European Space Agency’s (ESA) Galileo program is nearing completion as four more satellites will be launched into space in 2017. As of December 2016, there are 14 operational satellites in orbit. The first launch of satellites was in 2011, and the completion date for the final count of 24 satellites in space (plus six in-orbit spares), and full system completion and calibration is estimated to be in 2020. Galileo will be Europe’s Global Navigation Satellite System. How does this differ from the Global Positioning System (GPS) designed by the US? The main difference between Galileo and GPS is that Galileo is designed and intended primarily for civilian use, whereas GPS was planned for high-precision use in military-oriented operations. Although civilian use of the GPS is widely used, it is not as precise as when used with military access.
#spaceexploration – by @spaceshenaniganz on Instagram
