report of the action team on global navigation satellite systems (gnss)
report of the action team on global navigation satellite systems (gnss)
report of the action team on global navigation satellite systems (gnss)
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transport. In <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> c<strong>on</strong>text <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> ICAO and IMO, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Commissi<strong>on</strong> believes that <strong>satellite</strong> navigati<strong>on</strong> is akey element in improving safety while allowing savings through decommissi<strong>on</strong>ing <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> terrestrialinfrastructure. These benefits fall to industrialised and developing countries alike due to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><strong>global</strong> character and technical design <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> GALILEO.118. The usefulness <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> GNSS is not limited to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> transport community. The studies financedby <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> EC and ESA c<strong>on</strong>clude that it has obvious applicati<strong>on</strong>s in future UMTS locati<strong>on</strong>-basedservices, dealing with natural disasters and civil protecti<strong>on</strong> matters and enabling <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> emergencyservices (firefighters, police, sea and mountain rescue, etc.) to provide more rapid assistance topers<strong>on</strong>s in danger. The same can apply to managing humanitarian aid in regi<strong>on</strong>s affected bynatural or man-made disasters. O<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r proposed applicati<strong>on</strong>s include guidance for <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> blind,m<strong>on</strong>itoring <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> pers<strong>on</strong>s affected by Alzheimer's disease with memory loss, and orientati<strong>on</strong> aids for<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> leisure industry such as hiking.119. This technology can be used as a surveying tool for town planning purposes and majorpublic works, as well as for geographical informati<strong>on</strong> <strong>systems</strong> to manage agricultural land moreefficiently and help protect <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> envir<strong>on</strong>ment. The accuracy <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> measurements will also provideearly warning <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> earthquakes, c<strong>on</strong>tributing thus to prevent natural disasters and save human lives.120. Time synchr<strong>on</strong>isati<strong>on</strong> is an important “invisible” applicati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>satellite</strong> navigati<strong>on</strong> thatwill penetrate modern ec<strong>on</strong>omies. Electricity grids, mobile teleph<strong>on</strong>y and banking networks need<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> extreme accuracy <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>satellite</strong>s' atomic clock for reference purposes. On-line <strong>systems</strong> and e-commerce have already created needs for accurate and legally accepted electr<strong>on</strong>ic methods suchas time stamping to improve <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> traceability, tractability and liability <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> user informati<strong>on</strong>.121. With its <strong>global</strong> coverage, GALILEO will be <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> key importance to countries whoseinfrastructures <strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> ground are less developed, particularly in tropical and equatorial z<strong>on</strong>es, notleast because <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> possibilities it <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g>fers in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> field <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> mapping and civil engineering. It will helpto manage <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> crucial natural resources, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> airspace and to promote internati<strong>on</strong>al trade.122. The multitude <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> already existing applicati<strong>on</strong>s caused c<strong>on</strong>cern in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> European Uni<strong>on</strong> in<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> early 1990s about <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> limits and risks <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> adequacy <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> existing <strong>satellite</strong> navigati<strong>on</strong>services in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> future.123. It was, in fact, questi<strong>on</strong>ed at that time whe<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r <strong>systems</strong> created to serve primarily <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>defense interests <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> United States (GPS) and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Russian Federati<strong>on</strong> (GLONASS) would beable to fulfil <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> growing needs <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Europe in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> civilian fields described above.124. To what degree can <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> European society depend <strong>on</strong> services over which it has noc<strong>on</strong>trol? How does <strong>on</strong>e solve <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> lack <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> prompt warnings <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> possible malfuncti<strong>on</strong>ing <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>seservices to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> users? How does <strong>on</strong>e improve <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> availability and coverage problems <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> usersworldwide and particularly in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> areas at geographical disadvantage in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> nor<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rn and sou<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>rnhemispheres? Also, should <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> European Uni<strong>on</strong> remain a “free rider” in this <strong>global</strong> and strategictechnology?125. Moreover, how far can <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> risks to reliability and vulnerability <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> navigati<strong>on</strong> signal bec<strong>on</strong>tained? Cases <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> service disrupti<strong>on</strong> have been <str<strong>on</strong>g>report</str<strong>on</strong>g>ed over <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> past years and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>y have haddifferent origins including unintenti<strong>on</strong>al interference, <strong>satellite</strong> failure and signal degradati<strong>on</strong>. As amatter <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> fact, by 2007-2008 <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> dependence <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> European Uni<strong>on</strong> <strong>on</strong> GNSS and itsapplicati<strong>on</strong>s will be as far-reaching as that <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> United States.26