The System — January 2007

And Not Fade Away

Old Block IIA Sat Reactivated for Tests

SVN23, the first Block IIA satellite to be launched (as PRN23), has been reactivated as PRN32. This satellite was launched on November 26, 1990, and initially decommissioned on February 13, 2004, after more than 13 years of service. SVN23/PRN32 is in slot E5 and is operating on its Rb2 clock.

PRN32 was last used by SVN32. It used that code until January 28, 1993, when its code was switched to PRN01.

It is believed that SVN23 was initially reactivated with a non- standard code that cannot be tracked by standard GPS receivers. However, on December 2, it started to transmit the standard PRN32 code. Nevertheless, the satellite was set unhealthy as it reportedly had been reactivated only for test purposes.

Richard Langley provided this information in a footnote to his Navstar GPS Constellation Status report of November 4, 2006, posted to users of the CANSPACE list service (contact listserv@unb.ca to subscribe). As reported by Stephan Schaer of the Center for Orbit Determination in Europe, some “all-in-view” stations of the IGS tracking network (which can track both healthy and unhealthy satellites) began receiving SVN23/ PRN32 signals on December 2. However, it seems that some manufacturers’ receivers were unable to track a satellite with a PRN number of 32.

On December 7, the GPS Operations Center at Air Force 2nd Space Operations (2SOPs) issued this Notice Advisory to Navstar users (NANU): “An initial assessment period for SVN 23 utilizing PRN 32 was accomplished 1 December to 6 December 2006; SVN 23 is no longer transmitting L-band.

“During this assessment period SVN 23 was broadcasting L-band and set unhealthy. SVN 23 was not included in the operational constellation almanac.

“Any users that experienced unusual performance from GPS user equipment during this period should contact the GPS Operations Center.

“Approximately 10 January 2007, SVN 23 utilizing PRN 32 will be turned on; transmitting L-band and kept unhealthy. SVN 23 will still not be included in the operational constellation almanac. The GPS Operations Center will transmit a General NANU reminding users of this activity.”

Testing, Testing. As reported in the November, 2006 issue of this magazine, the Air Force issued an earlier memorandum stating that the November 17 launch of SVN58/PRN12 would set a new mark of 31 operational satellites, and that operational control could go beyond 32 satellites. As most current civil receivers are set at 31, this has important ramifications that manufacturers should consider.

The GPS Operations Center continues to seek feedback on potential impacts the largest-ever GPS constellation may have on users and equipment. “Although future versions of our interface spec, IS-GPS-200, will accommodate a larger constellation for the next-generation GPS, the most pressing concern is with potential impacts to existing fielded GPS receivers that may not properly account for up to 32 operational PRNs.”

The early December and January L-band broadcasts by SVN 23 may represent tests to assess various aspects of that future eventuality.

This One’s for Real. Meanwhile, the new GPS IIR-M satellite SVN58/ PRN12 was declared operational on December 13.

Galileo Guess Who

EU States Vie to Host Supervisory Authority

No fewer than eleven European Union (EU) member states have their hands in the ring to grab hosting of the Galileo Supervisory Authority, tasked to take over from the Galileo Joint Undertaking on January 1, 2007, and manage the EU satellite navigation program. Ministerial meetings among the candidate states could not resolve the matter, nor could the EU leaders’ summit, December 11-12, make the politically charged decision.

Deliberations were postponed until the incoming German presidency in January and the next Transport Council meeting in February. Discussion focused on whether the decision should respect an agreement reached in 2003 providing for the new member states to be given priority in hosting new agencies.

Race Card. Eleven countries have ponied up their candidate sites: Belgium (Brussels), the Czech Republic (Prague), France (Strasbourg), the Netherlands (Noordwijk), Italy (Rome), Malta (Valetta), Germany (Munich), Greece (Athens), Slovenia (Ljubljana), the United Kingdom (Cardiff), and Spain (Barcelona).

According to the EU protocol, new “decentralized” agencies should go to new member states, that is, predominantly those in Eastern Europe. Only Poland currently hosts one of these, and all the founding 15 states already have an agency. So, presumably, Malta, Slovenia, and the Czech Republic would appear to have pole position. They are truly dark horses, however, as national contributions to the Galileo budget run much higher in the industrialized, space-age West, and these commitments come with significant quid pro quo.

