Beidou navigation system approved by IMO for operations at sea

[amoy]

Beidou navigation system approved for operations at sea|China|chinadaily.com.cn

China's independently developed Beidou Navigation Satellite System has taken a huge step toward going global as the International Maritime Organization approved its use in operations at sea, the country's Maritime Safety Administration said on Monday.

The IMO's Maritime Safety Committee reviewed and passed a key document known as a commitment letter for the Beidou system during its 94th session in London Nov 17-21.

It means the system has been formally included in the Worldwide Radionavigation System. Beidou is the third system to gain such acceptance after the United States' Global Positioning System and Russia's Global Navigation Satellite System.

It is the first time the Beidou system's standards have been ratified by an international organization, the administration said in a statement. It described the achievement as "a milestone" in its efforts to promote the system overseas that will provide a foundation for Beidou's use in global maritime operations.

During its 93rd session in May, the IMO committee adopted the performance standards for ship-borne Beidou receiver equipment, and agreed to recommend that IMO members have Beidou receivers installed on their seagoing vessels from July 1, 2016.

The inclusion of Beidou in the Worldwide Radionavigation System is an important step in the system's maritime expansion overseas, as the IMO stipulates that its members ships must carry satellite navigation receivers, said a government official who wished to remain anonymous.

"With the IMO's support, it will be much easier for the Beidou system to be adopted by foreign shipping companies," she added.

More than 50,000 Chinese fishing vessels were equipped with Beidou terminals by December 2013, according to Ran Chengqi, director of the China Satellite Navigation Office.

The system began to supply precise positioning, real-time navigation, location reporting, time readings and short message services to users in China and the Asia-Pacific region in December 2012. The government is aiming to establish it as a global system with 35 satellites by 2020.

Beidou has established a strong presence in Thailand, where three demonstration ground stations were opened in June to serve disaster prevention and relief operations. Wuhan Optics Valley Beidou Geo-Spatial Information Industry Co was established in June 2013 to promote the Beidou system in the civil sector at home and abroad.

The company said more than 200 ground stations will be set up in Thailand within five years, and cooperative projects have also been launched in other Asian nations including Malaysia and Laos.

Sun Jiadong, an academic at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and chief designer of the system, said, "Five experimental satellites will be deployed before 2015 to help establish global coverage to provide better services."



also http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2014-10/24/content_18794380.htm

 

[amoy]

China pursues global satellite navigation capabilities with expanded Beidou-2/Compass constellation - IHS Jane's 360

China aims to achieve global coverage with its indigenous Beidou-2/Compass Navigation Satellite System by 2020.
Source: China National Administration of GNSS and Applications


China has expanded the coverage of its indigenous Beidou global navigation and positioning network with the successful launch and insertion of a new satellite into medium earth orbit (MEO) on 31 March.

According to a statement by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), the launch was conducted by the China Aerospace Science & Technology Corporation (CASC) - the country's premier space agency - from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in the south-western province of Sichuan on a modified Long March 3C launch vehicle developed by CALT.

The agency also claims that the modified four-stage launch vehicle, which it designates "Expedition 1", was specifically designed to accommodate one or more "next generation" satellite payloads for insertion into a range of orbits, a capability which it said was unprecedented for the country.

The latest satellite achieved successful separation from the launch vehicle after a six-hour flight and was inserted into MEO at about 4.52 am. It is the 17th unit to be made operational for the current Beidou-2 constellation, which is formally known as the Compass Navigation Satellite System (CNSS).

According to CALT, the satellite - which is designed by the Shanghai Engineering Center for Microsatellites (SECM) - will test new navigation signalling and inter-satellite communication links, defining the necessary protocols for a future network that will be capable of providing global coverage.

Yang Changfeng, the chief designer of the Beidou-2/CNSS system, reportedly told local media that China would launch up to four Beidou navigation satellites in 2015.

According to the IHS Jane's Space Systems and Industry reference, the regional Compass system reached its full complement of 16 operational Beidou navigation satellites in November 2012, a number which comprises six geostationary (GEO) satellites, five MEO satellites, and five satellites in inclined geostationary orbits (IGSO).

China aims to achieve global coverage with the CNY400 billion (USD65 billion) Beidou-2/CNSS network by 2020, with a constellation that will reportedly include three IGSO, five GEO, and 27 MEO satellites. If successfully implemented, China will be the third country in the world after the US and Russia to possess an independent global satellite navigation system.

The original Beidou programme has its genesis as a 1983 military initiative which sought to validate a Twinsat regional navigation system concept using two geostationary satellites. It was successfully tested with two DFH-2/2A communications satellites in 1989 and was approved for further development in 1993. Its successor programme, Beidou-2/Compass, officially commenced in October 2006.