U.S. Space Army announces new GPS M signal can be used

According to a report on the US C4ISR website on December 7, 2020, the US Space Force recently announced that after necessary upgrades to existing ground systems, warfighters will have limited access and use new military GPS M-code signals. Compared with civilian signals, this encrypted M-code signal has advanced anti-deception and anti-jamming capabilities, and is safer to use. It can provide combat personnel with positioning, navigation and timing when the enemy tries to block the signal or reduce the signal quality ( PNT) data.

The US Air Force launched the "M Code Early Application" (MCEU) project in 2017. At present, the hardware and software upgrade and installation work of the project was officially completed in July, and passed the acceptance on November 18. Combatants with appropriate user equipment can request access to the new M code signal. The upgrade of the GPS ground control system and the continuous launch of modern GPS III satellites will make the full deployment of M codes a reality. The next-generation operation control system (OCX) responsible for managing GPS III and M code applications is expected to be delivered in June 2021. (Wei Yanyan, 20th Research Institute of China Electric Power)