Investigating the potential implications on the mission
Following the announcement made by Arianespace on the anomalies of the orbit injection of the Galileo satellites, the teams of industries and agencies involved in the early operations of the satellites are investigating the potential implications on the mission.
Both satellites have been acquired and are safely controlled and operated from ESOC, ESA’s Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany.
Further information on the status of the satellites will be made available after the preliminary analysis of the situation.
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The improved positioning and timing information supplied by Galileo will have positive implications for many services and users in Europe. Products that people use daily, for example in-car navigation devices and mobile phones will benefit from the extra accuracy provided by Galileo. Galileo’s satellite navigation data will also benefit critical services for citizens and users, for example it will make road and rail transport systems safer and improve our responses to emergency situations. Once it has entered into its operational phase, Galileo will also allow the introduction of a wide range of innovative new products and services in other industries and generate economic growth, innovation and highly skilled jobs. In 2013 the annual global market for global navigation satellite products and services was valued at 175 billion and it is expected to grow over the next years to an estimated 237 billion by 2020. The Commission aims to have the full constellation of 30 Galileo satellites (which includes six in-orbit active spares) in operation before the end of this decade. To foster economic development and maximise the socio-economic benefits expected from the system, the Commission plans to update the EU’s action plan for global navigation satellite system applications and propose new measures to promote the use of Galileo. Since 2011, four Galileo satellites have been launched and used as part of the In-Orbit Validation phase, allowing the first autonomous position fix to be calculated based on Galileo-only signals in March 2013. The European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) is already bringing practical benefits. EGNOS improves the accuracy and the reliability of signals from existing global navigation satellite systems by correcting signal measurement errors and by providing information about signal integrity. EGNOS is used for example by the aviation industry, to provide the positioning accuracy needed for more precise landings, fewer delays and diversions and more efficient routes in Europe. |
Source and Image Credit: ESA
