Space team improves GPS capability for warfighters

by Scott Prater, 50th Space Wing

SCHRIEVER AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AFNS) -- Joint force warfighters around the globe will soon be able to assess real-time and future GPS accuracy, both where they are and where they're going, with a new capability developed by the 2nd Space Operations Squadron's Global Positioning System User Operations team here.

The new capability uses the Google Earth software application to display data supplied by the GPS Operations Center for warfighters on the ground in places like Afghanistan.

Chaz Bowman, the GPSOC program manager, calls it an innovation that could be limitless for users once it is deployed.

It jumps way beyond the situational awareness tools warfighters are currently using, said Capt. Bryony Veater, the 2nd SOPS weapons and tactics flight commander.

"Right now, users must view slides and other similar forms of displays to extrapolate the scenario they are looking for, whereas this tool lays everything on one viewable screen, " Captain Veater said. "It even displays the terrain warfighters will need to traverse during their operation."

The new capability also creates a one-stop shop for ground-force mission planners who are looking for different forms of GPS core data.

"Until now, users would have to visit up to five or six different (secure) websites to obtain the GPS data they need," Mr. Bowman said. "Once we launch this capability, those same users will follow a link we send them once, and from then on, they'll be able to see what they need from GPS in one viewing."

Both Captain Veater and Mr. Bowman work as part of the GPS user operations team, which can be thought of as a 911 call center for military GPS user emergencies. The GPSOC provides vital data to GPS users in real time and though it was designed to primarily support military user, staff members also answer questions for civilians and Federal Aviation Administration officials.

"We are user support," Captain Veater said. "We're focused on what the user needs to get the job done. Our only job is to make sure the user has what they need to operate with and through GPS."

Jordan Scott, a former Army captain and GPSOC contractor, conceived the idea for the new capability after returning from a deployment in Afghanistan this past summer. Once he relayed the concept, the GPSOC team went about innovating and modifying software to make it compatible with Google Earth software. They began testing in preparation for product launch roughly three weeks ago, and Mr. Bowman said he believes the capability could be operational in a few weeks.

This innovation is so new that team members haven't even thought of a name for it, yet 2nd SOPS leaders say it holds clear and obvious advantages over previous situational forms of information.

"This new tool gives 2nd SOPS unprecedented situational awareness when assisting users in theater," said Lt. Col. Mike Manor, the 2nd SOPS director of operations. "The particular capability provides our team with a real time visual of the terrain and the GPS accuracy a unit is experiencing when they call for GPS- related assistance. The Google Earth picture is definitely worth a thousand words, and this tool basically eliminates the guess work when trying to understand the current situation our users are experiencing."

According to Mr. Bowman this product launch represents the first time GPSOC has placed information on Google Earth, or any common operating picture.

"It really means that we can now put tools in the hands of the warfighter and it is limitless as to what we can give them now," Mr. Bowman said. "He no longer has to go multiple places to find a piece of information. When he clicks on his operating picture and he wants to see GPS, he simply clicks on the GPSOC core."

Satellite repositioning to boost GPS accuracy

Government Security News website story by Mark Rockwell

The US Air Force has repositioned six satellites to boost global positioning accuracy for civilian and military use worldwide.

The 50th Space Wing, part of the Air Force Space Command said Jan. 19 it completed the first of two phases in an expansion of a Global Positioning System satellite constellation. When fully complete, the "Expandable 24" operation will increase global GPS coverage and provide civil, military and commercial GPS users with more robust satellite availability and a higher probability of signal acquisition in terrain challenged environments, said the wing.

The GPS constellation consists of 24 operational slots positioned within six equally-spaced orbital planes surrounding the earth, according to the Space Wing. The plane/slot scheme and enhanced satellite placement ensure GPS users receive the most accurate navigation data at any time, at any place around the world, it said.

“Expandable 24” is a US Strategic Command-directed initiative, executed by the wing, specifically the 2nd Space Operations Squadron, to reposition six satellites in the current GPS constellation, said a statement from the Strategic Command. “Given the strength and number of satellites in the current constellation, Air Force Space Command [AFSPC] was in a unique position to enact this revolutionary strategy to benefit global users. AFSPC acted on this opportunity to increase the robustness of satellite availability by expanding three of the baseline 24 constellation slots,” it said.

