Making search and rescue operations possible

Navigation satellites not only help people get from A to B, they also make search and rescue missions possible.

Every year, millions of people in Europe call emergency services to report an accident, injury or other serious situation. Yet about 300 000 of these callers are unable to provide their location due to their physical state, unfamiliar surroundings, young age or inability to speak the local language.

Advanced Mobile Location (AML) uses satellite navigation data to pinpoint a caller’s whereabouts, enabling first responders to attend to a situation without conducting time-consuming searches.

Information provided by the Galileo constellation is improving the precision and availability of the caller location. Developed by ESA for the EU, Galileo satellites started being launched in 2011 and there will be 24 in orbit – plus six active spares – when the system is complete next year.