The Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Programme is a major new UK Government program launched by the UK Space Agency in October 2020 to explore innovative ways of delivering vital satellite navigation and timing services to the UK from space.
Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) satellite signals from space are increasingly crucial to our daily lives. These services underpin a wide range of essential UK public amenities, Critical National Infrastructure (CNI), National Security, defence interests and the wider digital economy. They will remain an enduring requirement for the UK’s economy, security and global ambitions.
The government has made clear its ambitions for the UK to become a globally competitive space power and is taking action through the newly established National Space Council, emerging National Space Strategy and the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, to create the conditions for a strong, secure and innovative space sector that delivers for the British people.
Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Programme
SBPP will improve the resilience of UK Critical National Infrastructure, protecting our way of life, through having the right space-based capability to offer positioning, navigation and timing services in place to address the evolving threats.
The programme will objectively assess the options for a space-based PNT capability against the need and requirements defined in the National PNT Strategy. The programme will recommend a preferred option and delivery model as a basis for further work towards a Final Investment Decision on the value for money of a space-based solution.
Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) services have an integral part to play in our everyday lives and the operation of all 13 Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) sectors.
Whilst the UK’s PNT services are derived from many sources, many critical sectors rely heavily on services from space, primarily from borrowed systems such as the US-owned Global Positioning System (GPS).
PNT services from space are vital to our modern life and directly support ~£254bn (13.4%) of the UK economy. Its importance is so crucial that it’s estimated a loss of space-based PNT services would cost the UK economy ~£1bn per day.
Threats and hazards to the provision of resilient-PNT services from space have rapidly evolved over recent years with new risks constantly emerging, and the technology to deliberately disrupt PNT services becoming cheaper and more readily available. Such disruption is being driven from a wide array of both accidental and deliberate mechanisms and inflicted by an ecosystem of potential threat actors as well as natural events.
The emerging conclusion of work directed by the Deputy National Security Advisor (DSNA) is that investment into future PNT solutions should be diverse and consider both existing and future terrestrial, and importantly space-based technologies. The proposed approach is to develop an assured ‘system of systems’ without single points or modes of failure.
Satellite navigation and timing services are essential to modern-day life in the UK, used in things such as financial transactions, emergency services, Critical National Infrastructure, energy networks and defense as well as for getting from A to B.
SBPP will consider the widest set of options for space-based PNT, using the breadth of the Government’s experience of major programs to provide critical analysis of emerging candidate solutions. The program will be dependent on the identification of clear, cross-Whitehall PNT requirements, and collaboration across Government, industry and our wider partners.
The outcome of the SBPP will supplement other technologies as part of an integrated system of systems, and we look forward to playing a key part in addressing the UK’s critical need to improve its PNT resilience.
Collaboration with partners and industry will be critical to our success and a Request for Information (RFI) has been undertaken with over 170 organizations to collect novel space-based PNT ideas.
This includes individual companies, academia and consortia from the UK or other Five Eyes partners (USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand). The outputs of the RFI are being used to inform the future proposed study and commercial activities in 2021.
Click here to learn more about Positioning, Navigation, and Timing.
