Unmanned surface vessel (USV) based cross-domain heterogeneous formation cooperative navigation is an important method for overcoming the difficulties of navigation and positioning facing in the three areas of water surface, underwater and air in the future. This paper reviews related issues in the field of USV based cross-domain heterogeneous formation cooperative navigation from three aspects. First, this paper describes the development of USV at home and abroad, the concept and research progress of USV based cross-domain heterogeneous formation, and analyzes the cooperative navigation methods of USV based cross-domain heterogeneous formation, and summarizes them from three aspects: surface/underwater co-location, air-sea visual navigation, and path planning. Finally, it points out the key technologies and future development trends of USV based cross-domain heterogeneous formation.