hardware. In this way, Drones2GNSS provides a fast, reliable, cost-effective alternative for absolute coordinate positioning in obstructed environments where GNSS fails. It can cover multiple targets, including cars, people and vessels.
It also offers a basis for other related challenges, including UAV GNSS networks, indoor positioning and error mitigation.
“Although Galileo Initial Services are expected to enhance the accuracy of existing solutions, Drones2GNSS proposes an off-the-shelf application that uses European GNSS (Galileo, EGNOS) as the primary means of positioning,” Tripolitsiotis said. “As GNSS signals are degraded in obstructed environments by skyscrapers, vegetation and geomorphology, our project proposes using drones as intermediate carriers of high-precision GNSS signals that can then transfer the geolocation accuracy to the ground.”
Drones2GNSS relies heavily on multi-constellation GNSS signal, which is where Galileo will make the difference. “As current constellations like GPS and GLONASS have proven inefficient in confronting the aforementioned surveying problem, the sector continues to rely on traditional surveying techniques,” Tripolitsiotis said. “However, with the launch of the Galileo era and the utilization of the Drones2GNSS approach, we can now provide surveying engineers a cost effective, accurate and fast positioning solution.”
An effective approach has been taken by the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), and significant progress has been witnessed in 2016, from the aspects of launching new satellites, verifying new technologies, promoting applications and industrialization, strengthening international cooperation, and formulating fundamental policies.
Li Wang
Construction Update. In March 2016, a BDS satellite was launched into an inclined geo-synchronous orbit (IGSO); another geosynchronous orbit (GEO) satellite was launched in June. These became the 22nd and 23rd BDS satellites overall and further enhanced service capability. The BDS has been maintaining stable operation, and the performance of BDS Open Services has steadily improved. The availability and continuity surpass 99.9%, which can satisfy the nominal requirements of 95% and 99.5%.
The deployment of a BDS global constellation has progressed steadily. Five new-generation BDS satellites have been successfully launched so far, to verify advanced signal structure, crosslink, on-board clocks with higher accuracy, and other new technologies. Test results showed that the inter-system technical status is coordinated, the accuracy of orbit prediction was increased by 50%, and accuracy of time maintenance was upgraded by about 60% due to crosslink.
Meanwhile, the construction of augmentation systems is being accelerated. A nationwide reference station network has been built, and the construction of the basic system has been completed. System performance is under test, including meter and decimeter level for wide-area real-time services, centimeter level for areas within Beijing, and millimeter level for post-processing services.
As for satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS), BDS is actively participating in the design and international coordination activities for the next generation dual-frequency multiple-constellation (DFMC) SBAS standards. The 30th SBAS Interoperability Working Group (IWG) meeting was successfully held in China.
The document “Development of BDS and Applications of Multi-Frequency Multi-Constellation Navigation Satellite Systems” was submitted by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) during the 39th meeting of International Civil Aviation Organization. This represents Chinese civil aviation authority’s official support of construction of BDSBAS. Development of applications of multi-frequency multi-constellation has been proposed to the international civil aviation community.
BDS Applications. With the enhancement of BDS service capability, its applications are also making remarkable progress, already producing a BDS industrial chain which comprises the basic products, application terminals, application systems and operational services.
BDS-based chips have been upgraded in quality and quantity. Great efforts are being made to carry out demonstrations of BDS industrial and regional applications. Mass market applications are flourishing. Chinese industrial production in the field of satellite navigation reached 190 billion renminbi yuan (US$28 billion) in 2015, of which BDS would contribute about 30%. So far, BDS-related products have already been exported to more than 70 countries, and applications and services are available in over 30 countries along the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road (the Belt and Road) region.
International Cooperation Activities. BDS continuously carries out bilateral and multilateral exchanges and cooperation, in line with the principle that “BDS is developed by China, and dedicated to the world.”
To provide better services for global users, BDS carries out exchanges and coordination with the other navigation satellite systems in terms of compatibility and interoperability, monitoring and assessment, frequency resource, augmentation systems and other areas. It also strives to implement applications cooperation with countries in the Asia-Pacific region, members in the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the League of Arab States (LAS), to bring more benefits to a wider range. On multilateral platforms, BDS continuously contributes to efforts and meetings of the International Committee on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (ICG) and the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS). In addition to these international academic activities, China has also been organizing the China Satellite Navigation Conference for seven sessions.
