GNSS

Industry to build ISRO’s two spare navigation satellites

ISRO is finalising plans to get two spare navigation satellites of its IRNSS fleet built by industry in the next two years. It will handhold industry for the first project and build it by March 2017. The second one will be built entirely by industry, according to Mr. M. Annadurai, Director of ISRO Satellite Centre. Both will be 1,400-kg spares kept ready on ground.

“We plan to have a consortium of industry to do the two navigation satellites. The rest of the seven navigation satellites are in orbit,” he said. ISRO will lend its infrastructure and expertise while industries bring on the hardware for the satellites that will back up the Indian regional navigation spacecraft, sometimes called the ‘Indian GPS’. Expressions of interest were called in June and ISRO is discussing the nitty-gritty of risks, price and profit sharing with prospective partners.

Dr. Annadurai said ISRO plans to go to the next level and issue the request for proposal — the technical bid — “in weeks” to interested companies from both, public and private sectors. www.thehindu.com

November’s Galileo satellites arrive at Europe’s spaceport

A transatlantic flight delivered four Galileo satellites to French Guiana in preparation for a shared launch this November by Ariane 5. Each satellite was placed into protective containers before leaving the cleanroom environment of the test facility. These containers incorporate sophisticated environmental control, satellite monitoring systems and shock absorbers.

Pinpoint navigation in Israel

The precision of GPS systems in Israel is expected to improve dramatically from an accuracy of ten meters to only one meter, after an European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) navigational station was stationed in the Technion Israel Institute of Technology this week. The new station is designed to benefit aviation in Israel, where airspace is among the most congested in the Middle East, and it will also improve the navigation app used by many drivers. The system which has been deployed at 50 stations around the world, consists of three satellites and a network of ground stations. The station’s satellites broadcast signals enabling users to receive precise locations in real time. Placing the stations is part of cooperation between the European Space Agency (ESA), the Technion Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering Mapping and Geo-Information Department, and Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd.’s (IAI) MLM division. www.globes.co.il

Russian jamming up the works with POLE-21

In a story posted at Sputnik News, Russia has now developed a system that can block enemy electronics.The report states that an integrated jamming system to screen strategic facilities from cruise missiles, smart bombs and drones using GPS, GLONASS, Galileo and Beidou global positioning systems for homing, has entered service with the Russian armed forces. Dubbed as POLE-21, the system consists of jamming modules installed on mobile phone towers that operate as a single whole to cover entire areas, making them impregnable to satellite navigation systems. In addition to be being powered by a tower’s circuit, the Pole-21 modules also use their GSM antennas as a backup channel for signal control and transmission. www.satnews.com

Putin orders to ensure longterm government support for civil ship building

Russian President Vladimir Putin has asked the government to ensure a longlasting state support for civil ship building, according to the Kremlin press service. He ordered to extend the term of giving subsidies to Russian companies to compensate part of their expenses on paying interests on loans for buying ships as well as lease payments. Putin has also tasked the Russian government to elaborate a plan on installation of satellite navigation equipment based on Glonass system on Russian vessels, a document published on the Kremlin website said. “With a view to ensuring the safety of navigation, to develop a comprehensive plan for promotion of the use of electronic navigation charts for inland waters and installation of satellite navigation equipment based on Glonass system for inland and mixed (river — sea) navigation vessels,” the list of instructions issued by the president following the State Council meeting devoted to development of inland waterways said. https://sputniknews.com

EGNOS-Africa joint programme

The 26th of July 2016 marked the beginning of cooperation between ECCAS and the Joint Programme Office (EGNOS in AFRICA Support Programme -Joint Programme Office), “JPO”, by signing the Memorandum of Cooperation; ECCAS represented by its Secretary General His Excellency Ambassador Ahmad Allam -Mi, and JPO represented by its Director, Mr Ladislaus Matindi. The signed Memorandum of Cooperation will guide the collaboration between the two organizations in the field of satellite navigation, specifically on the potential implementation and operation of GNSS / EGNOS in ECCAS member States and its applications in all sectors (aviation, maritime, rail, road, agriculture, land management, etc.).

JPO has notably developed a roadmap for the implementation of EGNOS in Africa for the benefit of all stakeholders including the States. In 2016, the JPO enters a second operational phase under the ‘Support EGNOS in Africa Programme’ which is co-financed by the EU with a contribution of ASECNA. www.aviation-africa.eu

Dr. Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska receives Kepler award

The Institute of Navigation’s (ION) Satellite Division presented Dr. Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska with its Johannes Kepler Award September 16, 2016 at the ION GNSS+ Conference (Portland, Oregon) for her outstanding contributions in advancing high-accuracy GNSS/INS integrated systems, educating future navigation leaders, and for strengthening the ties between satellite navigation and geodesy. www.ion.org