2024-09-20 07:45:30
Europe’s Galileo satellite navigation system continues to grow: a new pair of satellites has entered the constellation after a trip on a Falcon 9 rocket, launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, United States of America, on September 18 at 00:50 CEST (September 17 at 6:50 local time).
With the thirteenth launch of the Galileo program, carried out by SpaceX under contract with the European Space Agency (ESA), Galileo satellites 31 and 32 (FM26 and FM32) have been taken to medium Earth orbit, as the first step in expansion. of the constellation to make it stronger and more resistant. In the coming weeks, the new satellites will reach their final destination at a distance of 23,222 kilometers from the Earth’s surface. Then, they will be subjected to a series of checks as a step before the start of their operations.
Galileo is currently the world’s most accurate satellite navigation system, serving more than four billion smartphone users worldwide since entering open service in 2017. All smartphones sold in the Single Market are coming with Galileo already guaranteed. In addition, Galileo is very useful in railway, maritime, agricultural and other fields, as well as rescue operations.
Galileo, a flagship program of the European Union, is managed and funded by the European Commission. Since its creation, ESA, as the main authority on the technology side of the system, directs the design, development and quality of the system’s space and ground infrastructure, and determines which launch services are used.
ESA, together with the manufacturing company OHB, have developed and tested 38 satellites since Galileo was conceived. All but six satellites have been launched. The others will be ready to join the constellation starting next year. They will be launched in pairs by Ariane 6, ESA’s new launcher which successfully completed its maiden flight in July. After that, the first batch of Galileo Second Generation (G2) satellites, currently being developed by the companies Thales Alenia Space and Airbus Defense and Space, will also be launched into orbit by ESA’s heavy launcher.
The Galileo satellites 31 and 32 were launched into orbit by a Falcon 9 rocket launched on 18 September 2024 at 00:50 CEST from Cape Canaveral, in the United States. (Photo: SpaceX/ESA)
2024 has been a busy year for the Galileo programme, which is proceeding in full swing. In April, the first double launch of the year put satellites 29 and 30 into orbit. After a successful initial orbital phase and a series of checks, the pair entered service this September. (Source: NYT of Amazings)
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