Fundamental Policies. A whitepaper on BDS released in June 2016 interprets its development concepts and propositions, and is available on the official BDS website. The major content includes: to provide open services for global users free of charge; to continuously improve service performance and enhance the service quality; to promote compatible applications with other navigation satellite systems and to improve users’ benefits; to disseminate BDS information in a timely manner; to protect the radio-navigation satellite frequency spectrum according to law and to firmly reject harmful interference; to enhance BDS applications, industrial development and international application; to actively carry out international cooperation and exchanges, to participate in multilateral activities in the field of international satellite navigation and to promote the ratification of the BDS by international standards.
The “BeiDou Navigation Satellite System Signal In Space Interface Control Document” (Version 2.1) was published in November.
As for the standardization process, the “BeiDou Satellite Navigation Standard System” (Version 1.0) has been released, and BDS has been included in the Receiver Independent Exchange Format (RINEX, Version 3.03), approved by the Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services Special Committee 104 on GNSS Service, RTCM SC-104.
Follow-up Deployment Plans. In 2017, three to four launches of BeiDou satellites will occur. BDS will provide basic services to the countries along the Belt and Road region by 2018, and possess global service capability by 2020.
BDS will keep improving its nationwide reference station network and steadily enhance its service performance. The dense reference stations for the nationwide frame network will be constructed by 2018, providing meter and decimeter level real-time location services for users in China, even centimeter level service in some areas.
BDS will carry out the design, validation and construction of SBAS in accordance with international civil aviation standards. The first GEO satellite of BDSBAS will be launched in around 2018. The satellite-based augmentation services covering China and surrounding regions will be provided from 2020, to provide CAT-I services to civil aviation users.
China will promote construction of a national comprehensive positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) system based on BDS, and strive to establish such a national PNT system with a united benchmark, no-gap coverage, security and effectiveness by 2030, as well as to upgrade capabilities to provide time and space information.
Summary. BDS will boost the deployment of a global constellation, continuously enhance performance, fulfill its service commitments, make all efforts to advance satellite navigation applications, promote the development of GNSS, and better serve the world and benefit mankind.
The National Oceanography Centre (NOC) has developed global wind speed products based on reflected GPS signals, using data from the UK TechDemoSat-1 satellite, reports Hydro International.
The TechDemoSat-1 satellite, built by Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (Photo: SSTL)
The achievement demonstrates the potential of GNSS reflectometry (GNSS-R) to improve sampling of ocean surface winds, as well as improve weather monitoring and forecasting by complementing existing satellite measurements from scatterometers and radiometers.
The GNSS-R receiver on TechDemoSat-1 is a precursor to eight similar receivers to be flown as a constellation for the NASA CYGNSS mission. CYGNSS — Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System — will be launched Dec. 12 and will observe winds within cyclones, hurricanes and typhoons with unprecedented spatial and temporal sampling.
CYGNSS will launch aboard the Pegasus XL rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. It will make frequent and accurate measurements of ocean surface winds throughout the life cycle of tropical storms and hurricanes.
The multi-agency team behind the ESA-designed EGNOS augmentation system — making it possible for European aircraft to safely rely on satnav signals — has received a prestigious award from France’s national aerospace academy.
As our region’s own satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS), the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) improves the precision of GPS signals over most European territory, while also providing continuous and reliable updates on their integrity.
Didier Flament, heading ESA’s EGNOS and SBAS Division, joined Mariluz de Mateo of Spain’s ENAIRE air traffic management agency, working on Europe’s Single European Sky Traffic Management Research (SESAR), and Jean-Marc Pieplu, overseeing EGNOS exploitation at the European Global Navigation Satellite System Agency (GSA) in receiving Vermeil Medals from France’s Académie de l’Air et de l’Espace in Toulouse.
The medals were awarded to the trio during the annual Séance Solennelle de l’AAE on Nov. 25.
EGNOS team: (from left) Jean-Marc Pieplu, overseeing EGNOS at the GSA; Mariluz de Mateo of Spain’s ENAIRE air traffic management agency, working on SESAR; and Didier Flament, heading ESA’s EGNOS and SBAS Division.
