Four, three... With the launch of the cargo on this Soyuz rocket, an old European dream is coming true, to give the EU its own satellite positioning system. But being free of the American GPS or the Russian GLONASS systems comes at a price. Will the return on investment measure up? EuroparlTV has looked into the question. These are the first satellites of a series which will be positioned around the Earth to form the Galileo constellation. Their task is to make the European satellite navigation system operational. At the end of 2014 we'll have 18 satellites in orbit, which will give us preliminary operational services. So we can expect that in 2014 everyone will have their Galileo GPS receiver to navigate both in towns and in the country. Europe is at last becoming independent of the US satellite navigation system. The major disadvantage of GPS is that it is controlled by the US Army. If the USA decided to turn its system off, we can still keep going, whereas right now we're doomed in the sense that everything that depends on navigation would stop. You also know that it is possible, especially in military situations, that the signals can be manipulated to distract the enemy or they can be turned off. All of these things are risks. European independence in space has a cost and it's a high one. Europe has already poured 5 billion euros into the project. The Commission expects to spend 7 billion more from 2014 to 2020. As States are having trouble finding financing, negotiations will be difficult. You must realise that GPS was an investment of over 25 billion dollars. No one ever asked if the American investment in GPS was appropriate. People talk a lot about the expense, which is right in our current situation, but they don't talk about the benefits. In the long term, Galileo will be made up of a fleet of 30 satellites. The European system's accuracy will undeniably be a strong commercial factor. Galileo will be accurate down to 10 centimetres for its paid services. That's much better than the American GPS accuracy of 20 metres. We are well aware of the fact that Galileo can bring us advantages to the tune of tens of billions of euros, we estimate up to 90 billion euros, if it is completed in time. Each year behind schedule means the advantage decreases. It will have three different levels of usage. The first one is the open system which anyone will be able to use. You will also look at transport, border controls, search and rescue, even things we don't think about, for instance, guiding blind people. You're looking at the seas and shipping, etc. There's a wide range of utilisation. To simplify the lives of users, Galileo will be inter-operable. A single receiver will be compatible with the European, American or Russian systems. First availability is expected in 2014.
EuroparlTV video ID: a5af5293-8944-418e-8679-9fc100feb466
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| News & Politics | Upload TimePublished on 30 Oct 2012 |
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