Navstar Global Positioning System: Progress Report

All three segments of the GPS, space, control, and user equipment, are now in production. Extensive testing during Phase I and II of the program has proven that the GPS provides a quantum improvement over the capabilities of existing navigational systems and significant mission enhancement in a broad range of military operations. Production of the Block II satellites is progressing on schedule, but the space shuttle accident will delay completion of the full constellation by about two years. The Control Segment is fully operational and will transition to Space Command in 1987. The user equipment will enter production and undergo further testing during the LRIP period to ensure that service operational effectiveness and suitability requirements are met before commencing full-rate production. The GPS should be fully operational in the early 1990's and will provide a powerful force enhancer for all the military services for many years to come.     

GPS III system operations concepts

Over the past three years, the Lockheed Martin GPS III team has analyzed potential operational concepts for the Air Force. The completed tasks support the government's objective of a "realizable and operationally feasible" US Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) and Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) concept of operations. This paper provides an overview of the operational improvements for the command and control of satellites, the provision of safe, precise navigation and timing services to end-users. The GPS III system changes existing operational paradigms. Improved operator capabilities are enabled by a new high-speed uplink/downlink and crosslink communication architecture. Continuous connectivity allows operators a "contact one satellite - contact all satellites" concept enabling near-real-time navigation updates and telemetry monitoring. This paper describes potential improvements for the following operations: constellation monitoring, command and control, navigation upload monitoring, global service monitoring, global service prediction, civilian navigation (CNAV) messaging, and anomaly detection and resolution. This paper also describes future operational improvements as GPS applications continue to proliferate and the need for an improved infrastructure to effectively manage all the systems that affect GPS service grows     

卫星导航陆基增强系统设备许可体系研究

陆基增强系统(GBAS)是支持飞机精密进近的下一代无线电导航设备。目前,在世界上安装GBAS和提供GBAS服务的机场越来越多。中国已经研制了首套卫星导航GBAS着陆系统,然而并没有通过相关设备的认证许可,未投入实际的运行使用。因此,本文在分析FAA和Eurocontrol对GBAS设备许可的基础上,提出了一套完整的卫星导航路基增强系统设备许可体系的方案,为进行设备的认证许可提供引导,使得整个地面子系统满足安装选址要求、地面和飞行测试对功能和性能的验证要求,保证地面设备子系统经过安装调试后能够达到理想的工作状态。设备许可体系在未来卫星导航技术的发展中发挥着广泛的指导作用,有利于设备的运行、发展和管理。     

VLBI Space Observatory Programme (VSOP) satellite

The Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS), Japan, is developing a satellite, named MUSES-B, for VLBI (very long baseline interferometry) observations from space. The science observation program using MUSES-B is called the VLBI Space Observatory Programme (VSOP). The satellite is formed as an orbiting radiotelescope with a parabolic antenna of 8 meters diameter. Fine-resolution and high-quality imaging of active galactic nuclei and quasars, and observations of maser sources, are the main science objectives. The satellite will be launched in summer 1996. The satellite operation and science observations will be performed in collaboration with NASA and ground radio observatories around the world     

GPS modeling for designing aerospace vehicle navigation systems

The complexity of the design of a Global Positioning System (GPS) user segment, as well as the performance demanded of the components, depends on user requirements such as total navigation accuracy. Other factors, for instance the expected satellite/vehicle geometry or the accuracy of an accompanying inertial navigation system can also affect the user segment design. Models of GPS measurements are used to predict user segment performance at various levels. Design curves are developed which illustrate the relationship between user requirements, the user segment design, and component performance     

The Soviet Union's GLONASS Navigation Satellites

GLONASS (Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System) is the most recent satellite navigation system developed by the Soviet Union and currently in the pre-operational stage. Obvious parallels exist between GLONASS and the NAVSTAR Global Positioning System (GPS) developed in the United States and also, at present, in a pre-operational phase. In the progress towards operational status, the launch capability for NAVSTAR satellites has been seriously affected by the recent failure of the Space Shuttle Challenger, clearly increasing the prospects of GLONASS reaching operational status first. It is therefore the main purpose of this paper to discuss certain aspects of the GLONASS satellite navigation system, in particular its orbital features and radio-frequency signal characteristics. Comparisons with NAVSTAR are inevitable and for this reason, the paper begins with a brief resume of relevant features of the NAVSTAR GPS system for later reference. The main section of the paper then deals with orbital behaviour, radio frequency signal structure and channelisation using NAVSTAR as a reference point for discussion.     