“This award recognizes the success of the EGNOS programme,” comments Didier. “It has been a long-term effort, which began with a first demonstration step called European Complement to GPS, studied and implemented by CNES, French Civil Aviation and the ONERA national aerospace research centre between 1987 and 1995.
“This was then followed by the European ESA ARTES-9 programme, started 20 years ago this year. So beyond the three nominees, the award goes to the various teams from ESA, CNES, civil aviation agencies and industry which have contributed to its success.“
While Galileo is on the verge of entering initial operational service, EGNOS has already been operational for many years: it began open service in 2009, and became available for ‘safety-of-life’ use including aviation in March 2011.
A network of 40 ground monitoring stations performs an independent measurement of GPS signals, so that corrections can be calculated and then passed to users immediately via a trio of geostationary satellites. A several-fold increase in precision is therefore delivered.
The result is that the EGNOS-augmented signals are guaranteed to meet the extremely high performance standards set out by the International Civil Aviation Organisation standard (ICAO SARPS), as all other similar regional SBAS systems.
Compliance to these standards is also ensuring full interoperability of these systems and seamless transition from one region to another for the end user – the pilot of an equipped aircraft.
The signals from space can therefore be relied on routinely for the safety-critical task of vertically guiding aircraft during landing approaches.
Today, more than 170 European airports in 19 countries use EGNOS, projected to increase to 346 in 25 states by 2020, according to Eurocontrol.
Following its initial design and development by ESA, ownership of the EGNOS system was passed to the European Commission in March 2009, and is currently operated on behalf of the EC’s GSA by an operator based in France, the European Satellite Services Provider.
ESA retains a role in procuring EGNOS’s future evolution, in particular the second generation of EGNOS aiming at augmenting all new modernized GPS signals and Galileo signals. ESA’s role includes liaising with other regional SBAS system providers to agree on common next-generational working standards through the international Interoperability Working Group, including making use of Galileo and additional satnav signals.
The most recent meeting of this working group was hosted by the Agency for Aerial Navigation Safety in Africa and Madagascar Nov. 29–30 in Dakar, Senegal.
I’m proud to be a part of the accomplishments of the men and women of the Space and Missile Systems Center’s Global Positioning System Directorate at Los Angeles Air Force Base in El Segundo, California. The year has been extremely challenging, but looking back on 2016, we have taken real steps forward to modernize the GPS Enterprise and the way we do business. I’d like to share some of our major accomplishments (see “2016 Accomplishments” below) and challenges, and provide some insights for 2017 and beyond.
Col. Steven Whitney. (Photo: USAF)
Civil Partnerships
While much of our focus is on military capabilities, GPS is a global utility with very strong ties to the civil community. The same principles of transparency and communication are cornerstones of our relationships with the various stakeholders.
One example of this is our work with the Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation, where the safety-of-life applications are a key element of our discussions. To ensure a transparent, communication-rich relationship, we hold quarterly program management reviews with these organizations and their stakeholders.
The GPS Directorate continues to actively participate on a number of committees, such as the Civil GPS Service Interface Committee, that are key to maintaining ties to our civil stakeholders and ensuring that we have an effective flow of information both to and from the Directorate.
We are currently engaged in the DOT-led Adjacent Band Compatibility study, initiated by the National Space-Based PNT Executive Committee. This year will see the culmination of the effort to determine power levels from potential future adjacent-band sources that are compatible with existing and evolving GPS receivers, and serve as a foundation to determine power levels compatible with evolving GPS/GNSS receivers.
This study exemplifies our strong ties with the greater GPS community, as well as my push for the Directorate’s efforts to be as transparent as possible, execute data-driven decisions, and be guided by widely accepted international standards.
Space Segment
A key milestone occurred Feb. 5, 2016, with the launch of our 12th and final GPS IIF satellite. This marked the end of an extremely successful GPS IIF launch campaign and our most aggressive launch schedule in the last 20+ years: eight successful launches in 24 months!
The addition of the GPS IIF satellites to the constellation enabled the system to reach its best performance day ever on May 11, 2016, achieving 36.5-centimeter accuracy in average user range error.
