Railway
What is the name of India's independent regional navigation satellite system?
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Answer: Option C — NavIC
Detailed Solution
NavIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation), earlier known as the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), is India's own independent regional satellite navigation system, developed by ISRO. The name "NavIC" was given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2016; it also means "sailor" or "navigator" in Hindi.
NavIC provides accurate real-time positioning and timing services over India and a region extending about 1,500 kilometres around India's boundaries. It offers two types of services:
Standard Positioning Service (SPS) for civilian users, with an accuracy of better than 20 metres (about 5-10 metres over India).
Restricted Service (RS), an encrypted service for authorised users such as the military.
The original NavIC constellation was designed with seven satellites: three in geostationary orbit and four in geosynchronous (inclined) orbits, all at about 36,000 kilometres. The first satellite, IRNSS-1A, was launched in July 2013. Because some satellites failed (their atomic clocks stopped working), ISRO began launching second-generation satellites: NVS-01 was launched in May 2023 by GSLV-F12, carrying an indigenous rubidium atomic clock, and NVS-02 was launched in January 2025 as the 100th launch from Sriharikota (though it could not reach its intended orbit).
NavIC is used for land, air and sea navigation, disaster management, vehicle tracking, fleet management, timing for power grids and telecommunications, and mapping. Many smartphones now support NavIC signals. The government has made NavIC-based vehicle tracking devices mandatory for some commercial vehicles.
Other satellite navigation systems:
- GPS (Global Positioning System): USA, global.
- GLONASS: Russia, global.
- Galileo: European Union, global.
- BeiDou: China, global.
- QZSS: Japan, regional.
GAGAN (GPS Aided GEO Augmented Navigation): developed by ISRO and the Airports Authority of India to improve the accuracy of GPS for civil aviation over India; it is a satellite-based augmentation system, not an independent navigation system.
Why not the other options?
- ✗GAGAN augments GPS for aviation.
- ✗Galileo is the European Union's system.
- ✗BeiDou is China's system.
Quick tip
Remember: NavIC (IRNSS) = India's regional navigation system (originally 7 satellites, coverage India + 1,500 km); GAGAN = GPS augmentation for aviation; GPS = USA; GLONASS = Russia; Galileo = EU; BeiDou = China.
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This question tests your understanding of Space Technology & ISRO Missions, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers India's space programme: the history of ISRO, launch vehicles such as the PSLV and GSLV, satellites and their uses, India's missions to the Moon, Mars and the Sun, and major international space missions and agencies. Questions often ask when and from where a satellite or mission was launched, what it was meant to do, and which launch vehicle carried it. For example, Aryabhata was India's first satellite (1975), and Chandrayaan-3 landed near the Moon's south pole in 2023. New missions are launched every year, so pair these facts with recent current affairs. Practise the space technology and ISRO questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.