SCHRIEVER AIR FORCE BASE, Colo.—The Air Force system that keeps 30 navigation satellites from bumping into each other and makes sure banks have exactly the right time is being upgraded.
No one is likely notice the deployment of the new system, and it will be done without stopping service, officials told the Gazette.
“It’s like changing the engine on a car while it heads down the freeway at 65 mph,” said Lt. Gen. Michael Hamel, who commands the Space and Missile System Center in Los Angeles, which oversaw development of the new computers. Hamel said the change has been in the works for 18 months.
“One of the things I can tell you is we are applying the same kind of assurance on this as we do with our launch systems,” he said. “We have been meticulous about our planning.”
Controllers at Schriever east of Colorado Springs, one of the most closely guarded facilities in the nation, can send signals to satellites to move them.
The satellites not only are used by GPS systems on the ground, but also set the time for the banking and financial industries. They have to be 100 percent accurate so banks will not lose track of transfers, withdrawals and deposits.
Schriever staff have already had three rehearsals for the change. The exact timing —sometime next month—is being withheld.
Airmen are excited about the new equipment, said Lt. Col. Kurt Kuntzelman, who commands the 2nd Space Operations Squadron at Schriever. He said the system will look more like an accountant’s spread sheet “with alpha numeric characters in rows and columns” than a futuristic movie space system.
Kuntzelman said the new system will make it easier to bring new satellites on line.
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Information from: The Gazette,
