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Author Topic: U.S. Coast Guard to discontinue service from remaining Differential GPS sites  (Read 7016 times)

Offline skeezix

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https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDHSCG/bulletins/1e45da7

U.S. Coast Guard to discontinue service from remaining Differential GPS sites
U.S. Coast Guard sent this bulletin at 03/23/2018 02:00 PM EDT
News Release   
 
March 23, 2018
U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters
Contact: Headquarters Public Affairs
Office: (202) 372-4630
After Hours: (202) 603-3281
mediarelations@uscg.mil
Headquarters online newsroom


U.S. Coast Guard to discontinue service from remaining Differential GPS sites
 
WASHINGTON – The Coast Guard will discontinue broadcasts from its remaining 38 Differential GPS (DGPS) sites over the next three years, completing system reductions that began in 2016.
The staged reduction of the remaining Coast Guard DGPS broadcast sites will begin in 2018 and end with the last broadcast of GPS corrections over medium frequency in 2020.

“The Coast Guard no longer has a mission requirement for DGPS,” said Lt. Cmdr. Michael Patterson, chief of the Aids to Navigation and Positioning, Navigation and Timing Division. “GPS provides sufficient positional accuracy to meet navigation requirements for harbor approaches and to position Federal Aids to Navigation.”

Patterson said other commercial and government GPS augmentation systems are available for GPS users.  The observed accuracy of un-augmented GPS increasingly exceeds the 10-meter accuracy requirements for harbor navigation and harbor approaches.

The National Differential GPS system was significantly reduced between 2016 and 2017 with the discontinuance of all 28 of the Department of Transportation inland broadcast sites, all seven U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) broadcast sites, and 10 U.S. Coast Guard maritime broadcast sites.

Since 2016, the Coast Guard has affirmed that the positional accuracy provided by un-augmented GPS and GPS augmented by the U.S. Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) is sufficient to meet Coast Guard mission requirements and navigational requirements for harbor approach.

The Coast Guard will release the specific termination dates for each broadcast site via local notices to mariners.

For more information on the DGPS discontinuance schedule, view the Federal Register Notice.
 
 
-USCG-
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Offline skeezix

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https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/03/21/2018-05684/discontinuance-of-the-nationwide-differential-global-positioning-system-ndgps

AGENCY:
Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION:
Notice.

SUMMARY:
The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) announces the discontinuance of its remaining 38 maritime Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) sites. The USCG will implement the closures through a phased reduction in service, which will commence in September of 2018, and conclude by September of 2020. These closures will culminate in the complete cessation of the Nationwide Differential Global Positioning System (NDGPS) service. This notice provides the general schedule for the discontinuance of the remaining maritime DGPS sites. Specific site broadcast termination dates will be published via local notices to mariners (LNMs).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
If you have questions on this notice, contact CAPT Mary Ellen Durley, Coast Guard, telephone (202) 372-1605 or email maryellen.j.durley@uscg.mil.


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background and Purpose
The Maritime Differential GPS system was established in the late 1980s to augment the existing GPS signal with accuracy corrections and integrity monitoring. This augmentation signal was broadcast over Medium Frequency from terrestrial broadcast sites. At the time, the publicly available GPS signal was intentionally degraded through Selective Availability (SA), and thus augmentation was necessary to meet minimum requirements for maritime positioning and navigation. Selective Availability was permanently discontinued in 2000, and as system technology has improved, observed positional accuracy for un-augmented GPS consistently meets requirements for harbor/harbor-approach navigation on modern GPS receivers.

On July 5, 2016, the USCG, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) published a notice in the Federal Register (81 FR 43613), which announced that the Nationwide Differential Global Positioning System (NDGPS) would remain operational with a total of 46 USCG and USACE sites available to users in the maritime and coastal regions. Since 2016, the USACE has discontinued 7 sites, and the USCG has discontinued 1 site in Aransas, TX due to storm damage from Hurricane Harvey. Currently, there are only 38 remaining NDGPS sites, all of which are maritime sites.

