The GPS IIR Operational Support System Proves to be a Powerful and Highly Useful Satellite Telemetry Analysis Tool

Samuel R. Bryant

Abstract:	This paper introduces the Operational Support System (OSS) currently being used by the GPS IIR satellite operators and engineers at Schriever AFB, CO; Los Angeles, CA; and Valley Forge, PA. It describes the overall architecture, operation, and capabilities of the OSS. The OSS provides GPS space segment Air Force operators, Aerospace Corporation engineers, and GPS IIR contractor engineers with real-time and archived satellite telemetry data. This data is available during all live contacts for real-time trending and post-pass for space vehicle (SV) performance analysis. This paper explains how the OSS collects and archives S-Band telemetry data from each GPS IIR satellite contact and how it is distributed to operators and engineers at Colorado Springs, CO; as well as the remote nodes at Los Angeles, CA and Valley Forge, PA. The OSS was designed, built, and installed by Lockheed Martin engineers from Valley Forge, PA and Colorado Springs, CO. The capabilities of OSS have already been extremely useful to the GPS IIR community and, as the current constellation is replenished with IIR satellites, OSS will continue to provide the IIR team with a powerful suite of satellite telemetry displays and analysis tools. The OSS initially demonstrated its capabilities during the launch of the first GPS IIR satellite. After the catastrophic failure of the Delta II booster, the OSS continued to log all satellite telemetry data up to actual loss of signal. The satellite operators and engineers were able to playback, and analyze the satellite data immediately after the booster anomaly occurred. The data analyzed from OSS became an integral part of the anomaly investigation and ultimately ruled out any satellite problem that could have contributed to the booster malfunction. With the success of the second GPS IIR mission and subsequent year of on-orbit flight experience, OSS has proven its worth as a dependable and powerful performance analysis tool.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 11th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1998) September 15 - 18, 1998 Nashville, TN
Pages:	1855 - 1868
Cite this article:	Bryant, Samuel R., "The GPS IIR Operational Support System Proves to be a Powerful and Highly Useful Satellite Telemetry Analysis Tool," Proceedings of the 11th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1998), Nashville, TN, September 1998, pp. 1855-1868.
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