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Delta 2 Rocket Launches 50th GPS Satellite

Posted by timothy on from the more-to-choose-from dept.

wetshoe writes "This CNN article reports that 'the 50th U.S. Global Positioning Satellite has lifted off aboard a Boeing Delta 2 rocket.' It was sent into space to replace an aging GPS satellite. One more reason why geocaching is so much fun."

5 of 188 comments (clear)

  1. Geocaching by rkz · · Score: 5, Interesting
    My enjoyment everyday comes in the form of looking forward to the weekend when I spend my free time geocaching with my friends or myself.

    Its just you (and maybe some friends), no real pressure. Plus its an actual trek (ranges from in-city, to some caches are ones that need Scuba or moutain gear or whatever).

    And with geocaching you've just got your GPS, a compass, and maybe a topographic map (if you can get one). None of this fancy cell phones with internet to tell you answers stuff ;-)

    --
    There is no god
  2. No info on satellite by doormat · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Doesnt say if this is capable of GPS-2 or whatever its called. As someone who uses GPS to manage infrastructure, I'd like to see some more precise GPS without having to spend $20,000 on Trimble or Leica equipment.

    --
    The Doormat

    If you're not outraged, then you're not paying attention.
  3. Re:space junk? by daraf · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I'm not sure how much fuel is required to break orbit and send a satellite to the sun, but I'm pretty sure that an old GPS I satellite doesn't have it. It's easier just to slow the satellite down a bit so it burns up in the atmosphere as it falls to earth, which is what they do. Every US Air Force satellite that goes up nowadays has some sort of end-of-life plan.

  4. Geocaching by Dirtside · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Wouldn't it be more accurate to say that the GPS satellites make geocaching *possible*? Whether or not it's fun has little to do with a rocket launching a satellite. Of course, you could say that it wouldn't be fun at all without a GPS system, since you'd have to navigate with less convenient methods. :)

    --
    "Destroy science and religion. Science would re-emerge exactly the same; but not religion." - Penn Jillette, paraphrased
  5. Some math by steveha · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The article says the satellite costs $45 million. I Googled a bit and found that the launch cost for a Delta 2 is around $50 to $60 million. The article also said the satellite being replaced is 11 years old, and at the end of its useful life, and that there are 50 GPS satellites.

    Crunching the numbers, we have about $105 million to put up a GPS satellite, with about 11 useful years; call it $10 million per year. Multiplying by 50 satellites, we have $500 million per year cost for GPS. I never knew. Also, on average, each year 4 or 5 launches must happen to replace aging GPS satellites.

    Note that the launch costs are actually higher than the cost of the satellite. Also, the satellite could probably be made more cheaply if launch costs were lower (instead of over-engineering it to never break, they might just launch a cluster of two in the same orbit, or just design it to be easily repaired). If and when private companies build reusable spacecraft that can carry a GPS satellite, the cost of GPS will go down a lot. A Boeing Delta 2 is completely used up in each GPS launch right now, so truly reusable spacecraft should be able to dramatically cut launch costs and still make money.

    steveha

    --
    lf(1): it's like ls(1) but sorts filenames by extension, tersely