GPS World - February 2008 - (Page 12)

THE SYSTEM he European Space Agency (ESA) stands ready to raise the curtain on Galileo’s second act, with the GIOVE-B experimental and validation satellite tentatively set for an April 28 launch from Baikonur in Kazakhstan. ESA plans to simultaneously stage special events at several of its European centers to mark the event. In December, the European Parliament gave final approval to the 2008 European Union (EU) budget, which includes full public funding for the system. But with money supply obstacles purportedly cleared, new hurdles loom in an increasingly murky contract-award scenario. ESA has reportedly modified the satellite’s signal generator to broadcast the multiplex binary-offset carrier (MBOC) signal on the Open Service, enacting a July 2007 agreement between the EU and the United States on a common interoperable signal. GIOVE-B will carry one hydrogen maser and two rubidium clocks. The passive hydrogen masers are designed to keep time with an accuracy of around one nanosecond per day, compared to rubidium clocks carried by GIOVE-A and GPS satellites, accurate to 10 nanoseconds. Builders Wanted. In March of last year, ESA contracted with Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) to provide a third satellite, named GIOVE-A2. According to one report, the European Satellite Navigation Industries (ESNI) consortium has begun construction of four more in-orbit validation satellites. A different report surfaced at the end of 2007 asserting that the ESNI consortium was to be dismantled under new Galileo arrangements, with the construction phase to be managed by ESA itself. GPS World could not secure confirmation of either story. ESA has advertised for a new Head of the Galileo Procurement Office, with closing date for applications January 18, 2008. European governments will entertain competitive bidding for portions of the satellite constellation. Transport ministers decided in late November 2007 that the 26 Galileo satellites will be purchased in three batches. The first 10 satellites could go to a single contracting team, or be split between two competitors, at the discretion of ESA and the European Commission. “We are free to do whatever makes most sense,” a European government official stated. “It could be all 10 for one company, or an even split, or eight and two. We 12 GPS World | February 2008 Policy and system news and developments | GPS | Galileo | GLONASS Galileo’s Second Coming Soon T will decide when we see the final bids.” This approach opens a door for SSTL and another successful small-satellite builder, OHB Systems of Germany, to enter the fray with larger aerospace contractors — Thales Alenia Space, Finmeccanica, and EADS Astrium, the original founders of ESNI in 2000, known then as Galileo Industries — without having to prove they can construct the entire 26-satellite constellation. Earlier bickering among EU member nations and their respective aerospace contractors over “the whole enchilada,” and the general unwieldiness of the aggregated ESNI consortium, produced this division of labor. Different groups of Galileo’s 26 satellites may now be produced by competing teams. ESA will issue a request for information in the current quarter, with contracts to be awarded by October, the first spacecraft due in 2009, and launches from 2010 through 2012. If reality adheres to this schedule, Galileo will meets its latest-announced operational date of 2013 — when the United States may begin launching its first Block IIIA satellites. GLONASS Ups Its Ante One of the three GLONASS satellites launched on December 25, 2007, GLONASS 723 in orbital slot 11 on frequency channel 0, was set healthy on January 22. Meanwhile, operators decommissioned five older satellites during the previous week. The Russian navigation satellite constellation currently has 14 satellites operating and set to healthy. The five decommissioned spacecraft — 794, 789, 711, 792, and 798 — had all been set to unhealthy previously; in some cases, for more than a year. Three satellites launched on October 26, 2007, have been declared operational, and once the two remaining December launchees are fully commissioned and set to healthy, a total constellation of 16 satellites will make GLONASS signals available across 90 percent of Russia and 80 percent of the globe, according to Russian officials. The country has six more satellites scheduled for launch later in 2008. Public Scolding. In a January 23 speech, Russian first deputy prime minister Sergei Ivanov, who oversees the country’s military-industrial complex and has been a prominent cheerleader for GLONASS, for the first time expressed major criticism. www.gpsworld.com http://www.gpsworld.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of GPS World - February 2008

GPS World - February 2008 Contents Out in Front Expert Advice Galileo's Second Coming Soon UPS First to Use ADS-B European Industry Group Galileo Validation 2008 Antenna Survey Tsumani Detection by GPS Classifieds Advertisers Index Seen + Heard

GPS World - February 2008

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