The Beidou navigation system is a project by the People's Republic of China to develop an independent satellite navigation system. "Beidou" is the Chinese name of the Ursa Major constellation. Satellite navigation systems use radio time signals transmitted by satellites to enable mobile receivers on the ground to determine their exact location. ... Ursa Major (Ursa Maior in Latin) is a constellation visible throughout the year in the northern hemisphere. ...
Beidou 1A was launched on 30 October2000 and Beidou 1B followed on 20 December2000. China plans to complete the system with a second pair, and Beidou 2A was put into orbit on 24 May2003. October 30 is the 303rd day of the year (304th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 62 days remaining. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... December 20 is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... May 24 is the 144th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (145th in leap years). ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Unlike the GPS, GLONASS, and Galileo systems, which offer global positioning, Beidou uses satellites in geostationary orbit. This means that the system does not require a large constellation of satellites, but it also limits the coverage to areas on Earth where the satellites are visible. Over fifty GPS satellites such as this NAVSTAR have been launched since 1978. ... GLONASS GLONASS (Russian ГЛОÐÐСС; Ð“Ð›ÐžÐ±Ð°Ð»ÑŒÐ½Ð°Ñ ÐÐÐ²Ð¸Ð³Ð°Ñ†Ð¸Ð¾Ð½Ð½Ð°Ñ Ð¡Ð¿ÑƒÑ‚Ð½Ð¸ÐºÐ¾Ð²Ð°Ñ Ð¡Ð¸Ñтема; Globalnaya Navigatsionnaya Sputnikovaya Sistema. ... The Galileo positioning system is a proposed satellite navigation system, to be built by the European Union (EU) as an alternative to the US military-controlled Global Positioning System and the Russian GLONASS. The system should be operational by 2010, two years later than originally anticipated. ... A geostationary orbit (abbreviated GEO) is a circular orbit directly above the Earths equator (0º latitude). ...
China has also associated itself with the Galileo project, which is not yet operational.
Feeds |
Contact