Col. Whitney with the Green Monster, mascot of the U.S. Air Force GPS Directorate. (Photo: USAF)
Moving over to our next generation GPS III satellites, SV-01 continues to make steady progress. In August, the team executed successful functional and physical configuration audits with Lockheed Martin, completing a key task on the road to achieving our available for launch (AFL) date. The AFL declaration signifies completion of production activities, and allows initiation of the Mission Readiness Campaign for launch upon Air Force direction.
As we march towards AFL, we are tackling several technical challenges, including a capacitor issue discovered during our investigation of SV-03 flight hardware tests. This capacitor is used in many places throughout the navigation payload. Our investigation uncovered inadequate qualification processes by a major subcontractor. Exercising due diligence, the Air Force is now verifying both the build quality of the entire capacitor manufacturing process and production lot via additional capacitor qualification life testing. This activity delayed our AFL until December 2016, approximately a four-month delay from our previous forecast.
The program is also working to solve several other technical challenges as we progress to completion. SV-01 testing uncovered electro-magnetic interference between a payload component and a hosted payload. Testing also uncovered electron impact issues on the L-band antenna elements. In partnership with Lockheed Martin, the program developed corrective action and design mitigations for both of these issues and is implementing these steps within our production flow for all the SVs. Of course, all these issues together have led to increased cost and contributed to delays in final delivery.
In the coming year, SV-02, the second GPS III satellite, will also be progressing towards completing production. Currently, all of the SV-02 sub-assemblies have been received by Lockheed Martin and are being integrated into the spacecraft. The next major step in the production flow for SV-02 will be to mate it with its propulsion core.
Recently, we completed negotiations with Lockheed Martin to extend the production line with purchases of SV-09 and SV-10. These satellites will be technically equivalent to SV-01 through SV-08. This $395 million purchase of two satellites marks a significant affordability milestone for the procurement of GPS III satellites.
Looking ahead, we are analyzing how to acquire satellites beyond SV-10. We are executing a phased strategy which starts first with determining the viability of a GPS III production design existing beyond the current contractor. We awarded an initial phase of contracts to the Boeing Company, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, and Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems in May 2016 to provide a feasibility assessment of the readiness of their satellites designs. In this phase, the contractors will provide a GPS III production design, manufacturing plans and a navigation payload brassboard test report, along with manufacturing/production processes and facilities maturity.
We are also collaborating closely on an Air Force Research Laboratory Space Vehicles Directorate activity, the On-orbit Reprogrammable Digital Waveform Generator program, as an opportunity for the three contractors to develop advanced GPS L-band navigation signal processing capabilities in a smaller, more efficient package. This effort could potentially provide future satellites enhanced security in contested environments, more capable signal generation, and additional GPS waveforms to meet the growing needs of both military and civilian users.
Looking further ahead, the second phase is envisioned to be a full and open competition with contract awards starting in 2018. Contractors will be required to deliver the first satellite in time to support constellation sustainment commitments.
Control Segment
Our Control Segment consists of both OCX and our existing Operational Control Segment at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado. The OCX program has struggled with many challenges through the years, producing a cost and schedule growth on OCX that exceeded the prescribed thresholds — in our case, a 25 percent cost growth against the approved Program Baseline.
I notified the Secretary of the Air Force on June 14 of this development, and on June 30 the Air Force declared a critical Nunn-McCurdy breach on the OCX program. The Nunn-McCurdy process is a mechanism for Congress to maintain oversight of DoD programs and requires the Office of the Secretary of Defense to conduct a review leading to a decision to either certify as critical to National Security or terminate the program.
The GPS Directorate and Raytheon, the OCX prime contractor, worked closely with teams conducting this in-depth, comprehensive review. The result was determined on Oct. 12 that OCX is essential to national security that no alternatives exist to meet requirements at less cost, remaining costs for the restructured program are reasonable and a higher priority than programs whose funding must be reduced to accommodate the growth, and management structure for the program is adequate.
With the review behind us, our challenge is to move forward with a stronger, healthier, more focused OCX program. To accomplish this, we are focused on several major areas: stronger systems engineering practices, establishing a single common hardware/environments baseline, greater software installation automation, and implementing industry standard software development processes.
One of our first milestones next year will be the delivery and deployment of OCX Block 0 in the summer of 2017. Block 0 is the GPS III Launch and Checkout System and provides a subset of the full OCX capabilities needed to launch the GPS III satellites and perform early on-orbit spacecraft bus checkout.
