Loran-C, An Overview

Abstract

In 1974 Loran-C was selected to be the government-provided radio navigation system for the U.S. Coastal Confluence Zone and the Great Lakes. Title 14, USC 81 states that the U.S. Coast Guard may establish and maintain electronic aids to operate marine navigation required to serve the needs of the military and commerce of the United States. Loran-C is a highly accurate positioning system. It operates at an assigned frequency of 100 kHz, and provides phase-coded pulses to develop hyperbolic time-difference lines-of-position (LOP's). In addition to providing for radio navigation, Loran-C also provides precise time and time interval to within +/- 5 microseconds of UTC. The paper discusses the steps taken to plan, install, operate and maintain the Loran-C system up to the year 2000. The following topics are included in the discussion: theory of operation, timing, chain planning, group repetition interval, coding delay versus emission delay, chain calibration, chart verification, system accuracy, signal reliability, and future developments. The opinions or assertions contained herein are the private ones of the writer and are not to be construed as official or reflecting the views of the Commandant or the Coast Guard at large.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1981
Accession Number
ADA497329

Entities

People

  • William J. Thrall

Organizations

  • United States Coast Guard

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Coast Guard
  • Great Lakes
  • Information Operations
  • Intervals
  • Loran
  • Marine Navigation
  • Navigation
  • Navigational Aids
  • Navigational Equipment
  • Radio Navigation
  • Radio Navigation Systems
  • Time Intervals
  • United States

Readers

  • Library and Information Science
  • Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) Technology.

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics