Avionics Navigation Systems, 2nd Edition

5 Satellite Radio Navigation

5.1 INTRODUCTION

Since the 1960s, the use of satellites was established as an important means of navigation on Earth. The earliest systems were designed primarily for position updates of ships, but were also found useful for the navigation of land vehicles. Beginning in the early 1970s, satellite-navigation systems for aircraft (as well as other platforms) were under intense development. Those efforts benefited from the techniques used and the experience gained with the earlier systems. In the 1980s, systems suitable for aircraft became mature and by 1996 their use for aircraft navigation was increasing at a widespread and rapid pace.

The satellite-navigation systems described in this chapter are comprised of a system of satellites that transmit radio signals. Appropriately equipped aircraft receiving these transmitted signals can derive their three-dimensional position and velocity and time. Two systems are described in detail, namely the U.S. Department of Defense's NAVSTAR Global Positioning System (GPS) and the Russian Federation's Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS). The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and RTCA, Inc. have defined a more global system that includes these two systems, geostationary overlay satellites, along with any future satellite navigation systems, in what has been named the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) [1, 2]. A third major system, the United States Navy's Transit System, also ...