Guide to Satellite Navigation
What is Satellite Navigation?
Wikipedia’s definition of ‘satellite navigation (SatNav)’ is:
‘The technique by which electronic receivers figure out their spot (longitude, latitude, and altitude) to within a couple of metres using time signals transmitted along a line-of-sight by radio from satellites.’
As of 2009, the United States NAVSTAR World-wide Positioning Technique (GPS) is the only entirely operational Worldwide Navigation Satellite Program (GNSS). The European Union’s Galileo positioning method is a GNSS in first deployment phase, scheduled to be operational in 2013.
The technologies has been around considering that the 1960’s and was originally designed for military applications. Most commonly these days a SatNav device can be identified in autos, boats, planes and something else that moves, which includes individuals as cellular phones have featured a GPS for a range of many years now.
How does it perform?
There are two features of how satellite navigation is accomplished:
one.The receiver: The Sat Nav gadget itself.
two.The transmitter: The GPS elements.
The receiver (Satelite Navigation Device)
The receiver is an electronic gadget that can acquire satellite signals and display it’s location (to inside a few meters) on a visual map display.
The SatNav device requires to have the subsequent data to enable it to exhibit it is place effectively:
i.Clear line of sight to obtain signals from one or more satellites found close to twelve,000 miles previously mentioned Earth.
ii.Pre-loaded or downloadable (through 3G or GPRS) maps and Positions of Curiosity (POI’s)
iii.A continuous strength supply.
Some examples of a Sat Nav device are: Tom Tom, Garmin, NavMan etc. Most of these are bought as birthday presents by household and pals as effectively as by drivers for their auto, or pilots for their aircraft, or for use on their boats,or for walkers/mountain climbers for use to find actual positions although orienteering.
The transmitter (GPS)
The World-wide Positioning Method is the phrase provided to the collective components that present an correct calculation of a gadgets location on Earth.
The GPS consists of:
one.24 to 32 Satellites which are situated in precise orbits twelve,000 miles over the Earth. (They orbit the Earth twice a day and travel at about 7000 miles per hour)
two.Management or monitoring stations. A amount of ‘bolted to the ground’ stations that handle all the satellites’ orbits and on-board atomic clocks.
The whole Technique is controlled by US Military but is also open for civil use. There have been the moment two methods by which a position was calculated:
1.The SPS (Normal Positioning System) – For civil use and is a close approximation of a receiver’s place.
2.The PPS (Precise Positioning Program) – For militaryuse and is an Actual calculation of the receiver’s placement.
The cause there have been two approaches is that the military don’t want men and women using an actual placement for criminal/terrorist purposes. (Even though it is now thought that these variations are now practically obsolete, the military does maintain the right to ‘jam’ the SPS signal above a battlefield if needed)
There is now also a European version launched in Dec 2005 named Galileo. The receiver locates its position by triangulation acquiring line-of-sight with at minimum three satellites (longitude, latitude, velocity) OR if it’s a more costly GPS Receiver then a fourth satellite is necessary (altitude).
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