The Soviet Union, which managed to implement the Global Navigation Satellite System, or GLONASS, program by the early 1990s, nonetheless fell behind the United States by a decade in this sphere. This program, however, gave Russia an opportunity to create a full-fledged satellite navigation system, a vital prerequisite for adequate socio-economic, military and political development.

GLONASS, which fully meets the requirements of Russia's national military and space programs, provides navigational support for ships and aircraft en route and during docking and landing. It ensures high-precision air strikes, air support operations, all-weather assault landings, mid-air and high-seas linkups, and accurate target acquisition.

The GLONASS system had only seven operational satellites left as of mid-2003 because of the crisis that plagued the Russian space program in the mid-1990s due to lack of funding. As a result, the Russian satellite navigation system virtually ceased to exist.

In late 2005, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov to have the system running again by 2007. The Defense Ministry plans to launch 18 satellites, the minimum number of spacecraft necessary to ensure the system's full-fledged operation.

Let's take a look at how satellite navigation systems operate because this is important in determining the required number of spacecraft.

An object on the ground has to receive signals from at least four navigation satellites in order to calculate its coordinates. Each millisecond satellites relay their status, the current date, time and the exact time of sending all data to earth.

A NAVSTAR Global Positioning System or GLONASS transceiver, which processes these signals, calculates the distance to each satellite and its position relative to the other satellites. It then processes this data in accordance with geometric laws to determine its ground coordinates.

The signals of three satellites make it possible to calculate latitude and longitude, whereas signals from four satellites are needed to determine altitudes above sea level.

International experience, specifically the use of the NAVSTAR GPS, shows that at least 24 spacecraft are needed to ensure 100 percent navigational accuracy.

In this connection, one should agree with Viktor Kramarenko, a leading research associate at the Federal Space Agency, who believes that, rather than settling for the minimum number of satellites required -- 18 satellites by 2007 -- Russia should deploy 27 to 30 spacecraft by 2010. "This would ensure round-the-clock operation of 24 spacecraft by keeping one or two reserve satellites in each of the orbital cluster's three planes," said Kramarenko.

Unfortunately, the use of the required number of satellites does not fully solve the problem of establishing GLONASS as a military satellite system, or sooner as a nationwide system open for commercial use.

It is common knowledge that many local enterprises, as well as the governments of entire Russian regions, have signed contracts for the use of America's NAVSTAR GPS, whereas GLONASS can and must offer some tough competition to its U.S. equivalent.

In March 2006, Sergei Ivanov said all accuracy restrictions would be lifted by the end of the year. Consequently, it will become possible to pinpoint all objects to within 30 meters of their actual location. Civilian clients will be able to use GLONASS by late 2007, and foreign customers will be able to do the same starting in 2009.

But GLONASS requires dependable ground transceivers for greater efficiency.

In October 2003, the Russian prime minister signed a document that lifted all restrictions on the development, purchase and use of GLONASS and GPS equipment in the country, and Russian companies have now developed super-light GLONASS/GPS transceivers, including 16-channel versions. However, their production and sale are still prohibited because the Russian military needs time to minimize security risks resulting from the lifting of accuracy restrictions.

Valery Filatov, head of the Russian General Staff's military topography department, said letters asking whether it was acceptable to eliminate accuracy restrictions had already been sent to all agencies having classified facilities on Russian territory. The General Staff plans to clarify these issues this summer.

Sergei Ivanov recently told the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg that the Russian defense industry is the main driving force of national economic development. One would very much like to believe this statement and to trust that the government will find the $150 million it needs for the GLONASS system, because the world would otherwise receive all satellite data from the West or China. It is well known that Beijing wants to develop its own Compass military satellite navigation system not inferior to GPS in all parameters.

Andrei Kislyakov is a political commentator for the RIA Novosti news agency. This article is reprinted by permission of RIA Novosti. United Press International's "Outside View" commentaries are written by outside contributors who specialize in a variety of important issues. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of United Press International. In the interests of creating an open forum, original submissions are invited

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