Rivals Mobilize Alternatives to U.S.
Rivals Mobilize Alternatives to U.S. System
Around the world, countries are mobilizing to build independent satellite navigation networks, troubled that the Global Positioning System, the only functioning worldwide network, is run by the U.S. military and controlled by the government. In the past decade or so, the continuous signals emitted by a constellation of orbiting satellites have allowed users to compute time, location and speed with high accuracy, calculations that play an increasing role in tasks ranging from firing missiles in Afghanistan to guiding ships at sea to flashing directions in rental cars. As the American technology becomes a worldwide standard, other governments are wary that this dependence raises issues of strategic and economic security.
One ring of satellites to rule them all...