This delivery starts the drive for our inaugural launch of GPS III SV-01 in the spring of 2018. Raytheon completed two Block 0 key milestones since March 2016, and is now in formal qualification testing before it is deployed to operations early next year. The next year will see OCX development focused on Block 1. It provides the Initial Operating Capability to command and control all GPS satellites and enable the PNT mission, including the international L1C signal and advanced M-code features and capabilities.
Because OCX Block 0 is not designed to control the GPS III navigation payload, we are modifying the existing OCS to control GPS III satellites under Contingency Operations, or COps. COps will allow operation of the GPS III satellites launched prior to OCX Block 1 delivery in 2021, and provides the Air Force the ability to fly GPS III satellites at a capability level commensurate to a GPS IIF.
Our COps program has made good progress, completing its Preliminary Design Review last May and successfully passed Milestone B in September. COps is on track to hold its Critical Design Review in November, with delivery planned for the spring of 2019. We are exploring other potential OCS modifications to hedge against further delays in OCX.
Our OCS sustainment team in Colorado Springs recently completed the largest system update in program history. This update is part of our focus to refresh and bolster the cyber posture of the GPS architecture, and modernize the GPS control segment mission servers and hosted commercial software. These upgrades will protect against infiltration of cyber threats and enable improved data traffic logging for network situational awareness to protect this global utility.
User Equipment Segment
Like our other segments, our User Equipment segment had a very challenging but successful year. The MGUE program has worked steadily with our entire industry team, L-3 Communications, Raytheon, and Rockwell-Collins, to complete and test MGUE Increment 1 production prototypes. These Final Test Articles, or FTAs, started delivering this summer and are now capable of acquiring and actively tracking live-sky M-code. With the initial risk reduction testing phase complete, the Directorate will now use the FTAs to perform MGUE developmental testing and verification and hardware qualification testing.
The L-3 design was also the first on our program team to achieve security certification this October, which marks the very first security-certified M-code receiver card. This not only validates the L-3 design and production, it also validates the GPS security certification process, an enduring function for the Directorate in working with industry. This certification also leads the way for the product to be available to a wide variety of users across the DoD.
While progress in MGUE has been significant, creating the next-generation of secure, anti-jam, anti-spoof receivers has been more time-consuming and costly than expected. The drive to support warfighter needs for greater performance drives a diverse set of requirements across the DoD. The Air Force made a concerted effort to improve the resiliency of the MGUE receivers, adding complexity to the program. Combined, these challenges have led to extended delivery schedules for the program.
In the coming years, the MGUE team will lead efforts to integrate MGUE cards into four lead DoD platforms: the Air Force’s B-2 bomber, the Navy’s Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, the Army’s Distributed Defense Advanced GPS Receiver Device for the Stryker armored fighting vehicle, and the Marine Corps’ Joint Light Tactical Vehicle.
The four lead platforms provide pathfinder integrations and operational testing for the entire DoD community as we move into the modernized GPS era. The program office has already been working closely with the B-2 Program Office and the Joint Service System Management Office in fielding an M-code capable flight prototype Miniaturized Airborne GPS Receiver.
We have worked jointly on this first lead platform integration effort to field the first ever MGUE receiver integration into a higher order prototype unit. These efforts yielded tremendous integration insights. Prototype lab testing demonstrated live-sky tracking of C/A, Y and M-codes; testing of MGUE connected with a new B-2 flight antenna; and culminating in the first end-to-end demonstration of M-code capability.
In 2017, the GPS Directorate will set the acquisition strategy and plan forward for the MGUE Increment 2 program, addressing our long-term strategy for Application Specific Integrated Circuits, as well as meeting the needs of future platforms such as precision guided munitions, space receivers, and a modernized GPS handheld.
The Space Enterprise Vision
Earlier this year, General John Hyten, former commander of Air Force Space Command, announced the Space Enterprise Vision. The SEV is the result of an AFSPC study that looked at ensuring national security space capabilities in a contested environment, with an emphasis on improved resiliency. In the PNT mission area, there are many ways to provide greater resiliency in-line with General Hyten’s SEV. One that we are leaning forward and looking very hard at is multi-GNSS possibilities.
