The Viceroy GPS receivers have more than 260+ accumulated years of on-orbit performance
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – General Dynamics Mission Systems today delivered the 100th Viceroy™ Global Positioning System (GPS) Spaceborne Receiver to Northrop Grumman expanding General Dynamics Mission Systems’ 20+ years of trouble-free spaceflight heritage in providing reliable position, velocity, and time data to various satellite missions.
Viceroy was designed to address the increased number of civilian satellite launches and their need for sophisticated GPS units designed for unclassified missions. With limited physical space for satellites in Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO), the need for a GPS receiver to provide precise navigation, timing information, and velocity became mission essential.
The first Viceroy to orbit was delivered to Kayser Theade for the MOMS-2P and launched April 23rd, 1996, to the MIR Space Station. Viceroy GPS Receivers are found on numerous missions, including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) program. The GOES-R Series of satellites track weather events on Earth from a geostationary orbit of 22,000 miles up. This high, technically challenging orbit requires a GPS unit sensitive enough to receive and send GPS coordinates that can tell the satellite exactly where it is in space, so the satellite can then transmit location-accurate weather data back to Earth. Precise location data improves storm tracking and intensity forecasts, so those in affected areas can seek safety and better prepare for the storm. Since launched in 2016 and 2018, Viceroy GPS Receivers on GOES-R and GOES-S satellites have provided continuous, trouble-free position, navigation, and timing (PNT) service.
“The delivery of the 100th Viceroy GPSR unit exemplifies why General Dynamics has been a trusted partner for innovative, forward-thinking, reliable space capabilities since space exploration began,” says Manny Mora, vice president, Space and Intelligence Systems, General Dynamics Mission Systems. “We consistently engineer solutions for our customers’ toughest missions that enable them to navigate space, and in the case of the GOES-R satellites, keep people safe on Earth.”
“The Viceroy GPSR 100th unit delivery milestone is extraordinary because it underscores the sophisticated, long-lasting technology built into every receiver,” says Ann Rusher, vice president, Trusted Space Solutions, Space and Intelligence Systems, General Dynamics Mission Systems. “Our entire GPS Receiver Product Line – SentinelTM M-Code, Sentinel Lite, Viceroy, Explorer and the next generation GPSR – offer reliable and precise PNT solutions for both civilian and military customers to help them achieve their most challenging missions.”
As mission requirements and satellite designs evolve, the next generation of Viceroy GPS Receivers - the Explorer GPS Receiver - includes all the features of the heritage Viceroy GPS Receiver but with parts tailored to shorter term missions, allowing Explorer customers to customize their mission life and cost to meet a variety of mission requirements. The Explorer GPS Receiver is the smart solution for small and medium satellite application customers needing a rapidly-scaled, proven reliable, and cost efficient GPS solution.
More information about the family of the GPS Receivers can be found on the General Dynamics Mission Systems’ Space website.
General Dynamics Mission Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), provides mission critical solutions to those who lead, serve and protect the world we live in. We are a technology integrator and original equipment manufacturer with deep domain expertise in ground, sea, air, space and cyberspace. Headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia, General Dynamics Mission Systems employs more than 13,000 people worldwide. For more information about General Dynamics Mission Systems’ broad portfolio of capabilities, visit gdmissionsystems.com and follow @GDMS on Twitter and LinkedIn.
