Author Archives: Galileo GNSS

Galileo Increases Accuracy of Location-Based Services

Tests conducted by Rx Networks and the European GNSS Agency (GSA) confirm that Galileo provides real added value to citizens using Location Based Services (LBS). When used in addition to GPS and/or GLONASS, Galileo proved to significantly improve accuracy in challenging environments.

Rx Networks, a leading mobile location technology and services company, measured the performance of Galileo when used in various combinations with GPS and GLONASS. Conducted in such real-world environments as urban canyons and indoors, each test consisted of a three hour data capture of the GNSS signals which was later replayed to produce hundreds of fixes using a multi-constellation GNSS receiver from STMicroelectronics. Read more…

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Third Galileo FOC satellite arrives at ESTEC

Latest Galileo navigation satellite has arrived at ESA’s Technical Centre (ESTEC) in the Netherlands for testing. Meanwhile the previous two satellites are ready to be launched together by Soyuz rocket this summer from the European spaceport in Kourou (French Guiana).

The new satellite travelled safely by lorry enclosed within an air-conditioned and environmentally controlled container from manufacturer OHB in Bremen (Germany). The container was unsealed only once the satellite had completed its journey by road to the cleanroom conditions in ESTEC, Europe’s largest site for spacecraft testing. Read more…

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Galileo maritime trial route

Results are being processed from the first Galileo maritime trials outside of mainland Europe. The long-range, high-latitude testing spanned the North Sea, following the same historical sailing route that Viking dragon-ships used 1200 years ago.

The Belgian frigate Leopold I-F930  during the first high-latitude trials of Europe’s Galileo satellite navigation system sailed first from the Dutch marine base of Den Helder on 4 December 2013 to Stavanger in Norway. From there it progressed north in very rough seas with 10-m high waves, coming close to the Arctic circle on 17 December (a first for Galileo PRS observations) before heading homeward. Read more…

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Galileo satellite departure to Europe’s Spaceport

The departure of the Galileo satellites from ESA’s test centre in the Netherlands  took place on 5 May. Here is a picture of that moment. After several months of testing, this latest full-capability Galileo navigation satellite left along with its twin.

Galileo satellite departure from ESTEC

Galileo satellite departure from ESTEC

Both satellites were loaded aboard trucks to be driven to Frankfurt Airport in Germany. From there, they were flown to Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana the following evening where they will be launched together by a Soyuz later this summer. Read more…

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Next Galileo satellites arrive at Europe’s Spaceport

Europe’s two latest Galileo navigation satellites touched down on 7-May at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, ready for their joint launch this summer.

Galileo satellites unloaded from the Boeing 747

Galileo satellites unloaded from the Boeing 747

Packed safely within protective and environmentally controlled containers, the satellites were carried across the Atlantic aboard a Boeing 747 cargo carrier. Read more…

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Alternative Complementary GNSS Systems shown to be Essential

In an unprecedented disruption of an operational GNSS constellation, all 24 satellites in the Russian GLONASS broadcast corrupt information for 11 hours starting at 21 UTC on 2 April. This rendered the system completely unusable to all worldwide GLONASS receivers.

The Russian GLONASS monitoring center showed satellites in unhealthy statuses: “failure” and “illegal ephemeris.” Because the failure was systemwide and simultaneous, some have speculated that an incorrect uploading of corrections to satellite ephermerides (orbital positions) occurred. Read more…

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