At the recent Institute of Navigation conference, many presenters noted that for the consumer market, the multi-GNSS era has already begun. Potential incorporation of non-GPS signals into military user equipment is still under review, but certainly offers the possibility of improving resilience to jamming, spoofing, and operations in obstructed terrain. The broader GPS community is developing approaches to assess multi-GNSS integrity, and we are working with those community members to evaluate the potential impacts to our GPS architecture, especially the ground.
Another resiliency initiative we are participating in is a DOT-led effort known as Advanced Receiver Autonomous Integrity Monitoring backed by PNT experts from the labs and academia. Once the technical aspects are well understood and the policy decisions are made, the GPS Directorate will be well positioned to take advantage of this opportunity.
Conclusion
2016 has been a very challenging and successful year. Looking forward into 2017 and beyond, we have numerous challenges across all segments of the Enterprise — OCX, GPS III, and MGUE — to deliver a modernized architecture. The men and women of the GPS Directorate and our Industry partners are truly some of the hardest working people I have ever had the opportunity to work with. It is their passion and dedication that has allowed us to continue to deliver the Gold Standard. It is my honor to serve with, and for, them.
2016 Accomplishments
Our GPS Next-Generation Operational Control System, or OCX program, received the majority of the press attention this year. OCX has struggled to overcome information assurance challenges, as well as poor systems engineering processes and planning from the outset of the program. The cost and schedule growth triggered a rigorous review by the Office of the Secretary of Defense.
The outcome, we believe, will be a restructured, more executable program that is implementing stronger systems engineering practices and industry-standard software development processes. We still have a ways to go to be successful, but realize we must deliver the capability to command our GPS satellites and will continue to explore programmatic off-ramps should the OCX program falter.
The past year also saw us bring to a close the GPS IIF production and deployment activities with the successful launch of our 12th and final GPS IIF satellite. Our GPS constellation remains healthy, stable and robust with 31 operational space vehicles: 12 GPS IIR, seven GPS IIR-M, and 12 GPS IIF.
We ushered in the GPS III era with the completion of Space Vehicle-01 thermal vacuum testing late in 2015 in an unprecedented 72 days. We have, however, uncovered several technical issues challenging our availability for launch. As we ready SV-01, a tremendous effort is ongoing to fully investigate and exonerate these issues to ensure our satellites deliver the capabilities you’ve come to expect from the Gold Standard.
This year our partners in the Launch Enterprise Directorate awarded a GPS III launch services contract to the Space Exploration Technology Corporation, or SpaceX — their first National Security Space System launch.
Finally, our Military GPS User Equipment (MGUE) program delivered its first set of Military Code compliant production prototypes for developmental testing and integration. Just as significant, the MGUE program granted the first-ever full security certification to contractor L-3 Communications. These major GPS modernization milestones are successful initial steps, but the progress in delivering the most secure, anti-jam, anti-spoof GPS receivers ever has taken longer than expected, and a great deal of work lies ahead.
This is by no means an exhaustive list of the year’s accomplishments and challenges, but it demonstrates that we are continuing to modernize the GPS system and maintain transparency on our commitments.
An Ariane 5 heavy-lift rocket launched four full operational capability (FOC) Galileo satellites on Nov. 17, accelerating deployment of the new satellite navigation system.
The rocket carried Galileo satellites 15–18 from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, into space, releasing the first pair 3 hours, 25 minutes after liftoff, while the second separated 20 minutes later.
All four are at their target altitude, after a smooth release from the new dispenser designed to handle four satellites.
Galileo satellites 15–18 being deployed from their dispenser, two at a time. (Artist’s rendering: ESA)
Over the next few days, engineers will nudge the satellites into their final working orbits and begin tests to ensure they are ready to join the constellation. This is expected to take six months or so.
This mission brings the Galileo system to 18 satellites.
The satellites already in orbit will allow the European Commission to declare the start of initial services, expected by year’s end.
The previous 14 satellites were launched two at a time using the Soyuz–Fregat rocket.
Galileo FOC-M6 satellites. The 15th to 18th satellites were built by prime contractor OHB System in Bremen, Germany, with the payloads supplied by UK-based Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd., owned by Airbus Defence and Space.
