NavIC 2nd Gen

NavIC 2nd Gen

Subject: Economy

Section: National Economy

The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) also referred to as Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) is a regional satellite navigation system that used 7 satellites for its positioning services. Recently it is being upgraded to the next gen version.

2nd gen satellite (NVS-01) launched. Key changes:

• Heavier than existing satellites
• GSLV Rocket launched. At present 7 satellites being lighter were launched by PSLV rockets.
• Atomic clock onboard (Rubidium atomic clock developed by Space-Application Centre- Ahmedabad). Only a few select countries have this technology.
• Will use L1 frequency in addition to existing L5 and S frequency. L1 is better for wearable devices which run on low power and use single frequency chips.
• 2nd gen satellites will have longer mission life of over 12 years. (10 years at present)

What all IRNSS satellites provide:

• Location services: It provides Standard Position Service (SPS) for civilian users and Restricted Service (RS) for strategic users.
• Messaging services to provide disaster warning or potential fishing zone messages to fishermen.
• Public vehicle safety, power grid synchronization, real time train information systems and fishermen safety
• Following uses to be integrated: common alert protocol based emergency warning, time dissemination, geodetic network, UAV navigation etc.