International Committee on
Global Navigation Satellite Systems
Training Course on Global Navigation Satellite Systems

14 – 18 January 2019, Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand

Sharafat Gadimova
Office for Outer Space Affairs

Space in the United Nations system
UNOOSA is the only United Nations office with a number of General
Assembly mandates to bridge access to space technologies and spacebased information for Member States and other United Nations
agencies and to build capacity in the use of such technologies.

For the attainment of all 17 SDGs and 169 targets space tools carrysignificant relevance:
Direct — as enablers and drivers for sustainable development
Indirect — as an integral part of the indicators for monitoring progress
UNOOSA and the European GNSS Agency (ST/SPACE/71):

European Global Navigation Satellite Systems and Copernicus:
Supporting the Sustainable Development Goals
http://www.unoosa.org/res/oosadoc/data/documents/2018/stspace/stspace7
1_0_html/st_space_71E.pdf
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Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer SpaceSpace andclimate change

Disaster Management

Space debris
mitigation

National spacelegislation

International
mechanisms forcooperation

Long-term
sustainability ofouter space
activities

Definition anddelimitationof outer space

Space applications
for socioeconomic
development

Near-Earthobjects

Global Navigation
Satellite Systems

SpaceWeather

GGE-report andTCBM’s

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International Committee on GNSS (ICG) Promote voluntary cooperation on matters of mutual interest related to civil
satellite-based positioning, navigation, timing, and value added services
 Contribute to the sustainable development of the world
 Encourage coordination among GNSS Providers to ensure greater compatibility,interoperability, and transparency
 Promote the introduction and utilization of GNSS services in developing
countries, by assisting with the integration into their infrastructure Assist GNSS users with their development plans and applications, by encouraging
coordination and serving as a focal point for international information exchange ICG strives to encourage and facilitate compatibility, interoperability andtransparency between all the satellite navigation systems, to promote and toprotect use of their open services applications and thereby benefit the globalcommunity. Our vision is to ensure the best satellite based PNT for peaceful uses
for everybody, anywhere, any time
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ICG: Background 2001 – 2004: Action Team on GNSS (Italy and the United States) – inimplementation of the recommendations of UNISPACE-III, 1999, Vienna
 An international framework to support operational coordination andexchange of information among system operators and national andinternational user communities would be important The assumption was that current and future system operators would soon
move from a competitive to a collaborative mode where there is a sharedinterest in the universal use of GNSS services regardless of the system 2005: Establishment of the ICG (noted by UNGA 61/111 of 14 December 2006)
 Promote the use of GNSS and its integration into infrastructure, particularlyin developing countries;
 Encourage compatibility and interoperability among global and regionalsystems
 Main challenge is to provide assistance and information for those countries
seeking to integrate GNSS into their basic infrastructure, including atgovernmental, scientific and commercial levels
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ICG: Membership Members: 9 nations and the European Union Current and future core, regional or augmentation systems providers: China(BeiDou), EU (Galileo/EGNOS), Russia (GLONASS/SDCM), United States(GPS/WAAS), India (IRNSS/GAGAN), Japan (QZSS/MSAS)
 State Members of the United Nations with an active programme inimplementing or promoting a wide range of GNSS services and applications:
Italy, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates, Australia
 Associate Members and Observers: 21 organizations
 International & regional organizations and associations dealing with GNSS
services and applications: UN system entities, IGOs, NGOs
ICG participation is open to all countries and entities that are either GNSS
providers or users of GNSS services, and are interested and willing to actively beengaged in ICG work
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ICG: Annual meetings
 UNOOSA (2006), India (2007), United States (2008), Russian Federation (2009), Italy &European Union (2010), Japan (2011), China (2012), United Arab Emirates (2013),
European Union (2014), United States (2015), Russian Federation (2016), Japan (2017),China (2018), India (2019), Vienna (2020) 2006: Terms of Reference and Workplan

 Systems, Signals and Services (United States & Russian Federation): Focused
discussion on compatibility and interoperability, encouraging development ofcomplimentary systems; Exchange detailed information on systems and service provisionplans
 Enhancement of GNSS Performance, New Services and Capabilities (India, Chinaand European Space Agency): Focused discussion on system enhancements (multipath,integrity, interference, etc.) to meet future needs
 Information Dissemination and Capacity Building (UNOOSA): Focused on educationand training programmes, promoting GNSS for scientific exploration (space weatherspecifically) Reference Frames, Timing and Applications (IAG, IGS & FIG): Focused on monitoring
and reference station networks
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ICG: Providers’ Forum 2007: Establishment
 Members: Current and future global and regional satellite navigation systems andSatellite-based Augmentation Systems (SBAS) providers

