Galileo’s search and rescue system (SAR) passes first space test to begin major expansion of the Cospas–Sarsat network. The second pair of Europe’s Galileo navigation satellites – launched together on 12 October last year – are the first of the constellation to host SAR search and rescue repeaters. These can pick up UHF signals from emergency beacons aboard ships and aircraft or carried by individuals, then pass them on to local authorities for rescue. Cospas is a Russian acronym for ‘Space System for the Search of Vessels in Distress’…