Telespazio

Galileo

GALILEO, THE EU’S LARGEST TECHNOLOGY PROJECT

Telespazio is Finmeccanica’s key operator in satellite navigation and localisation services, a role confirmed by its participation in Galileo, the European satellite navigation programme that will see the launch of 30 satellites.

The Galileo programme is Europe’s initiative for a state-of-the-art global satellite navigation system. It is jointly developed by the European Union and the European Space Agency. The European Commission has the role of Programme Manager. The European Space Agency has the role of procurement agent established under a delegation agreement with the European Commission. Galileo will provide 3 initial services as of 2014: an initial Open Service, an initial Search and Rescue Service and an initial Public Regulated Service. The Safety-of-Life Service and the Commercial Service will be tested as of 2014 and provided as the system reaches full operational capability with 30 satellites.

A wide range of applications for various sectors will be based on Galileo. These include road, air, rail and sea transport, precision agriculture, telecommunications, Earth mapping and cartography, gas/oil exploration and mining.

Galileo’s infrastructure comprises:

the space segment;
the ground segment;
the user segment.

The space segment comprises a constellation of 30 satellites that orbit the Earth at a distance of around 24,000 km on three distinct orbital planes, inclined at 56 degrees to the equatorial plane. In reality 27 satellites will be operational, while the remaining three will be in reserve, ready to become operational in the event of a malfunction.

The main purpose of the ground segment is to monitor the space segment, checking that it is functioning correctly and generating the data to be sent to end users. The ground segment consists of the Galileo Control Centres (GCCs), five telemetry, tracking and control stations, 10 uplink stations (ULSs) for transmitting navigation signals, and up to 40 Galileo Sensor Stations (GSSs) for receiving the navigation signal from the constellation and transmitting it to the GCCs. All of these systems are linked using a dedicated, globally distributed communication network.

The user infrastructure consists of all the various types of signal receiver and everything involving the final users (the public, companies and the P.A.).

GALILEO SERVICES

The five services offered by the Galileo system differ depending on whether the signals are open or encrypted and can be used according to the needs of the end-user:
OPEN SERVICE (OS):
This service is based on open signals for all citizens (free of charge).
SAFETY-OF-LIFE SERVICE (SOL):
This service guarantees the integrity and continual availability of the signal for applications relating to safety and the critical transport sector. If the system malfunctions, it can trigger an alarm to inform end users in a matter of seconds.
COMMERCIAL SERVICE (CS):
This service is based on an encrypted signal, enabling the provision of dedicated, commercial services offering location and time information.
PUBLIC REGULATED SERVICE (PRS):
This restricted-access service provides information on location and time to specific users such as the security forces (police, military) that require high levels of signal reliability and continuity.
SEARCH AND RESCUE SUPPORT SERVICE (SAR):
This service is able to detect emergency signals, relaying them immediately to emergency service centres. It will be used to manage alerts and locate users who are at risk.

TELESPAZIO’S ROLE: THE GALILEO CONTROL CENTRE

Telespazio has built one of the Galileo Control Centres (GCCs) at its Fucino Space Centre near L’Aquila. The GCCs will manage the 30 satellites and the operational activities of the Galileo European Navigation System.
The German Aerospace Center (DLR) has built a second GCC at Oberpfaffenhofen near Munich. The Galileo Control Centre in Fucino, which was part financed by the Abruzzo region, covers around 5,000 square metres and will be operated more than 100 technicians when fully operational. The GCC will handle the transmission of the navigation signal to the satellites, while also guaranteeing the quality of service provided to end users.
From the main control room, it is possible to control the orbit of all the satellites in the constellation, managing a network of about 40 ground stations spread right around the globe. To ensure that the navigation and positioning system is working correctly, the GCC houses two ultra-accurate maser atomic clocks, which will set the time and the synchronisation of the entire constellation.
The operational management of the two control centres in Fucino and Oberpfaffenhofen is conducted by Spaceopal, a 50/50 joint venture between Telespazio and DLR GfR, the company set up by the German Aerospace Center.
In particular, Spaceopal will be responsible for supplying in-orbit services, the operational and logistics services necessary to manage and control the Galileo constellation and mission, from the initial In-orbit validation phase (first four operational satellites) until the system reaches Full Operational Capability, including the constellation of 30 satellites.

Galileo Test Range: Italy's contribution to the development of satellite navigation

Services and Innovative Applications