GPS World, December 2014
EXPERT ADVICE Managing GPS Take Two John Lavrakas Advanced Research Corporation W hat a difference eight years can make My September 2006 GPS World article Managing the GPS Constellation for Todays Needs dealt with GPS performance issues many high precision users then faced Demanding applications of real time precision positioning such as precision agriculture and machine control did not find enough satellites in view to support their needs I posed the question Is the problem with the number of usable GPS satellites or with growth in the demands of the user community The 2006 answer was a little bit of both Now the issue has pretty much gone away Users have adapted to incorporating other GNSS signals initially GLONASS and now BeiDou Russias commitment to operate GLONASS at full capacity developed into todays operation of its 24 satellite constellation Chinas similar declaration led to deployment of 16 satellites to date toward an eventual constellation of 35 Europe is likewise poised to offer global services with Galileo GPSs days as the sole provider of ubiquitous accessible services appear to be over One of my 2006 recommendations was for GPS decision making authorities to support an aggressive program to replace aging satellites The top issues GPS faces today signal vulnerability gaps in service and split leadership GPS World December 2014 www gpsworld com 42
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