The United States has just launched its most advanced positioning satellite, part of a new global positioning satellite (GPS) group aimed at helping both commercial users and the military to determine their locations and targets with greater accuracy.
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New Generation GPS Satellite |
The $75 million satellite was launched using a Boeing Delta 2 rocket on September 26. In the coming days, it will deploy its solar panels, antennas, and fire a small rocket on board to reach its final orbit, approximately 18,000 kilometers above Earth. This satellite joins a network of 28 existing GPS satellites. The system of 28 GPS satellites enables users to pinpoint their locations. However, this new satellite—the first of 8 GPS IIR satellites built by Lockheed Martin—aims to enhance the accuracy of the overall existing GPS system.
This new satellite carries an antenna that provides a stronger signal to ground users, as well as three completely new signals. Two of these will assist the U.S. military in alleviating GPS signal congestion among ground vehicles, aircraft, and ships. Additionally, they will improve the accuracy of GPS-guided smart weapons. The third signal will be a frequency dedicated to civilian users, reducing positioning errors caused by the charged particle layer in the upper atmosphere.
The U.S. military plans to launch three more GPS IIR satellites in 2006. Following that, the first of 12 even more advanced satellites will be launched in 2007. These satellites, known as GPS IIF, are being built by Boeing and will provide a third civilian signal for aircraft. It is also known that Europe intends to launch a network of non-military satellites to compete with GPS. The first Galileo satellites are currently being tested on the ground and are scheduled for launch in December 2005 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
Minh Sơn (According to NewScientist, AFP)
