One of the Honeywell Global Tracking ESA installations seen in the distance. Photo: Honeywell

[Via Satellite 04-10-2015] Honeywell announced that its Global Tracking solution has passed the final acceptance test for use on the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Galileo search and rescue program. Galileo is a pan-European Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) operated by the ESA and funded by the European Union.

Honeywell Global Tracking, part of Honeywell’s scanning and mobility business, is working in partnership with the aerospace and defense division of Capgemini, the prime contractor for the Galileo search and rescue program, to deliver a high-precision positioning system that is fully compatible with the international Cospas-Sarsat standard. Tests using the Honeywell system have proven that the time from beacon transmission to detection and processing has been reduced from several hours to a few minutes.

The international Cospas-Sarsat program is a satellite-based search and rescue distress alert detection and information distribution system, best known for detecting and locating emergency beacons activated by aircraft, ships and remotely located people in distress. Honeywell’s satellite tracking technology, which detects faint alerts sent by emergency beacons around the world using a combination of Doppler curves, noise reduction, and advanced signal processing, quickly calculates the exact location of the beacon and sends the results to relevant mission control centers in the region.