Discussion
The USCG has continued assessments and outreach affirming that the positional accuracy provided by un-augmented GPS and GPS augmented by the U.S. Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) is sufficient to meet its mission requirements and navigational safety requirements for harbor approaches. Because there is no regulatory requirement for the carriage of Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) equipment, and other GPS augmentation systems such as WAAS are already in prevalent use by marine navigation equipment, the USCG cannot justify further investment to upgrade and maintain the NDGPS system. Additionally, the Coast Guard no longer has a mission requirement for DGPS to position Maritime Aids to Navigation because current Coast Guard policy allows the placement of aids to navigation with un-augmented GPS or GPS augmented by WAAS. Finally, other government and commercial augmentation systems (e.g. WAAS) are readily available to provide GPS accuracy corrections. For these reasons, Start Printed Page 12403the NDGPS system was reduced from the 2015 constellation of 84 sites, to the current constellation of 38 maritime sites. Pursuant to this announcement, the USCG's remaining 38 maritime sites will be discontinued in stages, beginning in September of 2018 and ending in September of 2020.


Timeline of Maritime Sites To Be Discontinued

Termination of the NDGPS broadcast during Fiscal Year 2018 is planned to occur at the following sites. Specific broadcast discontinuance dates for each site will be announced via Local Notices to Mariners (LNMs) 60 days in advance of the termination of the NDGPS broadcast.
  • Annapolis, MD
  • New Bern, NC
  • Robinson Point, WA
  • Pigeon Point, CA
  • Bobo, MS

Termination of the NDGPS broadcast at the following sites is planned to occur in Fiscal Year 2019.
  • Whidbey Island, WA
  • Appleton, WA
  • Fort Stevens, OR
  • Cape Mendocino, CA
  • Lincoln, CA
  • Point Loma, CA
  • Kokole Point, HI
  • Upolu Point, HI
  • Driver, VA
  • Kensington, SC
  • Cape Canaveral, FL
  • Card Sound, FL
  • Tampa, FL
  • Wisconsin Point, WI
  • Mequon, WI
  • Upper Keweenaw, MI
  • Cheboygan, MI
  • Detroit, MI
  • Youngstown, NY

Termination of the NDGPS broadcast at the following sites is planned to occur in Fiscal Year 2020.
  • Penobscot, ME
  • Acushnet, MA
  • Hudson Falls, NY
  • Moriches, NY
  • Sandy Hook, NJ
  • English Turn, LA
  • Angleton, TX
  • Annette Island, AK
  • Biorka, AK
  • Kenai, AK
  • Kodiak, AK
  • Gustavus, AK
  • Potato Point, AK
  • Level Island, AK

General information regarding the NDGPS Service and graphics depicting the proposed changes to NDGPS coverage are available at the USCG's NDGPS General Information website at: http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/​?pageName=​dgpsMain.

For more information on the NDGPS outages and broadcast termination dates, visit the USCG's website at https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/​?pageName=​dgpsSiteInfo&​currentOutages.

Additional information on GPS, NDGPS, and other GPS augmentation systems is also available in the 2017 Federal Radionavigation Plan, which is published by the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. DOT, and is also available at the USCG's website at http://www.navcen.uscg.gov/​?pageName=​pubsMain.



Authority: This notice is issued under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 14 U.S.C. 81.
Issued in Washington, DC, on March 14, 2018.
Michael D. Emerson,
Director of Marine Transportation Systems, U.S. Coast Guard.
[FR Doc. 2018-05684 Filed 3-20-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-04-P
« Last Edit: March 29, 2018, 1357 UTC by skeezix »
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Offline skeezix

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From the District 5 Local Notice to Mariners :
August 2018: 32-18 1st Weekly Edition

Quote
In accordance with the DGPS Discontinuance Federal Register Notice, the following DGPS site will cease broadcast on 30 September 2018.
Annapolis, MD
New Bern, NC
Robinson Point, WA
Pigeon Point, CA
Bobo, MS

LNM: 32/18


From District 8 LNM 32/18:
Quote
DGPS SITE BOBO, MS. - TO BE DISESTABLISHED
Effective September 30, 2018, DGPS Site Bobo, Mississippi, will cease transmission.

From District 13 LNM 32/18:
Quote
WASHINGTON – Discontinuance of DGPS signal
In accordance with the DGPS Discontinuance Federal Register Notice, the termination of the DGPS signal at the Robinson Point, WA, location will occur on 30 Sep 18. The dates of termination of signal at other sites are still to be determined and will be published when known.

