NOAA

National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration
so much more than meteorology...




NOAA will contribute to increased accuracy of Global Navigation Satellite System GNSS (formerly know as GPS). In the US the national geodetic authority is under the NOAA umbrella and is called NOAA's National Geodetic Survey. GNSS is an important element of the Global Geodetic Observing System. NOAA's National Geodetic Survey will be responsible for pinpointing 40 stations world wide and coordinate the analysis that ensures high accuracy GNSS positions.

In addition to good analysis of the data from the global positioning satellites in Earth orbit, we need a better ground station network. AFREF is a project that will cover the gap of such network stations in Africa.

I find that project so important it made it to my list of Top 8 Earth Observation Events 2008.

NOAA is one of the founders of GEO and leaders of the implementation of the Global Earth Observing System of Systems that also made it to my list.




Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) consist today of GPS (US), GLONASS (Russia) and soon Galileo (Europe). Compass (or BEIDOU) from China will expand into a global system as well. Illustration from ESA: Galileo satellites