Phase one of Expandable-24 began Jan. 13, 2010 when three GPS satellites were repositioned, one of which took 351 days to maneuver. The last of the satellites completed repositioning on Jan. 18, 2011, it said.

Phase two of Expandable-24 began in August 2010 and is expected to be complete in June 2011. During Phase two, three more GPS satellites will be repositioned. When complete, the GPS constellation will attain the most optimal geometry in its 42 year history, maximizing GPS coverage for all users, it said.

"Our primary focus is to execute flawless operations to maintain GPS as the world's gold standard for positioning, navigation, and timing," said Lt. Col. Mike Manor, director of operations for the 2nd Space Operations Squadron. "By repositioning a handful of our satellites to optimize their locations in space, we’ve not only improved the accuracy for military users in disadvantaged terrain like Afghanistan, but also improved the accuracy for all GPS users worldwide."

Delta II with GPS payload successfully launches

A Delta II rocket carrying a Global Positioning System satellite successfully launches Dec. 21 from Space Launch Complex 17A at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The satellite will join the constellation of on-orbit satellites providing global coverage and increased performance of the GPS services to users worldwide. (Courtesy photo/Carleton Bailie)

Blog Note:
Satellite/Payload Name: NAVSTAR 61 (USA 199)
Launch Date/Time: 12-20-2007 2004 UTC
Launch Site/Pad: Air Force Eastern Test Range, Cape Canaveral AFS, FL, LC17A
Launcher: Delta II:
International Designator: 2007-062A
NORAD SSC #: 32384

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla. (AFPN) -- Air Force space technicians successfully launched a United Launch Alliance Delta II booster Dec. 21 carrying the fifth modernized NAVSTAR Global Positioning System satellite into space. The NAVSTAR GPS was launched at 3:04 p.m. EST from Space Launch Complex 17A here.

The satellite will join the constellation of on-orbit satellites providing global coverage and increased performance of the GPS services to users worldwide. The modernized series delivers increased signal power to receivers on the ground, two new military signals for improved accuracy, enhanced encryption and anti-jamming capabilities for the military, and a second civil signal to provide users with an open access signal on a different frequency.

"Today's launch moves us another step closer to modernizing the vital GPS constellation, which provides combat effects our warfighters depend on," said Brig. Gen. Susan Helms, 45th Space Wing commander.

GPS is the world's foremost space-based positioning and navigation system. Endeavors such as mapping, aerial refueling, rendezvous operations, geodetic surveying and search and rescue operations all have benefited from GPS's accuracy.

The GPS constellation provides critical situational awareness and precision weapon guidance for the military and supports a wide range of civil, scientific and commercial functions -- from air traffic control to the Internet -- with precision location and timing information. Every satellite in the constellation was launched from here.

"The Global Positioning System has become an integral part of all of our lives -- for the members supporting the Global War on Terror and their families who support them," said Tech. Sgt. Will McCormick, a Delta II electrical engineering assistant with the 1st Space Launch Squadron. "It is truly an honor to play even a small part in providing this capability."

And from AGI Launch Notification service amd Spaceflight Now, "Final Delta launch of 2007 lofts new GPS satellite"

"A productive year for the Delta rocket program that launched spacecraft to observe Earth, dig up frozen water on Mars and explore uncharted worlds in the asteroid belt was capped with a successful ascent of a modernized GPS navigation satellite on Thursday afternoon from Cape Canaveral.

The year's finale began at 3:04 p.m. EST as the Delta 2 booster darted away from pad 17A carrying the newest craft for the Global Positioning System.

The three-stage launcher propelled the 4,500-pound satellite into a highly elliptical orbit reaching about 11,000 miles at the high point, 100 miles at the lowest and inclined 40 degrees to the equator. The Lockheed Martin-made satellite was released from the spent rocket 68 minutes after liftoff."

"A solid-propellant kick motor on the satellite itself will fire in a few days to circularize its orbit at 11,000 miles and increase the inclination to 55 degrees where the GPS constellation flies. The craft should be ready to enter service within a couple of weeks."

