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My 2p: I think an atomic clock has failed

that was my first thought as well but surely they can replace it faster than this? also, the search and rescue signal still works. search and rescue signal are in a different band, so maybe antenna issues, or it has its own time reference. or maybe it's being jammed like the gps signals in the middle East, they are the same band.

It looks more like they took the service down intentionally due to problems - it's still in beta. And kept the SAR signal intentionally up.

A COSPAS SARSAT MEOSAR is essentially a separate platform that just happens to be traveling on the same vehicle.

As deployed today the two needn't have any electronic connection although they do.

Eventually a MEOSAR is intended to use the accompanying navigation transmitter to send replies from ground SAR. Initially an acknowledgement ("We see your distress beacon" and by implication "somebody will try to help") and perhaps later more.

But that requires proof of concept and then newer beacons as today's beacons, even the ones with GPS (many rely on COSPAS SARSAT to triangulate their position itself) do not know such an acknowledgment might arrive or how to interpret it.

This sounds like it'd fit the accuracy continually lowering before the system was turned off.

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