Latest GPS satellite sends initial signals

A Boeing-built global positioning system (GPS) IIF satellite has sent initial signals from space after its launch on 20 February, joining four other advanced versions of the spacecraft that are improving position, navigation and timing information for millions of civilian and military users around the world.

GPS IIF-5 launched from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta IV rocket, and Boeing received the satellite's first signals approximately three and a half hours later. It will undergo on-orbit activation, checkout and testing before being handed over to the US Air Force, which operates the GPS system, in March.

The GPS IIFs are providing greater navigational accuracy through improvements in atomic clock technology, a more resilient signal for commercial aviation and safety-of-life applications, and a longer design life of 12 years.

This was the first GPS IIF satellite launch of 2014. The sixth GPS IIF is at the Florida launch site undergoing preparations for a second quarter launch. The remaining six are at the Boeing Satellite Development Centre in El Segundo, California.