District 11 did not have a notice of Pigeon Point in LNM 23/18 through 32/18.

« Last Edit: August 09, 2018, 2301 UTC by skeezix »
Minneapolis, MN

Offline ChrisSmolinski

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Thanks for posting the list.

All of those come in very well here except for Robinson Point, WA which is blocked by one of those pesky NDB stations, I only have a few very dubious decodes of it.  I'd like some of them to get shut down. But without them, how will the biplanes find their way to the local airport?

Guess I will record all day, to catch them going SK.
Chris Smolinski
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Offline skeezix

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I'd like some of them to get shut down. But without them, how will the biplanes find their way to the local airport?

Plot MW BC stations on their charts. Not for IFR, but works great for VFR, and entertaining too.
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Offline skeezix

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Local Notice to Mariners - District 13: Week 27/19

OREGON – WASHINGTON – Discontinuance of DGPS Signal

In accordance with the DGPS Discontinuance Federal Register Notice, the termination of the DGPS signal location will occur on 30 Aug 2019 at the following sites:
- Whidbey Island, WA
- Appleton, WA
- Fort Stevens, OR



Local Notice to Mariners - District 11: Week 27/19

NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA - DGPS DISCONTINUANCE

In accordance with the DGPS Discontinuance FRN, the termination of the DGPS signals will cease 30 Aug 19 at:
- Cape Mendocino, CA
- Lincoln, CA
- Point Loma, CA



Local Notice to Mariners - District 14: Week 35/19

HAWAII - DISCONTINUANCE OF THE NATIONWIDE DIFFERENTIAL GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM (NDGPS) (28/19)

This notice provides the general schedule for the discontinuance of the remaining maritime DGPS sites. Kokole Point, HI and Upolu Point, HI are expected to be discontinued by the end of 2019.



Local Notice to Mariners - District 9: Week 30/19

Decommissioning of Mequon WI DGPS site

The DGPS tower in Mequon WI has suffered a critical failure and is no longer able to broadcast. Since decommissioning of this tower was scheduled for September 2019 and repairs have been determined to be cost inhibitive it has been decided to decommission this DGPS site immediately.
« Last Edit: September 05, 2019, 0144 UTC by skeezix »
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Offline ChrisSmolinski

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Still nothing in the latest District 9 report about the remaining MI stations as well as Youngstown NY.
Chris Smolinski
Westminster, MD
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Offline ChrisSmolinski

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I was curious why four of the DGPS Sites (Youngstown NY and the three in MI) that should have been shut down FY2019 are still on the air. I contacted the USCG and received this reply:

Quote
In response to your questions regarding DGPS, it is scheduled to ceased all
signal broadcast from every site on June 30th 2020 ( This date is subject to
change due to mitigating issues ).

As for DGPS site that have all been reported as already ceasing DGPS signal
broadcast in 2019 but are still broadcasting, this is due to remote control
software issues and a technicians has to be dispatched to complete the
shutdown.

V/r
DGPS Watch Supervisor
Chris Smolinski
Westminster, MD
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Offline jFarley

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It shall be an interesting 2020-2021 NDB season, subject to change due to mitigating issues.
Joe Farley, Near Chicago
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Offline ChrisSmolinski

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It shall be an interesting 2020-2021 NDB season, subject to change due to mitigating issues.

I'm hoping for a few more foreign logs.

Of course this is all assuming they actually switch off the DGPS transmitters, and it doesn't turn into some sort of Appropriations Catch-22 where they don't actually have the funding to send a tech on site to hit the power button. ZOMBIE DGPS.
Chris Smolinski
Westminster, MD
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netSDR / AFE822x / AirSpy HF+ / KiwiSDR / 900 ft Horz skyloop / 500 ft NE beverage / 250 ft V Beam / 58 ft T2FD / 120 ft T2FD / 400 ft south beverage / 43m, 20m, 10m  dipoles / Crossed Parallel Loop / Discone in a tree

Offline skeezix

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The remaining U.S. beacon signals were terminated on 30 Jun 2020 around 1500 UTC.

« Last Edit: June 30, 2020, 1814 UTC by skeezix »
Minneapolis, MN