New Zealand's GPS technology has reached a new milestone with the activation of two new 11-metre satellite dishes in Southland.
The Southern Positioning Augmentation Network, known as SouthPAN, is a trans-Tasman collaboration which will see GPS accuracy improved from 5-10 metres to just a few centimetres in some cases.
Land Information Minister Chris Penk said New Zealanders use GPS services every day for everything from ordering food to navigating the city streets.
"GPS information is also used for critical technical applications like coordinating an emergency response and air traffic control."
One of the "most noticeable" changes as the project develops will be less disruptions to flights in bad weather, Penk said.
Spokesperson for air navigation service Airways Mark Blanchard told 1News the system will allow aircraft to get lower and closer to many of the runways up and down New Zealand.
"This means in bad weather, aircraft can still land where presently they won't be able to."
Invercargill company Space Operations NZ will operate the new mission control centre.
Two new 11-metre satellite dishes in Southland, which are part of the Southern Positioning Augmentation Network, will help improve GPS accuracy. (Source: 1News)
Chief executive Robin McNeil told 1News it was a combination of about six years of work to get the project started.
"It's just fantastic," he said.
An independent report commissioned for the project estimated the system could contribute $864m to the economy over the next 20 years.
Penk said this would be through productivity enhancing and labour-saving applications, such as better resource management, more accurate maritime activities and real-time livestock monitoring through digital fencing tools.
"It is expected this figure could grow as new technologies and innovations are developed to harness SouthPAN’s possibilities."
The project is a joint venture between the New Zealand and Australian governments, with the Southland facility working in tandem with a newly built centre in New South Wales, Penk said.
"Partnering with Australia improves our resilience and means if one station is offline, there is a back-up station which is crucial for safety of life applications, such as aviation."
It is now available and free to the public with a 99.5% reliability rate despite being the first part of the service to launch.
The remainder of the network will be established over the next few years.
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