NAViC
CONTEXT:
- Recently, Central govt pushed for Indian GPS NavIC to link to Aadhaar enrolment devices.
ABOUT NAViC
- NavIC is designed with a constellation of 7 satellites and a network of ground stations operating 24 x 7.
- Three satellites of the constellation are placed in geostationary orbit, at 32.5°E, 83°E and 129.5°E respectively, and four satellites are placed in inclined geosynchronous orbit with equatorial crossing of 55°E and 111.75°E respectively, with inclination of 29° .
- The ground network consists of control centre, precise timing facility, range and integrity monitoring stations, two-way ranging stations, etc.
- NavIC offers two services: Standard Position Service (SPS) for civilian users and Restricted Service (RS) for strategic users.
- These two services are provided in both L5 (1176.45 MHz) and S band (2498.028 MHz).
- NavIC coverage area includes India and a region up to 1500 km beyond Indian boundary.
RECENT NEWS REGARDING NAViC:
- The Centre has been pushing cell phone makers in India to make their instruments compatible with NavIC.
- The Navigation with Indian Constellation or (NavIC) will soon be integrated into Aadhaar enrolment devices, the Department of Space (DoS) told the Parliamentary Committee of Science and Technology.
OBJECTIVES OF NAViC:
- To meet the positioning, navigation and timing requirements of the nation, ISRO has established a regional navigation satellite system called Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC).
- NavIC was erstwhile known as Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS).
APPLICATION OF NAViC:
- The National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) was already utilising NavIC as an alert dissemination system for major natural disasters like landslipSs, earthquakes, floods, and avalanches.
- The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information System (INCOIS) relies on it to broadcast cyclones, high waves, and tsunamis alert messages to fishermen venturing into the deep sea.
Other applications include:
- Transportation (terrestrial, aerial and marine)
- Location based services
- Personal mobility
- Resource monitoring
- Surveying and geodesy
- Scientific research
- Time dissemination and synchronisation
- Safety-of-life alert dissemination
NAViC VS OTHER GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEMS:
- The main difference is the serviceable area covered by these systems.
- GPS caters to users across the globe and its satellites circle the earth twice a day, while NavIC is currently for use in India and adjacent areas.
- Like GPS, there are three more navigation systems that have global coverage – Galileo from the European Union, Russia-owned GLONASS and China’s Beidou.
- QZSS, operated by Japan, is another regional navigation system covering Asia-Oceania region, with a focus on Japan.
- India’s 2021 satellite navigation draft policy stated the government will work towards “expanding the coverage from regional to global” to ensure availability of NavIC signal in any part of the world.
SYLLABUS: PRELIMS, CURRENT AFFAIRS