Security. Concern has surfaced from some old member states about the security of the site, since the agency will oversee highly sensitive information. The Czech Republic is making a particularly strong push for host designation, witha Czech spokesperson later stating “Prague has fulfilled the security conditions.” Angered by the debate — which may or may not represent a stalking horse for more real economic motives — the Czechs could block a move to host in an old member state city, with the UK’s Cardiff seen a strong candidate. Germany and France have already landed plum Galileo sites, and Italy and Spain have secured backup/secondary hostings. Only the UK, of the Galileo Big Five, remains out in the cold.

Agency hosting brings jobs, direct economic benefits, and enhanced prestige. It also entails correlative conference hosting attracting international participation — and closer contact for national industry that could lead to further contracts.

Governments compete by offering the best buildings with desirable, largely metropolitan locations, and requiring only token rent. The model was set in this regard a few decades ago, when a farsighted mayor of Noordwijk, the Netherlands, offered a substantial plot of ground virtually free to the nascent European Space Agency (ESA).

Whether the EU will stick to its principles or opt pragmatically remains to be seen. Meanwhile, some observers recall Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi’s pouting when the EU food agency appeared headed for Helsinki: “They don’t know prosciutto” — or words to that effect.

The agency ended up in Parma.

GPS III Faucet Opened

$50M Design Contracts Awarded

Co-competitors Lockheed Martin Space Systems Corp. and Boeing Co. each received a $49,999,000 cost-plus-fixed fee contract modification to accomplish a GPS III system design review (SDR) in March 2007, towards a key decision point B in June, 2007: the award of a multi-billion dollar development contract for building GPS III. Headquarters Global Positioning Systems Wing, Los Angeles Air Force Base, California, is the contracting entity. Lockheed Martin leads a team that includes ITT and General Dynamics.

The next-generation GPS Block III “will address the challenging military transformational and civil needs across the globe, including advanced anti-jam capabilities and improved system security, accuracy, and reliability.”

In early 2005, the GPS III program was restructured from an FY12 first launch to no later than an FY13 first launch.

In September, 2006, the U.S. Air Force announced plans to offer a “healthy incentive” to the prime GPS III contractor for launching the first III satellite in 2011, instead of the current projected 2013 date. Lieutenant General Michael Hamel, Commander, Space and Missile Systems Center, stated “We believe speed-to-market is a key element of our future success.”

GPS III contract incentive fees will shift from qualitative to a quantitative basis, structured around cost, schedule, and technical performance.

Co-competitors Lockheed Martin Space Systems Corp. and Boeing Co. each received a $49,999,000 cost-plus-fixed fee contract modification to accomplish a GPS III system design review (SDR) in March 2007, towards a key decision point B in June, 2007: the award of a multi-billion dollar development contract for building GPS III. Headquarters Global Positioning Systems Wing, Los Angeles Air Force Base, California, is the contracting entity. Lockheed Martin leads a team that includes ITT and General Dynamics.

The next-generation GPS Block III “will address the challenging military transformational and civil needs across the globe, including advanced anti-jam capabilities and improved system security, accuracy, and reliability.”

In early 2005, the GPS III program was restructured from an FY12 first launch to no later than an FY13 first launch.

In September, 2006, the U.S. Air Force announced plans to offer a “healthy incentive” to the prime GPS III contractor for launching the first III satellite in 2011, instead of the current projected 2013 date. Lieutenant General Michael Hamel, Commander, Space and Missile Systems Center, stated “We believe speed-to-market is a key element of our future success.”

GPS III contract incentive fees will shift from qualitative to a quantitative basis, structured around cost, schedule, and technical performance.

Modern Space Receiver

ITT Corporation and General Dynamics each received a contract from the GPS Wing to develop a modernized space receiver (MSR) to operate in space on low-earth orbit satellites and capable of receivng new, modernized GPS signals. Each will prepare a proposal for full-scale development of the MSR, to be presented to the GPS Wing in mid-2007, and one will be chosen to complete the project.