Trimble Partners with China Enterprise in Compass-Focused JV

Trimble and the China Aerospace Science & Industry Academy of Information Technology (CASIC-IT) have announced plans to form a 50/50 joint venture in China to develop manufacture, and distribute Compass GNSS receivers and systems in China.

Ready, Set, Go! The 2009 European Satellite Navigation Competition is open for ideas

Submit the best idea for a brand new satellite navigation application or device and you just might win the 2009 Galileo Master's Award - €20,000 in prize money and lots of support to make your idea a reality.

But that's not your only chance - you can try for one of the eight special topic prizes or one of the 17 different regional prizes, together worth €500,000 in cash and start-up assistance.

The competition began six years ago in Bavaria, Germany, but it has expanded to include many other regions of Europe as well as Australia, Israel, and Taiwan.

China Launches Second Compass (Beidou-2) Satellite in $1.46 Billion First Phase

Launch of a second modernized Compass (Beidou 2) satellite on April 14 — this one a geostationary spacecraft — marks the return of China to its GNSS launch program two years after the initial venture into space.

Designated Compass G2 — reflecting the geostationary nature of its intended orbital position about 22,300 miles above the equator, the satellite lifted off at 16:16 UTC aboard a Long March 3C rocket from the Xichang launch base in southwestern China's Sichuan province, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua.

China Taps Trimble, Topcon for CORS Network Receivers

The China Earthquake Administration (CEA) of the People’s Republic of China has selected Trimble and Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS) to provide GNSS receivers for a new network set up to monitor crustal deformation and to predict earthquakes.

What Race? What Competition? The Four GNSS Systems

Munich’s high-level satnav summit the first week in March opened with a plenary titled, “The Worldwide Race in GNSS” and closed with a panel, “The Competition among the Big Four.”

Despite the provocative session titles, few speakers were willing to admit that either a race or a competition was under way in the GNSS world.

GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Compass: What GNSS Race? What Competition

(This story appears in the "GNSS World" department in the March-April 2009 issue of Inside GNSS.)

Munich’s high-level satnav summit the first week in March opened with a plenary titled, “The Worldwide Race in GNSS” and closed with a panel, “The Competition among the Big Four.”

Munich Summit Highlights Satellite Navigation Plans, GNSS Program Struggles

Highlights of the 2009 Munich Satellite Navigation Summit (March 3- 5): Russia will place its first CDMA signal on the GLONASS L3 frequency that overlaps the European Galileo E5b spectrum; China plans to launch three Compass satellites this year and seven more next year to provide a regional capability for Compass/Beidou, followed by completion of the full 30-MEO, 5-GEO constellation after 2015 and before 2020; Galileo program discussions revealed tensions around negotiations with China about a frequency overlay of Compass signals on the security-oriented Public Regulated Service as well as the question of whether the costs to build Galileo can be kept within the €3.4-billion limit agreed by the European Council and the European Parliament; the GPS Block IIR-20(M) satellite with an L5 demonstration payload will be launched later this month in what may be the program's last chance to secure primary GPS access to the frequency.

China Aerospace Official Says Compass/Beidou Will Be Complete by 2015

An official with China's main space program contractor told China Central Television (CCTV) on January 18 that the country will complete a 30+ satellite Compass (Beidou) constellation by 2015.

ICG-3: Friendly Persuasion

Sidebar: Program Updates

Representatives from the world’s GNSS and augmentation providers spent a sun-laden week in Pasadena, California, advancing aspirations for their separate enterprises while refining the basis for compatibility and interoperability among them.

International System Providers Meeting (ICG-3) Reflects GNSS’s Competing Interests, Cooperative Objectives

Representatives from the world’s GNSS system and augmentation providers spent a sun-laden week in Pasadena, California, recently, advancing aspirations for their separate enterprises while refining the basis for compatibility and interoperability among them.