The satellites weighed 714, 715, 714 and 715 kg. at launch, respectively, and were placed in a circular medium Earth orbit (MEO) in Plane C, at an altitude of 22,922 km. and an inclination of 54.57 degrees. They will subsequently be moved to their operational orbit at an altitude of 23,222 km.
The Kourou launch team.
“Now that we can rely on the powerful Ariane 5, we can anticipate the quicker completion of Galileo deployment, permitting the system to enter full operation,” said Paul Verhoef, ESA’s director for the Galileo Programme and Navigation-related Activities.
Two additional Ariane 5 launches are scheduled in 2017 and 2018. The full system of 24 satellites plus spares is expected to be in place by 2020.
“With this 75th successful launch in a row, Ariane 5 sets a new record within European developed launchers and proves once more its reliability,” said Daniel Neuenschwander, ESA’s director for Launchers.
The new report, “Global and Chinese GPS Industry — 2016,” is an in-depth study on the current state of the global GPS industry with a focus on the Chinese market, offered by Research and Markets.
The report provides key statistics on the market status of the GPS manufacturers and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the industry.
It provides a basic overview of the industry including its definition, applications and manufacturing technology. Then, the report explores the international and Chinese major industry players in detail. In this part, the report presents the company profile, product specifications, capacity, production value, and 2011-2016 market shares for each company.
Through the statistical analysis, the report depicts the global and Chinese total market of GPS industry including capacity, production, production value, cost/profit, supply/demand and Chinese import/export.
The total market is further divided by company, by country, and by application/type for the competitive landscape analysis The report then estimates 2016-2021 market development trends of GPS industry. Analysis of upstream raw materials, downstream demand, and current market dynamics is also carried out.
In the end, the report makes some important proposals for a new project of GPS Industry before evaluating its feasibility. Overall, the report provides an in-depth insight of 2011-2021 global and Chinese GPS industry covering all important parameters.
Airbus Safran Launchers and the CNES French space agency have announced that Airbus Safran Launchers is acquiring the stake in Arianespace held by CNES.
Airbus Safran Launchers, a joint venture between Airbus Defence and Space and Safran, becomes the majority shareholder in Arianespace, with 74 percent of its share capital. The stakes held by the other shareholders, from the European launcher industry, remain unchanged.
CNES becomes a statutory censor on the Arianespace board, the same position held by the European Space Agency (ESA). On Dec. 9, a General Meeting of Arianespace shareholders will note the resignation of the three directors representing CNES, who will be replaced by three directors appointed by Airbus Safran Launchers.
Arianespace remains a full-fledged company, with its headquarters in Évry, near Paris; a facility in Kourou, French Guiana; and offices in Washington D.C., Tokyo and Singapore.
The company operates three launchers from the Guiana Space Center (CSG) in French Guiana: Ariane 5, Soyuz (within the scope of a partnership with Russian space agency Roscosmos) and Vega. Avio is the design authority and industrial prime contractor for the Vega light launcher, via its Italian subsidiary ELV (in which ASI, the Italian space agency, holds 30 percent).
“Following the signature of the Ariane 6 contract on Nov. 9 at ESA headquarters, this change in Arianespace’s shareholding structure provides a decisive boost to the transformation of the European launcher industry, all for the greater benefit of our customers,” said Stéphane Israël, Arianespace chairman and CEO. “By bolstering ties between industry and the market, Airbus Safran Launchers’ larger stake in Arianespace will support the increasingly flexible operation of Ariane, while also opening up new opportunities for Arianespace’s employees.
“CNES is a new censor on our board of directors, and will continue to be our daily partner at the Guiana Space Center,” Israël said. “Drawing on our family of launchers — comprising Ariane, Soyuz and Vega — Arianespace will continue our mission of ensuring independent access to space for ESA and European institutions.
“We also will maintain strong links with our minority shareholders, representing Europe’s launcher industry, and we naturally will continue to work with all satellite manufacturers. We already are gearing up for the successful operation of our two upcoming launchers: Vega C, from 2019, and then Ariane 6, from 2020. With this, we are opening a new chapter in the fabulous story of Arianespace.”
TomTom has extended its the multi-year partnership with AOL Inc. to power its core mapping services for MapQuest, a subsidiary of AOL.
