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The second GPS III spacecraft built by Lockheed Martin (GPS III SV02), also known as Magellan, was recently encapsulated in its protective fairing in anticipation of the planned launch on Thursday. The GPS III will be launched tomorrow from Space Launch Complex-37 (SLC-37) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida.
The government, the contractor and the Global Positioning System (GPS) III mission team held a teleconference for the media on August 19 and announced that it was all right for the launch of the second GPS III satellite on Thursday, August 22, with a launch window of 27 minutes at 9:00 am EST. The team, led by SMC's Enterprise production and launch teams, also announced that the GPS III program was "in good condition and able to meet the requirements of maintaining a healthy constellation for global use".
The GPS III SV02, named Magellan in the honor of the Portuguese explorer who had led the first expedition around the world, was originally supposed to be launched last month, but was postponed. The United Launch Alliance (ULA) said in a published report that the delay was due to "an anomaly in component testing at a supplier who created a crossover problem". After further evaluation, ULA determined that additional time was needed to replace and test a new component on the launch vehicle.
Now that everything is in order, the webcast of the launch should begin at 8:40 am Eastern Daylight Saving Time (12 pm UTC). To find out how to watch the live launch, visit the United Launch Alliance website at https://www.ulalaunch.com/missions/delta-iv-gps-iii-sv-2.
The GPS III SV02 team is led by the Space and Missile Systems Center, located at Los Angeles Air Force Base, California. The launch team is led by SMC's Launch Enterprise and uses the ULA Delta IV launcher at Cape Canaveral Air Force Base in Florida. Lockheed Martin Space Systems Corporation is the leading space vehicle contractor. 50 Wing and 2 Air Force Space Command Space Operations Squadron use the GPS constellation at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado.
The GPS III SV02 will be launched on a ULA Delta IV rocket (4.2). This is the 15thth and the last launch of this specific configuration (4.2), and the final launch of the Delta IV Medium family of launchers. There are five launches of the Delta IV Heavy configuration. The GPS III SV02 will replace the SVN-45 after it is in good health next year, it was said on Tuesday.
Context
In May 2008, the first additional GPS III contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin for the development and production of two initial spacecraft, with options for an additional 10 additional systems. GPS is a mission of the National Security Space (NSS), essential to national defense. In April 2016, SpaceX received its first NSS launch mission, GPS III-2. SpaceX currently has four additional virtual GPS III servers under contract, all of which will be launched on a Falcon 9. SpaceX launched the SV01 in December 2018, the launch of the SV02 on the Delta IV United Launch Alliance in July and the launch of the SV03 By the end of 2019, the launch of SV04 is scheduled for 2020 and the SV 05-06 options are expected in the near future.
The GPS III SV is designed to introduce new capabilities to meet the higher demands of civilian and military users. It offers all the ability to use M-Code for Warfighter operations. The GPS III's M-Code rating exceeds the maximum GPS IIF M-Code and GPS IIR (Flex power without P (Y) code) capacity. It extends international cooperation in the field of Global Navigation Systems (GNSS) by transmitting the interoperable L1C signal with Galileo, the Quazi-Zenith satellite system (QZSS) and other GNSS systems. The GPS III is needed to complete the deployment of L2C and L5 signaling capabilities from the modernized GPS IIR-M and GPS IIF satellites. By using an incremental approach, new features that require technical maturity or higher integration risk are carried over to subsequent increments, ensuring a low-risk, high-confidence delivery of features.
Capacities include:
- Improved anti-jam
- Improved accuracy
- Better integrity
- First satellite to broadcast a common L1C signal compatible with Galileo
- Several civil / military signals: L1 C / A, L1P (Y), L1M, L1C, L2C, L2P (Y), L2M, L5
- Increased + 10 dB Earth coverage power on M-Code without decreasing the power of other military signals
- Three rubidium clocks
Additional details provided by the team include:
- There are currently two residual satellites: SVN 36, 38 as well as a test satellite, the SVN-49.
- SVN 34 is the oldest active satellite. This is a GPS IIA launched on October 26, 1993.
- The IIR spacecraft that is replaced by the SV02 will change to residual status.
- Since SV02 is the second GPS III satellite, the team hopes to monitor it for about a month in orbit to ensure that it is completely reliable once it is in good health and the system updates. ground control are completed. After that, the progress of the ground station upgrades will determine when it will enter service.
- To ensure the most efficient GPS III production process, the GPS III was assembled in Lockheed Martin's multi-function GPS treatment facility in Waterton, Colorado. This is the location of assembly, integration and testing (AI & T) of the entire fleet GPS III.
- The Delta IV was manufactured at the United Launch Alliance plant in Decatur, Alabama.
- In terms of cost, the figure has actually decreased over time: "We are improving and learning. The first GPS III satellite represents more than half a billion dollars, while the last two were less than 200 million dollars.
- The satellite will be placed in the D3 orbit slot to optimize coverage for GPS users.
- The new capabilities will provide a total of four civilian signals for enhanced interoperability, reception and security of life.
- GPS satellites travel at a speed of about 8,700 km / h (14,000 km / h) from the Earth. GPS satellites fly in medium Earth orbit (MEO) at an altitude of about 20,200 km (12,550 miles). Each satellite travels around the Earth twice a day.
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