Today, August 2, Sergey Karutin, head of Roskartografiya and general designer of the GLONASS system, officially spoke about ambitious far-reaching plans for the development and formation of a full-fledged high-orbit segment of a new generation navigation platform. Karutin recalled that currently the modern GLONASS system consists of 26 spacecraft, of which 22 are used for their intended purpose. One satellite is currently in the commissioning phase, and three more spacecraft have been temporarily withdrawn from the current platform. The number of newest navigation satellites will be much less.
According to the reports of the head of Roskartografiya, the new GLONASS high-orbit space segment will consist of six satellites that will be placed in three planes in the orbit of the planet Earth. As a result, these spacecraft should provide increased accuracy of navigation systems even in difficult conditions at high latitudes. For example, experts note that navigation accuracy will noticeably increase primarily in the Arctic region, although, of course, the coverage radius is noticeably larger. True, the general designer of GLONASS said that the launch of a new segment would have to wait.
The fact is that the launch of the first satellite from the new GLONASS high-orbit segment into Earth orbit is scheduled for 2026, but experts fully admit that the dates can be pushed back to 2028. And, apparently, the difficulties of this launch are associated not so much with the development of the spacecraft themselves, but with a number of other factors – the authors of the project said that the satellite would be ready for launch into orbit six months before the expected date. But, as with all space programs, first specialists must conduct full-fledged flight tests, and only after that the first satellite will be sent into orbit.
Further, within a certain period (so far no one has presented a full-fledged plan for the launch of the remaining satellites), five more satellites will be sent into orbit. In addition, Sergey Karutin officially announced that by the end of this year, the latest Glonass-K2 navigation apparatus, which is now undergoing the final stage of testing, should be put into Earth’s orbit. If everything goes according to plan, these satellites will provide Russian navigation until 2050.
Source: Trash Box
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