Deployment Mechanisms on the Fast Satellite: Magnetometer,Radial Wire,and Axial Booms

The Fast Auroral SnapshoT (FAST) satellite was launched by a Pegasus XL on August 21, 1996. This was the second launch in the NASA SMall EXplorer (SMEX) program. Early in the mission planning the decision was made to have the University of California at Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory (UCB-SSL) mechanical engineering staff provide all of the spacecraft appendages, in order to meet the short development schedule, and to insure compatibility. This paper describes the design development, testing and on-orbit deployment of these boom systems: the 2 m carbon fiber magnetometer booms, the 58 m tip to tip spin-plane wire booms, and the 7 m dipole axial stiff booms.     

Japanese satellite program on the solar research for the coming solar maximum

The Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS) is developing a satellite dedicated to high-energy observations of solar flares. The Solar-A will be launched in August–September, 1991, from the Kagoshima Space Center on board a M3S-II vehicle. The instrument complement emphasizes hard X-ray and soft X-ray imaging, with both high resolution (2.4 arc sec pixel size) and full-Sun field of view. Solar-A contains instruments supplied in part by U.S. and U.K. experimenters. This paper describes the instrumentation and the tentative observing program.     

1kW级肼电弧加热发动机工程样机研究

为了满足静止轨道卫星及中低轨道卫星降低重量、延长寿命的需要,北京控制工程研究所近年来开展了电弧加热发动机的研究工作,目前正在进行1kW级肼电弧加热发动机工程样机的研制。介绍了1kW级肼电弧加热发动机工程样机研制工作的进展情况。该项研制工作的目标是：完成电弧加热发动机的设计、加工和500h寿命试验。预期发动机功耗为1kW左右,比冲为4.5～5.5N.s/g,推力为75～150mN。目前已经完成了第一轮的发动机设计、加工和性能测试工作。出于安全性的考虑,目前的测试暂时是用N2和NH3的混合气体模拟肼进行的,测试获得了发动机的比冲、推力、效率等数据。在模拟肼的流量为18～30mg时,发动机的推力为100～150mN,比冲在5N.s/g左右,满足设计指标要求。预期采用单组元肼作为推进剂后,比冲将有所提高。     

NAVSAT: A Global Satellite Based Navigation System

The NAVSAT concept, developed by the European Space Agency, in close cooperation with the industries and user organizations has been conceived to fulfill the civilian user requirements for a better navigation capability and mobile communication needs in the future. In selecting the NAVSAT architecture, special care has been devoted to different satellite constellation alternatives in order to identify the most promising solution in terms of navigation performance and system cost. The paper describes the present NAVSAT baseline and status. This baseline while offering precise navigation performance comparable or better than GPS, cuts significantly the overall cost of a satellite navigation system. The particular constellation selected is also easing the set up of the integrated navigation-communications-search and rescue service.     

Enhancing filter robustness in cascaded GPS-INS integrations

Filter robustness is defined herein as the ability of the Global Positioning System/Inertial Navigation System (GPS-INS) Kalman filter to cope with adverse environments and input conditions, to successfully identify such conditions and to take evasive action. The formulation of two such techniques for a cascaded GPS-INS Kalman filter integration is discussed This is an integration in which the navigation solution from a GPS receiver is used as a measurement in the filter to estimate inertial errors and instrument biases. The first technique presented discusses the handling of GPS position biases. These are due to errors in the GPS satellite segment, and are known to be unobservable. They change levels when a satellite constellation change occurs, at which point they introduce undesirable filter response transients. A method of suppressing these transients is presented. The second technique presented deals with the proper identification of the filter measurement noise. Successful formulation of the noise statistics is a factor vital to the healthy estimation of the filter gains and operation. Furthermore, confidence in the formulation of these statistics can lead to the proper screening and rejection of bad data in the filter. A method of formulating the filter noise statistics dynamically based on inputs from the GPS and the INS is discussed     

Correlations between GPS and USNO Master Clock time

The U.S. Naval Observatory Master Clock is used to steer the Global Positioning System (GPS) time. Time transfer data consisting of the difference between the Master Clock and GPS time has been acquired from all satellites in the GPS constellation covering a time period from 10 October 1995 to 12 December 1995. A Fourier analysis of the data shows a distinct peak in the Fourier spectrum corresponding to approximately a one day period. In order to determine this period more accurately, correlations are computed between successive days of the data, and an average of twenty five correlation functions shows that there exists a correlation equal to 0.52 at delay time 23 h 56 min, which corresponds to twice the average GPS satellite period. This correlation indicates that GPS time, as measured by the U.S. Naval Observatory, is periodic with respect to the Master Clock, with a period of 23 h and 56 min. An autocorrelation of a five day segment of data indicates that these correlations persist for four successive days     

