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Q57 (IAS/2023) Science & Technology › Space & Defence Technology › Global navigation satellite systems Official Key

Which one of the following countries has its own Satellite Navigation System?

Result
Your answer:  ·  Correct: D
Explanation

The correct answer is Option 4: Japan. While several countries utilize satellite data, only a few have developed and deployed their own independent or regional satellite navigation infrastructure.

Japan has developed the Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), also known as Michibiki. It is a regional terrestrial augmentation system and a satellite-based navigation system that enhances the United States-operated GPS, ensuring high-precision positioning specifically for the Asia-Oceania region with a focus on Japan.

  • Australia, Canada, and Israel: These nations do not possess their own independent global or regional satellite navigation constellations. They primarily rely on systems like the American GPS or the European Galileo.
  • Global Context: Currently, only the US (GPS), Russia (GLONASS), China (BeiDou), and the EU (Galileo) have global systems, while India (NavIC) and Japan (QZSS) operate regional systems.

Therefore, among the given choices, Japan is the only country with its own functional satellite navigation system.

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Don’t just practise – reverse-engineer the question. This panel shows where this PYQ came from (books / web), how the examiner broke it into hidden statements, and which nearby micro-concepts you were supposed to learn from it. Treat it like an autopsy of the question: what might have triggered it, which exact lines in the book matter, and what linked ideas you should carry forward to future questions.
Q. Which one of the following countries has its own Satellite Navigation System? [A] Australia [B] Canada [C] Israel [D] Japan
At a glance
Origin: Mostly Current Affairs Fairness: Low / Borderline fairness Books / CA: 0/10 · 5/10
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This is a classic 'Comparative Science & Tech' question. It stems directly from studying India's NavIC (IRNSS). Once you learn that India has a 'Regional' system, the immediate next step is to ask, 'Who else has one?' The answer is Japan (QZSS). It is fair because QZSS is the only other major regional system frequently cited alongside NavIC in standard compilations.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
Does Australia have its own national satellite navigation system (a domestic GNSS)?
Origin: Web / Current Affairs Fairness: CA heavy Web-answerable

Web source
Presence: 4/5
"We maintain Australia’s Geospatial Reference System (AGRS) and provide products and services for its adoption and use. The Southern Positioning Augmentation Network (SouthPAN), provides augmented and corrected satellite navigation signals directly from satellites based on Satellite Based Augmentation System (SBAS) technology."
Why this source?
  • Describes Australia's positioning program as maintaining a national geospatial reference system (AGRS) and providing augmentation services, not a GNSS satellite constellation.
  • Specifically identifies SouthPAN as an SBAS-based service that provides augmented/corrected satellite navigation signals over the region.
Web source
Presence: 3/5
"Japan's Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) QZSS, also known as Michibiki, is a four-satellite regional satellite navigation system and a satellite-based augmentation system developed by the Japanese government to enhance the US-operated GPS in the Asia-Oceania regions, with a focus on Japan."
Why this source?
  • Shows examples of countries that operate their own regional satellite navigation constellations (e.g., Japan's QZSS), providing context for what a national/regional GNSS looks like.
  • By contrast, Australia's published material (passage 5) describes augmentation services rather than a multi-satellite GNSS constellation.

Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 14: Service Sector > Note: > p. 434
Strength: 5/5
“*Note: • (1) GAGAN is a satellite-based augmentation system and stands for GPS-aided GEO augmented navigation which is a joint project between ISRO and the Airports Authority of India.• (2) NavIC is an autonomous regional satellite navigation system that provides accurate real-time positioning and timing services.”
Why relevant

GAGAN and NavIC are named examples showing that countries (here India) develop dedicated satellite-based augmentation or autonomous regional navigation systems.

How to extend

A student could use this pattern — that countries with active national space/navigation projects announce named systems — and check whether Australia has any similarly named national GNSS or augmentation project.

