Sonardyne International bags drillship order for DP Inertial Navigation system

3 February 2012: Sonardyne International has taken its first order for a Dynamic Positioning Inertial Navigation System. Vantage Drilling’s new 12,000 feet-rated drillship, Dragonquest, is set become the first deep water drilling unit in the world to be equipped with the new system when it begins operations in the Gulf of Mexico for Petrobras later this year. Traditionally, an acoustic positioning system and two separate DGPS systems are used. However, a vulnerability remains should the acoustics be affected by aeration and noise and both GPS systems be simultaneously affected by signal disruption. The latter is particularly common around equatorial regions and during periods of high solar radiation. Solar activity is currently increasing and is forecasted by NASA to peak in 2013.

Source: Yourindustrynews