Monthly Archives: January 2018

[vid] What is Galileo?

Satellite positioning has become a vital part of our daily lives and is a key for farming, science, precise timing and emergency response. We use it on our phones, cars, planes, trains, ships and thousands of other applications. In 2016, Galileo, the European Global Navigation system launched its initial services.

EU relocates GSMC facility to Spain

A scientist works on the Galileo satellite system

A scientist works on the Galileo satellite system

A part of the infrastructure for the Galileo satellite system will be relocated from the Britain to Spain because of the UK’s departure from the EU, the European Commission has announced.

The back-up Galileo security monitoring centre for Galileo was originally awarded to London in 2010 after a competitive process.

The centre, which was due to become fully operational later this year, controls access to the satellite system and provides around-the-clock monitoring of it when the main security centre, near Paris, is offline. Read more…

Ariane 6’s Vulcain engine set for first firing

Vulcain 2.1

Vulcain 2.1

A Vulcain rocket engine recently arrived in Germany ahead of its first test firing in December to demonstrate new capabilities and technologies developed for Ariane 6.

The Vulcain 2.1 will help to propel Ariane 6, new-generation launcher for Galileo, in the first 10 minutes of flight, up to an altitude of 200 km.

The engine delivers 135 tonnes of thrust in vacuum, and weighs the same as an Airbus A318 jet engine but provides more than 10 times the power. Read more…

Third Galileo IS OS Quarterly Performance Report now available

Third Galileo IS OS Quarterly Performance ReportThe third Galileo Initial Services Open Service (IS OS) Quarterly Performance Report, with information on the status of the Galileo constellation covering the period from July to September 2017 is now available.

These quarterly reports provide the public with the latest information on the Galileo Open Service measured performance statistics, in particular, on parameters such as: Read more…