The Space Weather Forecast Program

This paper describes the Space Weather Forecast Program managed by the Communications Research Laboratory of Japan. It is a long-range program consisting of three phases of five years each. This program emerged after an effort to investigate future needs for space environment prediction. We conclude that solar flares and magnetic storms are two main critical phenomena which will affect human's space activities in the 21st century. The core of the program is to set up a Space Weather Forecast Center which has core facilities: (1) a computer network system; (2) ground facilities for continuous observation of the Sun; and (3) a satellite-based space environment monitoring system. Emphasis is placed upon the necessity of internal cooperation for efficient operation of the Forecast Center.     

Indian tracking and data acquisition facilities for low Earth andgeosynchronous satellites

To support its satellite program, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has an extensive infrastructure of ground support facilities throughout the country and abroad. The major elements include the ISRO Telemetry Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC), the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), and the Indian National Satellite (INSAT) control facilities. These facilities and their important role in supporting the Indian Space Program are described. The locations of the principal ISRO space control facilities within India are shown     

The MITA satellite

Carlo Gavazzi Space, with its 20 years experience in space market, has been involved in the small satellites activities for the last 10 years. Initially working on R&D in the MICROSAT project, it has gained experience in real satellite building in the SAFIR-2 programme, becoming finally responsible of the ASI satellite programme, MITA (Small Italian Advanced Technology satellite). The first launch is planned in July 2000, while the second launch, with the AGILE payload, is currently planned for the year 2002.     

James Webb Space Telescope: Project Overview

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) project at the NASA, Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is responsible for the development, launch, flight, and science operations for the telescope. The project is in phase B with its launch scheduled for no earlier than June 2013. The project is a partnership among NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The JWST mission team is fully in place, including major ESA and CSA subcontractors. This provides an overview of the planned JWST science, current architecture focusing on the instrumentation, and mission status, including technology developments, and risks.     

基于单片机的通用型无人机飞行控制系统研究

提出了基于单片机的通用型无人机飞行控制系统的设计方法;归纳出通用型飞行控制系统在角速度、线加速度、大气压强、GPS信息等飞行数据采集方面的特点;在无人机的高度控制、速度控制和航向控制方面设计了舵机的控制方案,详细论述了控制信号输出;研究了计算机的控制程序,为下一步的基于单片机的半实物系统仿真奠定了基础.     

An overview of a Global Positioning System Mission Plannerimplemented on a personal computer

The Global Positioning System (GPS) Mission Planner (GMP) program, which has been implemented on an IBM PC, is described in terms of its features and architecture, and sample outputs are presented. The GMP was written to permit operational units to plan missions and to accomplish survivability and navigation assessments based on realistic trajectories, GPS almanac data, broadband jammer specifications, and digital terrain elevation data (DTED). GMP supports trajectory generation for generic air, land, or naval vehicles and has `sanity' checks for altitude acceleration, terrain slope, and velocity limits. A survivability measure is computed based on exposure time to various threat types. Yuma-type almanac data are used to support the GMP to define GPS satellite orbits. Jammers, threats, and trajectory wavepoints may be defined by either keyboard entry (e.g. longitude, latitude, and altitude) or via mouse and cursor on a displayed pseudo-color DTED map on the PC monitor. Satellite visibility and best dilution-of-precision (DOP) are computed using DTED. jammer visibility and power levels at the vehicle are similarly computed. A realistic body masking and antenna gain model is used to compute carrier-to-noise densities for each visible satellite. A navigation assessment program emulates a multichannel receiver to generate position and velocity measurement uncertainties. An integrated Kalman filter generates position and velocity navigation estimates. Results are graphically displayed to the operator     

The DAVID mission of the Italian Space Agency (ASI - Agenzia Spaziale Italiana)

Italian satellite mission development history is dominated by the need to explore increasing frequency ranges and characterizing, through experimental results, communications channels, in order to render them useful for the design of operational systems using these frequency ranges. the DAVID (DAta and Video Interactive Distribution) Programme is a multi-experiment mission of the Italian Space Agency (ASI - Agenzia Spaziale Italiana). As the frequency range expands, today's frontiers will be in full use tomorrow; the series provides the status and main achievements of the program to date. DAVID will pioneer the use of the W-band (94 GHz channel) for telecommunications experiments that can contribute to the exploitation of that frequency range for future high-capacity operational services.