 PF provides ways and means of promoting communication among system providers onkey technical issues and operational concepts such as the GNSS spectrum protection,orbital debris, and orbit de-confliction
 Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of UNCOPUOS (UN GA Res. 62/217 of 1 February2008) started consideration of an agenda item “Recent developments in GNSS”
 2008: Terms of Reference and Workplan
 Agreement that all GNSS signals and services must be compatible and open signals andservices should be interoperable to the maximum extent possible in order to maximize
benefit to all GNSS users;
 Consensus reached on Principle of transparency - every GNSS provider should publish
documentation that describes the signal and system information, the policies of provisionand the minimum levels of performance offered for its open services• 2019: 22nd Meeting, 10 June 2019, Vienna, Austria: Open Service Information
Dissemination, Open Service Performance, Spectrum Protection
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ICG: Working Group Systems, Signals and Services (S) Interference Detection and Mitigation (IDM)
 To continue addressing the need for worldwide GNSS spectrum protection
 To establish a multi-year agenda item focused on national efforts to protect
RNSS spectrum, and pursue GNSS IDM in member states Request for voluntary reporting on national RNSS spectrum protection
practices and GNSS IDM capabilities (A/AC.105/C.1/2017/CRP.18):
STSC agreed that, a general exchange of information should be included on issues
related to GNSS IDM, with a view to raising awareness of efforts to achieve theoverall goal of promoting effective use of GNSS open services by the global
community.
http://www.unoosa.org/res/oosadoc/data/documents/2017/aac_105c_12017crp/aac_105c_12017crp_18_0_html/AC105_C1_2017_CRP18E.pdf
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Systems, Signals, and Services WG (WG-S)
Systems, Signals, and Services WG

Compatibility & Spectrum
Sub-group

Interoperability & ServiceStandards Sub-group

Signal Compatibility



System-of-SystemOperations

Spectrum Protection

 Orbital Debris Mitigation

IDM Standards & Information
Exchange Orbit Deconfliction

IDM Task Force will continue
under the sub-group

Specific Tasks to be managed
by Co-chairs until the need fora permanent sub-group canbe determined Constellation Optimization
for performance
improvement

 User level Multi-GNSS
interoperability and use (signal,system time and geodesy
reference) Signal, open service, standards
development, monitoring andassessment
IGMA Task Force will continue
under the sub-groupICG: Working Group Enhancement of GNSS Performance,
New Services and Capabilities (B)The GNSS Space Service Volume (SSV) is the region ofspace extending to approximately the geostationary
altitude or even beyond where terrestrial GNSS
performance standards may not be applicable. The SSV
defines GNSS system performance for space users by
specifying at least three parameters:
1.
2.
3.

Pseudorange Accuracy
Received Power andSignal Availability

http://www.unoosa.org/res/oosadoc/data/documents/2018/stspace/stspace75_0_html/st_space_75E.pdf
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ICG: Information Dissemination and Capacity Building (C) Strengthening and delivering targeted capacity-building and technical advisory
activities with the goal of sharing ideas and expertise regarding GNSS technology
and its applications, particularly encouraging the participation of women andyoung professionals

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ICG: Working Group Reference Frames, Timing andApplications (D)Significant progress on geodetic and timing references by GNSS providers: the recent
establishment of the subcommittee on geodesy by the Committee of Experts on Global
Geospatial Information Management as part of the work under the United Nations
Initiative on Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM)

Precise Point Positioning (PPP) allows a single GNSS receiver user to determine positionat the decimetre / centimetre error level in kinematic / static mode using precise satellite
orbits and clocks.

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Information Centres for ICG
 The Programme of Space Applications established regional centres (also acting as the ICG

information centres) in each region covered by the United Nations Economic Commissions: Africa, Asiaand the Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Western Asia
 The Technical Level: explore the benefits of GNSS technologies for regions and to spread theirapplications; exchange information and knowledge
 The Cooperative level: facilitate collaboration with the GNSS providers (seminars/trainingsand educational material), as well as communication and outreach to the wider community
through the ICG information portal

China (RCSSTEAP)
Jordan (RJGC)
Mexico (CRECTEALC)

Morocco (CRASTE-LF)
India (CSSTEAP)
Nigeria (ARCESSTE-E)

Brazil (CRECTEALC)

Slide 13COPUOS: Space Weather 2004: Session of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) calledfor addressing solar-terrestrial interaction: global climate, space weather, Sun-Earthheliosphere-system 2005 - 2009: Workshops and Follow-up projects: low-cost, ground-based world-wide
instrument arrays, GNSS on board of instrument arrays (IHY: Instrument Array, Data,Teaching) 2010 - 2012: STSC agenda item “International Space Weather Initiative” & ISWI
Workshops (Egypt, Nigeria, Ecuador) 2013: STSC agenda item “Space Weather”

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ICG Information Portal

WWW.UNOOSA.ORG
WWW.UNOOSA.ORG/OOSA/EN/OURWORK/ICG/ICG.HTML
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