GPS - The future

[iangrant]

Thanks Uncle Sam

Conclusion
It would be presumptuous to try to predict all the ways that GPS will evolve in the next 30 years; however, it's safe to say that GPS will continue to play both a visible and supporting role in virtually all commercial, civil, and military enterprises. The modernization of Block II will achieve noticeable performance improvements, and augmentation systems will provide an added dimension of safety for applications such as air travel and marine navigation. GPS III promises to consolidate these and further advances. With more capable and efficient design and management, the future GPS will help the military achieve its objectives reliably and discriminately while safeguarding the trust of all of its users.

and to read on: http://www.aero.org/publications/crosslink/summer2002/07.html


Ian

 

[steve_cronin]

Thanks indeed

Well said Ian.

We all owe a great debt to the US for the provision of an existing system that is far too accurate to ever fail to fulfil the navigational needs of a pleasure yacht and all just for the price of buying the receiver.

Most rely upon GPS these days as their primary means of navigation although they won't admit it. Well, it's so reliable and accurate to within half the beam of the boat that we as small boat users just don't neeed anything any more accurate (unless we are electronics nurds of course when, like HI-FI buffs the means is more important than the end result.

Yes once again I totally agree with you Ian; Thanks Uncle Sam.

It was a good article for future reference and those who are surveyors and need(?) accuracies down to millimetres will be glad to hear the news.

Steve Cronin

Err.... you weren't being sarcastic, ironic or TiC were you?

 

[iangrant]

Re: Thanks indeed

No Steve - I meant it - I've kissed my little hand held on more than one occasion once safely in Cherbourg/Chichester Bar in foul weather and poo vis.

If airliners can rely on GPS (and little else) then so can I -

Show me any yachtsman that can manually navigate down below in more than a force 5 in a small boat to any degree of accuracy! Any Lat & Long from the GPS has to be better reference than an EP to mark on a chart?

Ian

 

[steve_cronin]

Absolutely..

.

Pardon my question but so many people think they are being smart these days by slighting very good causes via sarcasm.

"I hope you enjoy that" tends to mean "I hope you choke to death on that last sandwich"*

Steve Cronin

*Not a very good example since my mother always taught me to NEVER take the last sandwich**. Come to think of it, even THAT courtesy has dissappeared in modern times! Gert yer mitts of it! It's MINE!

** I even got screwed up by taking the penultimate one because I was putting someone else in the predicament of politeness vs. greed!

 

[iangrant]

Re: Absolutely..

It's quite simply a genuine post, intended for information and comment.

Ian

We'll get 'em, when we take over the asylum!

 

[jtwebb]

Also, I think those new regulations require all ships to carry electronic navigation equipment which means GPS now?

J Webb

 

[david_e]

Re: new technology

not directly related I know but saw on the news this morning that a new weather satelite for europe has just gone up in Ariane, anything that gives better forecasts has to be good, no doubt we will all get some benefit from it.