Photo: LiDARUSA LiDARUSA is now offering the option of the Drone Rescue Systems parachute system with all of its DJI M600 UAVs. As UAVs become increasingly common for mapping applications, the likelihood of a crash increases. The number-one concern for any pilot should be the safety of all people in the vicinity. Equipment safety is number two. Any mapping-equipped drone will have enough weight to potentially harm a person even if falling from a low […]

At the USGIF-sponsored GEOINT Symposium in San Antonio, BlackSky, a leading provider of geospatial intelligence, satellite imaging, and global monitoring services, announced it has signed an agreement with HawkEye 360, the first commercial company to use formation-flying satellites to create a new class of radio frequency (RF) data analytics. As part of the agreement, HawkEye 360 will provide API access to selected RF data for customers interested in global spectrum monitoring. BlackSky […]

New GLONASS-K2 satellites will improve the accuracy of Russia’s satellite navigation system from 3-5 meters to less than 1 meter, said Chief Designer Mikhail Korablyov of the Joint Stock Company GLONASS, operator of the ERA-GLONASS traffic accident emergency response system, at a transport conference in Moscow in late May. Russia plans to launch the first K2 satellite in late 2019 or early 2020. By 2030 the GLONASS constellation will consist wholly of K2 space vehicles, […]

China’s BeiDou-3 system, a global geolocation network, is expected to be completed in 2020, with a total of 35 satellites, researchers at a conference on the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) said. China has deployed three systems, BDS-1, BDS-2 and BDS-3, to provide accurate positioning and navigation services to the world, said Jin Shuanggen, a researcher at Shanghai Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, at the second China (Nanjing) BeiDou Satellite Navigation […]

Septentrio’s mosaic chip-level GNSS. (Photo: Septentrio) Septentrio’s mosaic development kit is now available for testing and integration. Mosaic is Septentrio’s most compact, next-generation, high-precision multi-frequency GPS/GNSS module. The receiver brings precision and reliability of high-end multi-frequency GNSS to mass-market applications, the company said. It is designed to fit into the assembly-line process, which allows mosaic to be favorably priced for high volumes. Its lightweight and low power consumption helps extend the battery life of robotic devices, […]

We’ve added several new features within the FltPlan.com Safety Management System (SMS) and FltLogic flight scheduling program. FltPlan.com has partnered with the Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF) to enable FltSafety.com SMS subscribers who are ACSF members, to voluntarily file Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) reports with the FAA. This integration further facilitates a proactive approach to self-reporting, while also identifying areas within a flight department where operational improvement is needed. Additionally, several new enhancements have […]

Uber on Tuesday selected Melbourne, Australia, as the first non-US city for its aerial ridesharing service that is expected to launch in 2023, as it unveiled new partners for the ambitious initiative. Melbourne was named the third official pilot city for Uber Air, joining Dallas and Los Angeles. Test flights are to start in 2020 with commercial operations planned for 2023. The news came at the Uber Elevate Summit in Washington, […]

OK, perhaps the headline is a tad misleading. But in addition to its natural preoccupation with Galileo, the European Space Agency (ESA) has begun thinking and talking about PNT as a service and user needs. In 2018, the European Commission issued a memo saying that GNSS alone was not sufficient for many critical and fail-safe operations. ESA is now seriously considering how Galileo and other systems can provide users the PNT services and resilience they […]

After serving as an officer in the British Army, Jack Campbell sought an adventure. He chose to attempt to climb all 282 Munros in Scotland in one summer. This challenge would require a combined trek of roughly 2,200 kilometers. Jack recounted his experience with Garmin. Garmin: How did you get the idea to climb the Munros? [A Munro is a mountain in Scotland over 3,000 feet (914 meters).] I understand that “Munro bagging” is popular […]

The Leica BLK2GO. (Photo: Hexagon) Hexagon AB has introduced two new additions to its Leica BLK series. The Leica BLK2GO is a small, portable, integrated handheld-imaging scanner, and the Leica BLK247 is a 3D laser-scanning sensor for security surveillance providing continuous, 24/7 situational awareness. “Extending the BLK series continues Hexagon’s 20-year focus on revolutionising reality capture,” said Ola Rollén, Hexagon President and CEO. “These sensors are not only ground-breaking for their technical capabilities, but also […]