Geography of India ,Majid Husain, (McGrawHill 9th ed.) > Chapter 12: Transport, Communications and Trade > Major Events > p. 58
Strength: 4/5
“2013: • PSLV-C25 successfully launches Mars Orbiter Mission Spacecraftfrom Sriharikota (Nov 05, 2013). • Successful launch of GSAT-7 by Ariane-5 VA-215 from Kourou French Guiana (August 30, 2013). • Successful launch of INSAT-3D by Ariane-5 VA-214 from Kourou French Guiana (July 26, 2013). • PSLV-C22 successfully launches IRNSS-1A from Sriharikota (Jul 01, 2013). • PSLV-C20 successfully launches SARAL and six commercial payloadsfrom Sriharikota (Feb 25, 2013). • 2015: Ariane-5 VA-227 launched GSAT 15 (Communication Satellite) • GSLV-D6 launched GSAT 6 (Communication Satellite)• 2016: PSLV C35 launched Cartosat 2 (Meteorological Satellite) • GSLV F05 launched INSAT-3DR (Meteorological Satellite) • 2018: PSLV C41 launched IRNSS-11 (Navigation Satellite) • PSLV C40 launched Cartosat 2 (Earth Observation)• PSLV-C33 launched IRNSS-1G (Navigation satellite)”
Why relevant

Listing of specific launches (e.g., IRNSS-1A, IRNSS-11) shows that a national navigation system is implemented via launched navigation satellites.

How to extend

Compare this to Australian launch/mission records or official satellite catalogs to see if Australia has launched or operates satellites identified as a national navigation constellation.

INDIA PEOPLE AND ECONOMY, TEXTBOOK IN GEOGRAPHY FOR CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 7: Transport and Communication > Satellite Communication > p. 84
Strength: 3/5
“The IRS satellite system became operational with the launching of IRS-IA in March 1988 from Vaikanour in Russia. India has also developed her own Launching Vehicle PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle). These satellites collect data in several spectral bands and transmit them to the ground stations for various uses. The National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) at Hyderabad provides facilities for acquisition of data and its processing. These are very useful in the management of natural resources. • EXERCISES 1. Choose the right answers of the following from the given options. • (i) In how many zones has the Indian Railways system been divided? • (a) 9 (c) 17 • (b) 12 (d) 14• (ii) On which river and between which two places does the National Water Way No.”
Why relevant

Description of India's IRS and its national remote sensing infrastructure illustrates that countries with domestic satellite systems develop and operate their own satellite networks and ground centres.

How to extend

A student could check whether Australia operates an analogous domestic satellite network plus ground control infrastructure specifically for positioning/navigation.

Science ,Class VIII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 11: Keeping Time with the Skies > 11.4 Why Do We Launch Artificial Satellites in Space? > p. 185
Strength: 3/5
“The Moon is Earth's natural satellite, orbiting our planet. Besides the Moon, man-made satellites sent by various countries also orbit the Earth. These artificial satellites appear as tiny specks moving in the night sky. Most orbit about 800 km above Earth's surface and take roughly 100 minutes to complete one orbit. When I look at the night sky in early evening, I see some moving stars. What are they? Is their motion also periodic? These satellites help us in many ways like communication, navigation, weather monitoring, disaster management, and scientific research. The Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO) has launched many satellites that support these activities.”
Why relevant

General statement that artificial satellites are used for navigation (among other functions) highlights navigation as a common satellite application that nations may support via dedicated systems.

How to extend

Use this to reason that if Australia lacked an explicit national GNSS, it might instead rely on international GNSS services (GPS, Galileo, etc.); the student could check Australian policy/technical sources for reliance versus a domestic system.

FUNDAMENTALS OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY, CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 7: Transport and Communication > Satellite Communication > p. 68
Strength: 2/5
“Today Internet is the largest electronic network on the planet connecting about 1,000 million people in more than 100 countries. Satellites touch human lives in many ways. Every time you use a cell phone to call a friend, send an SMS or watch a popular programme on cable television. You are using satellite communication. Communication through satellites emerged as a new area in communication technology since the 1970s after U.S.A. and former U.S.S.R. pioneered space research. Artificial satellites, now, are successfully deployed in the earth's orbit to connect even the remote corners of the globe with limited onsite verification. These have rendered the unit cost and time of communication invariant in terms of distance.”
Why relevant

Notes that satellite communication and space research were pioneered by specific countries implies only some nations create full-fledged space/navigation systems.

How to extend

A student can infer that presence of pioneers or an active space program correlates with having national satellite capabilities, and can verify where Australia sits among such countries to judge likelihood of a domestic GNSS.

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Statement analysis

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Statement analysis

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