Together with other already existing satellites in orbit, MICHIBIKI will establish increased GNSS services over the Japan region, thereby increasing possibility for services within cities and those areas where GNSS services are difficult to operate due to lack of signal.
Viewers can expect to see the launch over the Internet on September 11 – here. Information about the Tanegashima Space Center (TNSC) in southern Japan is available – here. A new ‘QZ-Vision’ website has also opened this past week and is available – here.
What is the major benefit of MICHIBIKI? As JAXA indicates, “By receiving a complementary signal for the GPS from the MICHIBIKI, which flies above you, the possible time percentage of positioning availability will improve from about 90 % (only with the GPS) to 99.8 % (GPS + three QZSes*.)”