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Galileo To Be Europe's Answer To US GPS

Posted by Soulskill on from the zombie-galileo-knows-how-to-get-to-grandma's-house dept.

judgecorp writes "Two Galileo satellites that will signify the start of the European Union's answer to the American Global Positioning System will be launched into orbit on Thursday aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket. It's using Soyuz because it is cheaper than the French Ariane — and the satellite system is supposed to free Europe from dependence on a U.S.-controlled positioning system."

2 of 402 comments (clear)

  1. Re:For such a vital system. by digitig · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Everybody is thinking about war. I was involved, in a small way, with the planning of Galileo, and one of the very big concerns in Europe was that the US could start charging for the use of GPS. The technology is already on the GPS satellites, and it could be done regionally (with fairly big regions, but enough to keep it free in the US whilst charging in Europe and Asia if not in Canada and Mexico). The free availability of GPS without selective availability is subject to annual presidential review. Considering the extent that the world is dependent on GPS now, if the USA started charging it would have the rest of the world over a barrel. Galileo isn't so much about military competition as commercial competition.

    --
    Quidnam Latine loqui modo coepi?
  2. Re:For such a vital system. by JohnnyComeLately · · Score: 3, Interesting
    Yes, we command and control GPS from Shreiver AFB, in Colorado Springs, CO. They have dedicated antennas, as well as can use AFSCN (Air Force Satellite Control Network). The backup is at the Vandenberg Air Force Base Tracking Station (Cook, I believe is it's call sign). We can degade the precision (SA), the timing, and encrypt it to totally deny GPS use. Only problem is: Pres Reagan opened it up to civilian use in the 80's. Pres Bush/Clinton decreed no degraded precision. As I've mentioned on a few other threads, I was one of 4 SSO's who turned off (effectively.. I won't go into how because I'm not sure if its still classified) GPS in the early 1990s. So, it's been off for nearly two decades.

    I apologize if I gave an impression we physically go up. When I say, "Go up on a bird," it's meaning, contacting the Ground Antenna, establishing C2 (S-band) and going "active", which means transmitting S-bits, etc. At 11,000 miles (plus change) there's no practical way to ever physically get to one of the GPS satellites. When we're done iwht them, we spin them up for physical stability, and then boost them out of their operational orbit. It's also referred to as "super syncing a bird."

    If we ever get to a point where the US is so unstable it can't Command and Control GPS satellites, the world will be worried about a ton more pressing things than our GPS satellites. For what it's worth a high school student with two week's pay at minimum wage could have the technical and fiscal ability to jam GPS for a large area. The US Gov isn't your boogey man in this scenario. If we didn't touch GPS on 9/11, I think it's a pretty clear indication it's not on the table.