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How many GPS satellites are there and when were they put in orbit?
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
The design of the satellites has remained essentially the same over the years; the differences have just been in their operations.
The first 11 satellites, known as Group I and designed by Rockwell International, were launched into orbit between 1978 and 1985 from Vandenburg Air Force Base in California. Each of these satellites contained one Cesium and two Rubidium atomic clocks and could provide navigation and standard positioning information. Continuous contact with the Ground Control Segment (CS) was required for their operation. They were designed to last five years, but most lasted much longer.
The next group of 9 satellites are called Group II and were also designed by Rockwell. These were the first to provide precision positioning information for military use and to be able to operate for 14 days without contact with the CS. Group II satellites contained four clocks two Cesium and two Rubidium and were launched between February 1989 and October 1990 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. They were designed to last 7.3 years and two currently remain in operation.
The Group IIA satellites were next group to be designed by Rockwell and numbered 19. They are similar to the Group II satellites, except they have the ability to operate 180 days without contact with CS. These were launched from Cape Canaveral between November 1990 and November 1997. All but three of these satellites are still in operation.
The most recent type, Group IIR, were designed by Lockheed Martin and each have three Rubidium clocks. They were designed to provide more accurate information through a combination of ranging techniques and communication between the satellites. They are also designed to last slightly longer (7.8 years) and to have improved independent controls. There are currently 12 such satellites in orbit the most recent launched in November 2004.
The satellites are launched via a Delta II rocket designed by Boeing. These are expendable launch vehicles (ELVs), meaning they are intended for one use only. Each of these ELVs consists of the following:
- Stage I which contains fuel and oxygen tanks to supply the main engine during its climb;
- Solid rocket booster motors to provide additional thrust during the first two minutes of flight;
- Stage II which contains the fuel and oxidizer tanks that supply the engine needed to insert the ELV into orbit and the brains of the ELV, including its guidance system;
- Stage III that has a solid rocket motor to provide any needed velocity change.
More input from others:
- According to SMC Fact Sheet (URL
http://www.losangeles.af.mil/smc/pa/fact_sheets/gps_fs.htm), as well as Garmin (URL http://www.garmin.com/aboutGPS/), there are 24 satellites in the system with an additional 4 on reserve.
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
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How long does it take to build a satellite?
The time it takes to put together a satellite varies on the size and structure of the satellite. A simple satellite could be put together in a couple of months, where a large science mission could take ten or more years.
How many satellites are there in space?
That depends on what you call a satellite. The correct use of the word simply means an object caught in earths orbit. If this is what you are looking for there are litterally tens of thousands of objects from small meteorites to lost tools and rocket stages floating in orbit. So much so that it is now becomming increasingly dangerous to put new vehicles in space as the debris orbits at around 17000 miles per hour. If man made satellites for communications is what you are searching for then thats difficult to gauge. It's unlikely that most countries will admit to placing spy satellites in space to the true figure is difficult to say, but The Goddard Space Flight Center's lists 2,271 satellites currently in orbit. Russia has the most satellites currently in orbit, with 1,324 satellites, followed by the U.S. with 658.
What is artifical satellite?
Artificial satellites are human-made, orbital objects sent into space. (There are several thousand of these in orbit around Earth.) Our moon is the only natural satellite that Earth has.Related Information:Since 1957, the term has been applied to objects that orbit the Earth. Now a number of objects have been put into orbit around various planets, moons and even our Sun.NASA currently has a plan to move a small asteroid to a near Earth position in stable orbit. This action has the potential to create an orbiting object that is not man made. It has not yet been established whether this will be termed an artificial, natural, or other type of satellite.There are satellites beaming down television to us, providing pictures for Google earth, positioning for the GPS system, etc.The Space Shuttle Discovery docked with the International Space Station. Both of those assemblies are man-made, and both are in orbit around the earth. When the shuttle returned to earth, you heard about it on TV news. If you get your TV through a little dish on top of your garage, then you received it from another man-made satellite.An artificial satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavor. They are called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites like the Moon. Examples of artificial satellites are Communications Satellites and Monitering Satellites.
