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GPS: The Future Of Navigation And Technology - Essay

GPS: The Future Of Navigation And Technology


GPS: The Future of Navigation and Technology
Foundations of a Technological Society
As we enter the 21st century, we are constantly being bombarded with new technologies. From the wireless community to operations that once took weeks to recover and now only take a day or so, our world will never be the same. Another technology that is revolutionizing the world we live in is the Global Positioning System or GPS.
The first GPS satellite was called GPS Block I. Launched in 1978, it was a develop- mental satellite. Another nine Block I satellites were launched through 1988. GPS is the only system today able to show you your exact position on the Earth anytime, in any weather, anywhere. ...

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about navigation.
Since prehistoric times, people have been trying to figure out a reliable way to tell where they are, to help guide them to where they are going, and to get them back home again. Cavemen probably used stones and twigs to mark a trail when they set out hunting for food. The earliest mariners followed the coast closely to keep from getting lost. When navigators first sailed into the open ocean, they discovered they could chart their course by following the stars. The ancient Phoenicians used the North Star to journey from Egypt and Crete. According to Homer, the goddess Athena told Odysseus to "keep the Great Bear on his left" during his travels from Calypso's Island. Unfortunately for Odysseus and all the other mariners, the stars are only visible at night - and only on clear nights.
The next major developments in the quest for the perfect method of navigation were the magnetic compass and the sextant. The needle of a compass always points north, so ...

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systems as the technology advanced.
A few ground-based radio-navigation systems are still in use today. One drawback of using radio waves generated on the ground is that you must choose between a system that is very accurate but doesn't cover a wide area, or one that covers a wide area but is not very accurate. High-frequency radio waves (like UHF TV) can provide accurate position location but can only be picked up in a small, localized area. Lower frequency radio waves (like AM radio) can cover a larger area, but are not a good yardstick to tell you exactly where you are.
Scientists, therefore, decided that the only way to provide coverage for the entire world was to ...

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GPS: The Future Of Navigation And Technology. (2006, August 23). Retrieved March 29, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/GPS-The-Future-Of-Navigation-Technology/51228
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"GPS: The Future Of Navigation And Technology." Essayworld.com. August 23, 2006. Accessed March 29, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/GPS-The-Future-Of-Navigation-Technology/51228.
"GPS: The Future Of Navigation And Technology." Essayworld.com. August 23, 2006. Accessed March 29, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/GPS-The-Future-Of-Navigation-Technology/51228.
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PAPER DETAILS
Added: 8/23/2006 08:56:29 AM
Category: Computers
Type: Free Paper
Words: 3914
Pages: 15

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