"Controllers will maneuver the $75 million craft into the Plane C, Slot 1 position of the constellation to take the place of GPS 2A-24. That satellite then moves into another role replacing the ailing GPS 2A-20 satellite, which was launched in May 1993 and has long outlived its seven-year design life."

"The GPS 2R-18 spacecraft is the fifth in a series of eight with enhanced features designed to rejuvenate the GPS constellation."

50th SW completes transition to new GPS control system

by Staff Sgt. Don Branum
50th Space Wing Public Affairs

STech. Sgt. Dana Ammend, a space systems operator with the 19th Space Operations Squadron here, works alongside other Airmen with 2nd and 19th SOPS to upload navigation and timing data to GPS satellites using the Architecture Evolution Plan system. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Don Branum)

Space systems experts with the 2nd Space Operations Squadron here reached a crucial milestone in deploying the $800-million Architecture Evolution Plan ground control system Sept. 14.

The transition from legacy to AEP was conducted seamlessly in real time without any data service interruption to users, said 2nd SOPS commander Lt. Col. Kurt Kuntzelman.

"That's exactly what we were striving for initially," Colonel Kuntzelman said. "Now AEP will allow us to keep enhancing, modernizing and increasing our dominance in providing the best space-based positioning, navigation and timing services in the world."

Col. Terry Djuric, the 50th Space Wing commander, declared all AEP transition activities complete at 11:23 a.m. after Airmen with the 2nd and 19th SOPS completed GPS navigation data uploads to the 31-satellite GPS constellation.

"What we've been doing is incrementally transitioning GPS operations from the legacy floor to the AEP operations floor," said Maj. John Doucet, 19th SOPS' modernization support officer. "This was a phased transition where we synced up the databases and the navigation mission."

AEP is the first step toward a modernized system that will make current and future GPS features available to users on the ground, Major Doucet said. An immediate benefit is the ability to tie the control system into the Air Force Satellite Control Network, complementing an existing array of GPS ground control stations around the world.

"We did testing early on to see if we could connect to our satellites through AFSCN," said Lt. Col. Janet Grondin, who is the GPS Operational Control Segment program manager for the GPS Wing at Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif. "It's a huge capability: we can now contact a satellite at any time."

The transition, from a legacy system using 1970s technology and mainframe computers to a distributed computing architecture had to be seamless. For that to happen, the new baseline had to look exactly like the old baseline with regard to the navigation and timing data.

"The control segment is what develops the navigation signal and keeps the timing signal correct," Colonel Grondin explained. "When we're replacing that signal with a new one, you can't get that wrong. That's the real feat. The measure of success is that warfighters and civil users can go about their business using GPS with the same great signal we've always produced."

"Ideally, (the transition) won't have any effect on our end users ... but we're listening," Major Doucet said. Support specialists in the GPS Operations Center regularly field calls from civil and military users, helping them troubleshoot issues with GPS signals.

Boeing Corporation won the $800-million AEP contract and began development several years ago. At one point in the fall of 2006, more than 400 employees from both Boeing and Lockheed-Martin were assigned to the project, said Jeff Dimick, the GPS Control Segment program manager for Boeing.

"The legacy system was the only system on which GPS had operated for 22 years," said 50th Operations Group commander Col. Clinton Crosier. "This is the most significant upgrade to GPS in that 22 years."

Getting the green light to deploy AEP was no less complex. Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, commander of the Space and Missile Systems Center at Los Angeles AFB, Calif., and program executive officer for space, compared the transition to "changing out an engine in a car going 65 mph." The scope of the project became clear to Colonel Grondin when she went to Washington, D.C., to sell federal agencies on the new system.

"When we went to the civil agencies -- the Federal Aviation Administration, the Department of Agriculture -- that really brought home to me how many people use GPS on a daily basis," she said. Many of those agencies had a say in how, or whether, the transition to AEP would take place.

The key to making AEP a success, Mr. Dimick said, was teamwork among the diverse entities involved: Boeing Corporation, Lockheed-Martin, Aerospace, Air Force Space Command, 14th Air Force, the 50th SW, 310th Space Group, GPS Wing, Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center at Kirtland AFB, N.M., and the 746th Test Squadron at Holloman AFB, N.M.

"This is the best teaming arrangement I've ever experienced," he said. "It's really what helped us succeed."

