Galileo satellites launch from European Spaceport
- 10 years ago
ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)
Two more Galileo satellites lifted off from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on Friday (August 22) aboard a Soyuz rocket.
The satellites are the fifth and sixth in the Galileo network which will provide Europe with its own global navigation satellite system (GPS) under civilian control.
According to the European Space Agency (ESA), the network will deliver real-time positional accuracy down to the metre range, making it suitable for safety-critical applications such as guiding cars, running trains and landing aircraft.
The system is inter-operable with U.S. and Russian global satellite navigation systems.
The newly launched satellites joined four Galileo satellites already in orbit, launched in October 2011 and October 2012. The fully deployed system consists of 30 satellites.
This first quartet were 'In-Orbit Validation' satellites, serving to demonstrate the Galileo system would function as planned.
Two more Galileo satellites lifted off from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana on Friday (August 22) aboard a Soyuz rocket.
The satellites are the fifth and sixth in the Galileo network which will provide Europe with its own global navigation satellite system (GPS) under civilian control.
According to the European Space Agency (ESA), the network will deliver real-time positional accuracy down to the metre range, making it suitable for safety-critical applications such as guiding cars, running trains and landing aircraft.
The system is inter-operable with U.S. and Russian global satellite navigation systems.
The newly launched satellites joined four Galileo satellites already in orbit, launched in October 2011 and October 2012. The fully deployed system consists of 30 satellites.
This first quartet were 'In-Orbit Validation' satellites, serving to demonstrate the Galileo system would function as planned.