What are the two different types of satellites?
There are nine types of artificial satellites. Here is the list: Astronomical satellites, Biosatellites satellites, Communication satellites, Miniaturized Satellites, Navigational satellites, Reconnaissance satellites, Earth observation satellites, Space stations, and Weather satellites.
Did sputnik release bombs from space?
No. Sputnik was the "family name" for a series of satellites, and none of them dropped bombs on Earth. Not out of restraint, but because they didn't have any to drop. But the fear was that once someone had the technology to put things into orbit, then it'd be a small step to actually drop things from orbit as well.
Who paid to put GPS all into orbit?
The GPS system was developed and funded by the U.S. Department of Defense. The cost of putting GPS satellites into orbit was covered by the U.S. government.
What is the differences between the moon and satellites?
The word Moon is a name given to the natural satellite in orbit around the Earth. We attribute this name to most objects large enough to see in orbit around other planets. In this way Moons and Natural Satellites are one in the same. Artifical Satellites are what we put into orbit around the earth IE GPS Satellites, but are man made.
What orbit are monitoring satellites put into?
Polar orbit
What is the difference between moon and satellite?
The word Moon is a name given to the natural satellite in orbit around the Earth. We attribute this name to most objects large enough to see in orbit around other planets. In this way Moons and Natural Satellites are one in the same. Artifical Satellites are what we put into orbit around the earth IE GPS Satellites, but are man made.
Some satellites are put into an orbit around the earths poles what is this type of orbit called?
Circum polar satellites.
Did they have GPS a hundred years ago?
No, there was no GPS in 1918. Neither the concepts on which GPS operates had occurred to anyone nor was the primitive electronics of the time able to support its requirements had anyone thought of it. Also in 1918 it was not possible to put satellites in orbit.The first satellite put in orbit was in 1957.The concepts on which GPS operates were not worked out until the late 1960s.The first launch of a GPS satellite was on February 1978; 39 years ago.The GPS requires 24 operating satellites and 6 functional spare satellites in orbit to operate.Early GPS receivers (available only to the military and large companies) cost tens of thousands of dollars and weighed from 20 to 100 pounds. This was all that was available until the very late 1980s.
How are most artificial satellites put into orbit?
By rockets
What are man-made satellites?
They are the machines that we put in orbit. Natural satellites are things like the moon, that got into orbit without our intervention.
How many satellites did India sent to the space?
72 + 35 (foreign) satellites were put into orbit so far (till November 2013).
What are the names of some satellites currently in earths orbit?
Sutnick was the very first Satellite that was put into orbit.=)
Could a small satellite orbit the moon?
Satellites have been put into orbit around the moon. A list of them is at the link.
How many satellites comprise the GPS and expand it?
There are at least 24 GPS satellites in operation at any given time with a number of on-orbit spares in case one fails. Each one is in a 12 hour orbit (meaning it takes 12 hours to orbit the earth). They are in a variety of six different orbits and are not just locked into a geosynchronous orbit (meaning they stay over roughly the same place on earth at all times, like your satellite TV and communications satellites) like some satellites.All GPS satellites are owned and operated by the US Air Force and are controlled specifically by the 2d Space Operations Squadron at Schriever AFB in Colorado Springs, CO. There is not an easy way to deny the GPS capability to our enemies without also denying our own capability, so it is a free system open to anyone that has the technology to utilize it.GPS satellites carry not only positional data but also extremely precise timing signals, which help the GPS receivers on the ground to triangulate their position and are even used to validate and secure financial transactions, etc. When the system was first created, artificial timing errors were put into the signal to try to reduce the effectiveness of the system for non-military users, but it was removed in 2000.The GPS satellites also have NUDET (Nuclear Detonation) sensors on them to detect nuclear detonations almost anywhere on earth.To use GPS you need to be in clear view of at the very least 3 satellites but you should be in view of 6 satellites at any given time unless some are blocked by objects, mountains, etc. So, GPS usually doesn't work well in-doors or even in a forrest or valley at times.
