We’re too dependent on a technology that we spent tens of billions of dollars researching and perfecting over decades of research!
Possibly the dumbest statement I’ve heard this week.
FCC chair says we’re too dependent on GPS and wants to explore ‘alternatives’.
Submitted 2 months ago by Tea@programming.dev to technology@lemmy.world
https://www.fcc.gov/news-events/blog/2025/03/05/boosting-gps-and-911-usa
Comments
Xanza@lemm.ee 2 months ago
Zonetrooper@lemmy.world 2 months ago
It’s not as dumb as you make it out. The issue isn’t that GPS is really, really good at what it does; it’s that it’s also incredibly vulnerable to disruption and spoofing. And due to the particulars of how GPS works, we can’t entirely fix that. We can do some things to ameliorate it, but a lot of those aren’t suitable for smaller things that use GPS today.
The other thing is that GPS largely replaced a tremendous number of other navigation aides and techniques, including other radio-navigation systems like LORAN-C.
T156@lemmy.world 2 months ago
It’s also just a generally bad idea to be too dependent on a single system. If GPS reception fails for one reason or another, it would be good idea to have a backup.
JasonDJ@lemmy.zip 2 months ago
Nah the idea is sound. As someone else said, GPS is incredibly fragile. Also very terrestrial…it doesn’t work once you leave the atmosphere.
This will probably be another SpaceX grift, but there are alternative technologies that are more resilient to attack. From military/defense perspective (the original reason for GPS), that’s pretty important.
Xanza@lemm.ee 2 months ago
GPS is incredibly fragile.
No, not really. The GPS signal isn’t designed to penetrate concrete, no. But that doesn’t make it fragile.
Also very terrestrial…it doesn’t work once you leave the atmosphere.
Considering it was never meant to…that’s really not that goddamn weird. It’s a global positioning satellite system. So clearly for it to work you have to be on the fuckin’ globe…
GamingChairModel@lemmy.world 2 months ago
it doesn’t work once you leave the atmosphere.
Fun fact: just this past week an experiment on a lunar lander confirmed that GPS signals can be detected from the surface of the moon. I don’t know if those signals can give any kind of location precision, but it is an interesting finding.
K1nsey6@lemmy.world 2 months ago
In comes starlink to the rescue. But in typical Musk fashion it won’t doesn’t do what’s advertised and cost a shit ton more
Xanza@lemm.ee 2 months ago
It’s literally him convincing someone to sell their house that they own outright to rent from them because it’s somehow much better (for him of course). It’s so fucking stupid.
Lost_My_Mind@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Remember that time he claimed Teslas windows were shatterproof and indestructable. Then he throws a baseball and the window instantly shatters?
nthavoc@lemmy.today 2 months ago
You know what’s a great backup? The ability to read a map or use a compass. This is set up to get Starlink or another billionaire to own GPS.
PM_Your_Nudes_Please@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Ding ding ding. This is just a talking point so they’ll be able to pivot into “we should give Musk a trillion dollar contract to run GPS on his Starlink satellites”
GroundedGator@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Subscription based navigation? Want to use your car’s navigation system, there’s a fee for that? Want to fly a drone, that’ll be 9.99/month. Hopefully there will be a carve out for emergency systems.
This will also allow Tesla to up their traffic game. If everyone is using the Starlink GPS for navigation they’ll have all the data.
vaprz@lemmy.world 2 months ago
What if we built a system of beacon transmitters that sent out pulses and then used recievers that would compare arrival times of those pulses to make a measurement, thus establishing positional location?
We could call it the Long Range something or other. Need a catchy name!
Leeks@lemmy.world 2 months ago
splinter@lemm.ee 2 months ago
He’s describing LORAN.
MonkderVierte@lemmy.ml 2 months ago
Oh, so that’s what that saucer is for.
MonkderVierte@lemmy.ml 2 months ago
Isn’t GPS a US project?
negativeone@lemmy.world 2 months ago
We can’t rely on the Global(ist) Positioning System!
800XL@lemmy.world 2 months ago
How do we call these assholes and tell them to get their heads out of Muskovitch’s ass?
mesamunefire@piefed.social 2 months ago
Wonder if they want to track all phones with a different system.
dubyakay@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
Don’t need GPS to track phones. You triangulate the receivers.
actionjbone@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
So… maps?
entropicdrift@lemmy.sdf.org 2 months ago
Triangulation could be more efficient than GPS, in terms of energy use and such
spongebue@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Triangulation of what, exactly? GPS already triangulates your position based on what it receives from multiple satellites, yeah?
gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
Triangulation of GPS signals is what allows the System to determine your Position Global(ly)
lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 months ago
Phones already do that with cell towers. It’s called A-GPS (augmented GPS). Cell towers are used in addition to GPS signals.
sndmn@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
They should use that in GPS! /s
echodot@feddit.uk 2 months ago
They’re already are multiple alternatives to GPS. GPS is the American navigation system, but there’s also GNSS which is mostly used in Europe and Scandinavia. There are other systems for other parts of the world, even the North and South pole now.
Everyone just uses GPS universally though.
Patch@feddit.uk 2 months ago
there’s also GNSS which is mostly used in Europe and Scandinavia
GNSS is the generic term that covers all satellite navigation systems (GPS included).
Galileo is the EU/ESA system you’re thinking of.
GLONASS (Russian) and BeiDou (Chinese) are the other two major constellations with global coverage. The only other full system I know of is NavIC, which is Indian and has only regional coverage.
Most devices actually connect to all of them. I’ve just checked my phone, and it’s connected to all of GPS, Galileo, GLONASS and BeiDou. People just say “GPS” because it’s catchier than “GNSS”.
captain_aggravated@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
I kinda like the British word “satnav”.
AbsoluteChicagoDog@lemm.ee 2 months ago
Is constellation the actual term for a set of satellites now?
gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
Lmao what a fucking dipshit
sndmn@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
Sounds like this guy couldn’t find his own ass with two hands, a compass and a GPS receiver.
gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
He sounds like the type of person who would drive into a lake if the GPS told him to
RizzRustbolt@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Whatever happened to radio ranging?
That shit was super coolio.
Apoplexy@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Reject modernity, return to sextant.
Pondis@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Dont need a sextant if you dont leave your house
tal@lemmy.today 2 months ago
Google and Apple and others already do that ad hoc, using signal strength from Bluetooth and WiFi beacons. Can contribute to that by just setting up a wireless access point or several near where you want more signal. Doesn’t even need to be Internet-connected.
thatradomguy@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Why not just stop being reliant on cars… you know… put down more rail… use… trains…
fox2263@lemmy.world 2 months ago
In walks GLONASS I presume
lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 months ago
Every GPS-capable device made in the last decade utilizes GPS, GLONASS, and Galileo.
fox2263@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Yes
ZILtoid1991@lemmy.world 2 months ago
GPS privatization in 3…
kikutwo@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Lemme guess, Starlink will magically be suggested.
atrielienz@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Yeah. It’s grift. They want a privatized solution.
JoMiran@lemmy.ml 2 months ago
Or GLONASS
lka1988@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 months ago
Pretty much every GPS-capable device made in the last decade uses all systems available: GPS (USA), GLONASS (Russia), and Galileo (EU).
mox@lemmy.sdf.org 2 months ago
For those who are unfamiliar with it: