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Post by NorthWes on Aug 20, 2007 7:41:59 GMT -9
Here's an interesting report from Aug 17th's Air Force Assn. Daily Update e-zine. The 50th Space Wing mentioned in this article has a geocoin all its own (Master of Space). Most folks never think about who's "operating" the GPS satellite system! It will be interesting to geocachers to see if the equipment transition occurs as seamlessly as indicated...
Friday August 17, 2007
Steady Goes It: A transition that has been the works for more than a year is about to take place, setting the stage for more efficient ground operations for the widely used Global Positioning System. Officials at Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., told reporters this week that next month they and their industry partners will transition the GPS ground segment to its new Architecture Evolution Plan-which calls for replacement of the 1970s-vintage computer mainframe. The process will take four to six days to complete, as they transfer control to AEP one satellite at a time. AEP will enable satellite operators at 50th Space Wing, Schriever AFB, Colo., to control up to 60 sats, almost double their current capability. SMC has worked with Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and The Aerospace Corporation since March 2006 to develop the transition process, which they've rehearsed three times. The entire venture should be transparent to GPS users. Each step, according to SMC, is reversible should the transition team encounter any problems.
A Generational Issue: The Air Force has to change the ground control segment for the Global Positioning System satellites (see above) because the current system simply can't handle the various generations of GPS sats flying now and in the near future. Talking with reporters this week, Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, head of Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., said: "The ground control segment for GPS actually has to be able to control satellites of many different generations; today we have GPS II-As, IIR satellites, [and] we're bringing in a new generation of [Block] IIFs on orbit. It also has to be able to manage the navigation mission packages and performance seamlessly across all of those." He likened the transition to the new computer system to "changing the engine on a car that's heading down the freeway at 65 miles an hour."
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Post by antoniadodge on Aug 31, 2007 7:49:06 GMT -9
That's a really interesting news brief. I guess if my company starts getting calls from everyone at the same time we'll know how seamless the transition was. Updating hardware on that large a scale is tricky work, but always ends up being worth it. Especially to people like us who are using it as a free service.
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