History of the GPS Satellite

The first GPS satellite was launched in 1978, under the direct command of the US military forces. More than thirty other satellites have been launched ever since for military, aviation and individual usage worldwide. In the history of the Global Positioning System, more than just one GPS satellite has been lost during launches or afterwards. Some orbiting devices were taken out of service, others were replaced, but but no effort was spared for making GPS usage top quality. A GPS receiver decodes the signal sent by the satellite and gives the exact location based on latitude, longitude and altitude.

Science has made such progress that GPS satellite navigation is now incorporated in the design of smartphones. People depend more and more on GPS orientation and problems may appear if replacements do not come for the orbiting satellites that will expire in a few years. At present, there are management and funding issues that impair the proper reconditioning of the Global Positioning System. The US Air Force is in charge of the entire GPS satellite structure, the economic difficulties put a lot of stress on the managers who lack funds to invest in reconditioning.

At present there are some 31 satellites in service and since only four are necessary to get a fix on the position, the average user will not feel a change if some of the orbiting devices fail to work. There is a certain redundancy in the way information is provided, because sometimes, six up to eight satellites can get connected to a GPS receiver for the same tasks. In the absence of GPS satellite real-time positioning, consumers would have to return to the use of maps all over again. The transportation systems, the maritime and military forces would be the most affected if the satellites are not reconditioned.

In order to offer an alternative to the GPS satellite predominance, European states prepare to launch an independent satellite navigation system in 2010. There are other countries that have individual satellite navigation and here we can count India, China or Russia. Regardless of how things are managed in terms of administration, implementation and foreign policy at the global level, the average user should not be seriously troubled by the different modifications that may occur in the GPS satellite system. More and more people will in fact start using GPS devices for increased efficiency of navigation.

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