In addition to providing access to TomTom’s extensive digital map database, across all digital platforms including MapQuest.com and its iOS and Android apps, and MapQuest for Business API solutions, the new deal now includes TomTom’s leading traffic solution.
“Every day, millions of people depend on MapQuest for maps, driving directions and location information to make their lives easier and thousands of business depend on MapQuest’s suite of geospatial solutions to meet their needs,” said Brian McMahon, senior vice president and general manager at MapQuest. “We truly value the partnership with TomTom, and we look forward to continuing to build upon and evolve our product suite with TomTom data. By expanding our agreement with TomTom, we are continuing our commitment to provide MapQuest users and business customers with the most innovative products and solutions.”
“We are delighted to enhance our partnership with MapQuest,” commented Anders Truelsen, Managing Director of Licensing for TomTom. “Integrating TomTom’s mapping and traffic data into MapQuest products ensures millions of people can make better and more informed decisions about every journey.”
TomTom has extended its the multi-year partnership with AOL Inc. to power its core mapping services for MapQuest, a subsidiary of AOL.
In addition to providing access to TomTom’s extensive digital map database, across all digital platforms including MapQuest.com and its iOS and Android apps, and MapQuest for Business API solutions, the new deal now includes TomTom’s leading traffic solution.
“Every day, millions of people depend on MapQuest for maps, driving directions and location information to make their lives easier and thousands of business depend on MapQuest’s suite of geospatial solutions to meet their needs,” said Brian McMahon, senior vice president and general manager at MapQuest. “We truly value the partnership with TomTom, and we look forward to continuing to build upon and evolve our product suite with TomTom data. By expanding our agreement with TomTom, we are continuing our commitment to provide MapQuest users and business customers with the most innovative products and solutions.”
“We are delighted to enhance our partnership with MapQuest,” commented Anders Truelsen, Managing Director of Licensing for TomTom. “Integrating TomTom’s mapping and traffic data into MapQuest products ensures millions of people can make better and more informed decisions about every journey.”
Lockheed Martin has completed a major upgrade to modernize the current ground control system of the U.S. Air Force’s GPS constellation.
The Commercial Off-the-Shelf (COTS) Upgrade #2 (CUP2) project is the latest step in the Air Force’s multi-year plan to refresh technology and transform the legacy Operational Control Segment — known as the Architecture Evolution Plan (AEP) — into a modern, high-performance command and control system.
On Oct. 15, CUP2 became fully operational and began managing the 31 GPS IIR, IIR-M and IIF satellites that make up today’s GPS constellation.
Capt. Adam Moody, 2SOPS GPS Operations Support flight commander, and Staff Sgt. Carl Ellinger, 2 SOPS GPS mission chief, review a checklist of procedures for a transfer operation at Schriever Air Force Base. (U.S. Air Force photo/Dennis Rogers)
The Air Force awarded Lockheed Martin the CUP2 project in November 2013 under its GPS Control Segment (GCS) contract, and the system is now fully deployed into the AEP’s GPS Master Control Station and the Alternate Master Control Station.
This is the third major technology refresh of the GPS command and control system since the GCS contract began in January 2013.
This upgrade to the existing ground control system provides the Air Force with flexibility. In May, as part of Contingency Operations (COps) under the GPS III contract, Lockheed Martin demonstrated a preliminary design to build off CUP2 and further upgrade the AEP to support next-generation GPS III satellites as they perform their positioning, navigation and timing mission. COps is a temporary gap filler prior to the entire GPS constellation’s transition onto the next-generation Operational Control System (OCX) Block 1, which is currently in development.
“Under CUP2, Lockheed Martin and the Air Force installed modern commercial hardware and a major software upgrade that enhances the system’s ability to protect data and infrastructure from cyber threats, as well as improves its overall sustainability and operability,” said Vinny Sica, vice president and general manager of Mission Solutions for Lockheed Martin. “Continued modernization and cyber-hardening of the GPS control system is vitally important to the sustainment of navigation services for our military and all global GPS users.”
The GPS Directorate at the U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center contracted the CUP2 upgrade. Air Force Space Command’s 2nd Space Operations Squadron (2SOPS), based at Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado, manages and operates the GPS constellation for both civil and military users.
