Thales confirms its key role to provide cybersecurity for Galileo Second Generation to meet tomorrow threats

Galileo is European Union’s global navigation satellite system (GNSS). Operational since 15 December 2016, Galileo’s initial services are fully interoperable with GPS, while offering users an expanded range of performance and service levels, along with far more accurate positioning. All smartphones sold in the European Single Market are now guaranteed Galileo-enabled. In addition, Galileo is making a difference across the fields of rail and maritime transportation, agriculture, financial timing services and rescue operations. Unlike the American GPS, Russian GLONASS and Chinese Beidou satellite navigation systems, which are operated by the armed forces, Galileo is the world’s only GNSS system under civilian control.

To date, Galileo is scheduled to comprise a constellation of up to 38 first-generation satellites, transmitting stations for satellite control and telemetry, transmitting stations for mission data, two security monitoring centres (in Saint-Germain-en-Laye and Madrid), two system control centres (Oberpfaffenhofen and Fucino) and 16 stations for orbit control and clock synchronisation.

Galileo Second Generation is designed to be flexible and adapt to user needs in the decades ahead. It will also be more robust to withstand the challenges of a constantly changing world, especially the threats of jamming and cybercrime. With unrivalled accuracy and additional authentication capabilities, Galileo will be the world’s most advanced GNSS system.