"The team that guided this operational transition from the legacy GPS ground segment to AEP ... executed the mission in a disciplined and accountable manner to make sure GPS users worldwide were unaffected," Colonel Djuric said. "Our Airmen continue to perform this mission flawlessly."

That performance allows more than 1 billion GPS users around the world -- civilian pilots, farmers, stockbrokers, warfighters and many others -- to trust that they'll have access to precision navigation and timing whenever and wherever they need it.

Upon completion of the transition to AEP, the system will enter a multi-month operational evaluation period. Headquarters Air Force Space Command will accept this enhanced capability upon successful completion of the evaluation.

Oldest GPS satellite being prepared for disposal

by Staff Sgt. Don Branum
50th Space Wing Public Affairs

The oldest operational satellite in the GPS constellation has broadcast its signal for more than 16 years, during which time that signal's mission applications -- and the people who make sure the signal is available -- have changed dramatically.

When Satellite Vehicle Number 15 launched Oct. 1, 1990, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., the 2nd Space Operations Squadron's mission was markedly different from what it is today, the 2nd SOPS commander noted.

"We did a great job of telemetry, tracking and control for satellites (when SVN-15 was launched)," Lt. Col. Kurt Kuntzelman said. "The mission today has expanded focus from pure satellite command and control to include effects-based operations."

Today, 2nd SOPS provides precision navigation and timing combat effects for war fighters around the world.

"We used to work our shifts, and as long as the satellites were broadcasting their signal and everything looked good on telemetry, we'd pat ourselves on the back," Colonel Kuntzelmen said. "But we didn't really have an appreciation for how people were using that signal. Now we're growing our user operations focus."

Colonel Kuntzelman was a second lieutenant at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., when SVN-15 became operational. At the time, the logistics plans and programs officer was helping to convert B-1B Lancers from a strategic to a conventional role in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

The Air Force used unguided and laser-guided munitions against Iraqi ground forces during Desert Storm. When the United States entered Iraq again in March 2003, the majority of air-to-ground munitions were GPS-aided.

"In a way, it's come around full circle for me," Colonel Kuntzelman said.

The colonel first became interested in space while working at U.S. Space Command and North American Aerospace Defense in future logistics and sustainment of space systems.

"My colonel was an aircraft maintenance officer who had transitioned into space," Colonel Kuntzelman said. "He took me under his arm and said, 'Logistics is privatizing and outsourcing, and you're going to need to get some operational experience.' I had a conference with my wife ... and we decided to give space operations a shot."

Colonel Kuntzelman went to Vandenberg AFB, Calif., in 1998 for space undergraduate training. When he graduated, he came to his first assignment choice: the GPS mission at Schriever.

"Space operations was a growing career field, and GPS is the flagship (satellite) of (Air Force) Space Command," he said. "So if you're going to do something, you might as well be part of the best."

Meanwhile, SVN-15 reached the end of its design life ... and kept ticking.

The change in focus from flying satellites to delivering combat effects has contributed to other GPS-based programs such as the small-diameter bomb and the Joint Precision Airdrop System, he said. Reservists with 19th SOPS are also playing an increasingly critical role in GPS operations.

In addition, civil applications have grown exponentially. GPS' use in a wide variety of navigational and financial applications, which has resulted in calls from Australian farmers, people navigating city streets and even a golfer.

"My father's an avid golfer," Colonel Kuntzelman said, smiling. "He gave me a call and told me he came up short with his 9-iron, and he tried to blame it on me for giving him the wrong GPS signal. He said it gave him the wrong yardage. Apparently it cost him a couple of bucks with his buddies."

In October 2005, SVN-15 (nicknamed "Firebird" by Boeing) turned 15. It had lived twice as long as its original design life and kept going. Recently, however, the aging satellite developed heart trouble.

"The operational clocks eventually couldn't maintain their signal within specs," Colonel Kuntzelman said.

Something didn't necessarily go wrong -- rather, everything went right for nearly nine years longer than engineers and satellite operators could have expected, the colonel added.

Satellite control authority for SVN-15 transitioned to 1st SOPS March 14. After end-of-life testing that will take about a month, they will boost the satellite into a disposal orbit.