Galileo Geodetic Service Provider

The establishment of the Galileo Reference Service Provider (GRSP) was a project funded within the sixth framework programme of the European Union. The project started in July 2005 and was finished in May 2009. A highly precise and stable Galileo Terrestrial Reference Frame (GTRF) is the basement, upon which all Galileo products and services will rest. Therefore the network of Galileo Sensor Stations (GSS) defining this reference frame is of fundamental importance being the interface between the geodetic reference and all Galileo products. The realisation of the GTRF is the main function of the Galileo Geodetic Service Provider (GGSP) serving both the Galileo Core System and the Galileo users. The GGSP will enable all users of the Galileo system, including the most demanding ones, to rapidly access the GTRF with the precision required for their specific application. The GGSP responsibility will additionally include the generation of other precise products that are needed to get full and unlimited access to the GTRF. These products, which are generated simultaneously with the GTRF activities, comprise Earth Rotation Parameters (ERP) as well as satellite orbits and clock corrections. Only with such a complete and consistent set of high precision products the GGSP can truly fulfil its prime task of providing a reference frame to the various user communities. In addition, these high precision products will be extremely valuable for the validation of the operational products generated by Galileo Ground Mission Segment (GMS).

The GGSP Prototype is being realized by the following consortium:

GFZ Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam, Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum, Potsdam, Germany (Coordinator)
AIUB Astronomical Institute University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
ESOC European Space Operation Centre, Darmstadt, Germany
BKG Bundesamt für Kartographie und Geodäsie, Frankfurt/Main, Germany
IGN Institut Géographique National, Paris, France
NRCan Natural Resources Canada, Ottawa, Canada
WHU Wuhan University, Wuhan, China

The second phase of GGSP will start end of 2009 and last until end of 2011 covering the In-Orbit-Validation of Galileo.