What’s new: India’s Space Research Organization (ISRO) has placed it’s 100th satellite in orbit. It is a replacement for one of the 7 in the NavIC regional navigation satellite system (RNSS)..
Why it’s important:
- India, now the world’s most populous country, is one to watch. Aggressively capitalistic, they could well out-pace China economically and technically in the next 10 to 20 years.
- The government has said it wants to expand the RNSS into a GNSS. They clearly have the technology. It is just a matter of whether or not government considers it worthwhile.
What else to know:
- India developed NavIC, which serves civilian users on L5, after claiming the U.S. interfered with GPS while their armed forces were in conflict with Pakistan.
- NavIC currently serves the country’s land mass and 1,500 miles beyond.
