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WAAS Future and Evolutions
| WAAS | |
|---|---|
| Title | WAAS Future and Evolutions |
| Author(s) | GMV. |
| Level | Basic |
| Year of Publication | 2011 |
The Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) is the United States Satellite Based Augmentation System. The programme, started in 1992, is being carried out by the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA)[1] and is specially developed for the civil aviation community.[2] The system, which was declared operational in late 2003,[3] currently supports thousands of aircraft instrument approaches in more than one thousand airports in USA and Canada.[4] WAAS service area includes CONUS, Alaska, Canada and Mexico.[5] The WAAS programme is continuously in evolution; two development phases have been already covered, a third is in progress, and there are plans to improve the capability of the system in parallel with the evolution of the SBAS standards towards a dual-frequency augmentation service.[6]
WAAS Future and Evolutions
The WAAS Development Phases are:
- Phase I –Initial Operating Capability (IOC). Completed in 2003.
- Phase II -Full LPV Performance. Completed in 2008.
- Phase III -Full LPV-200 Performance. Planned for 2009-2013.
- Phase IV -Dual Frequency Operations. Planned for 2014-2028.
Phase III, currently under development, implies the following changes:
- Development, modifications, and enhancements in the software and in the architecture to include technology refresh.
- Steady state operations and maintenance: replacement of Legacy WRSs, router upgrades,...
- Space segment upgrades: In November 2010, a third GEO satellite, Inmarsat AMR (PRN #133), has started to transmitt the WAAS signal. Besides, both Galaxy 15 (PRN #135) and Anik F1R (PRN #138) contain an L1 & L5 GPS payload
- Begin GPS L1-L5 transition activities: Specifications, ICDs, MOPs development, WRS receiver development, Develop L5 Transition Plan.
For Phase IV, WAAS shall begin to operate with Dual Frequency (L1-L5). This would imply:
- Completed WAAS Changes Needed for Dual Frequency (L1/L5) GPS Operations.
- Maintain a robust, reliable, and sustainable LPV-200 capability.
- Support Single frequency WAAS users through end of Phase IV (until 2028).
- Improve availability and continuity during severe solar activity.
- Steady state operations and maintenance.
Notes
References
- ^ Navigation Services - History - Satellite Navigation, FAA.
- ^ Navigation Services - Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), FAA.
- ^ Wide Area Differential GPS (WADGPS), Stanford University
- ^ GNSS - GPS/WAAS Approaches, Federal Aviation Agency (FAA).
- ^ WAAS Service Expanded into Canada and Mexico, September 28, 2007, Federal Aviation Agency (FAA).
- ^ SatNav News, Vol. 33, March 2008, Federal Aviation Agency (FAA).