Russia's Soyuz ready to launch Galileo, Europe's $5.4bn rival to US GPS

[Omaroo]

A better GPS system - but only for Europe? Interesting to see Soyuz launched outside of the old USSR boundaries for the first time.

[TrevorW]

For their sake it better not expode on launch

[gary]

Though designed and implemented by the European Union and a few other
countries such as South Korea and Israel, Galileo is a global system and eventually
the constellation will consist of at least 22 satellites. They may increase that number subject
to EU budget approval.

In the industry, satellite navigation systems are generically referred to as GNSS -
Global Navigation Satellite Systems - of which the United States built NAVSTAR
GPS is one such system. However, since the GPS constellation is the one with which
most of us are familiar, the term "GPS" tends to be used by many in a generic
sense in much the same way that the brand name "Hoover" has become
synonymous with the "vacuum cleaner" or "the act of vacuum cleaning" in the UK.

The Russian GLOSNASS GNSS achieved global coverage this month and the
Chinese have been building their COMPASS system.

After much "toing and froing", it was decided that the Galileo system would
use a different set of frequencies to NAVSTAR GPS. However, in the years
ahead it will become increasingly common to see receivers support multiple
constellations which result in benefits to end users such as faster times
to "first fix". As many readers will be aware, a fix on at least three satellites is
required and at least a fourth if elevation is also required.

One of the neat features of Galileo is that it will have a "back-channel" providing a
search and rescue (SAR) capability, similar to an EPIRB.

For a cool time lapse video showing the the final assembly of the Soyuz,
see the ESA web site here - http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Galileo_IOV/

For some links to earlier stories on the Galileo Soyuz launch see this post here -
http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/showthread.php?t=78593

Meantime, huge controversy continues over the U.S. LightSquared 4G LTE wireless
broadband plans where testing has concluded that it would result in major
interference to existing GPS and Galileo receivers. It has been reported that one of
LightSquare's proposals is to retrofit every GPS receiver in the U.S. with a
filter, including over 300 million GPS-enabled cell phones (all new cell phones
must have a positioning capability by law). Earlier this year it had been suggested that
aircraft, to avoid interference to their navigational equipment, would need to fly
around the 40,000 fixed LightSquared ground stations that would be scattered across
the United States.

[Omaroo]

Thanks for the clarification Gary.

See you tonight. :thumbsup:

[gary]

Thanks Chris,

Looking forward to seeing you tonight at the MAS forum (http://www.macastro.org.au/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=138&Itemid=158). :thumbsup:

Best Regards

Gary

[ZeroID]

I thought the Galileo System had already crashed. It is way off schedule and way over budget and at one time about to be abandoned if I remember correctly. Someone must have found a few dollars to keep it alive.