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GPS (Global Positioning System) is a satellite-based navigation system made up of a network of 27 satellites placed into orbit by the U.S. Department of Defence. The GPS satellites circle the earth twice a day in a very precise orbit and transmit signals back to earth. GPS receivers take this information and use it to calculate the user's exact location.
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GPS was originally intended for military applications, but in the 1980s, the US government made the system available for civilian use. GPS works in any weather conditions, anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
There are no subscription fees or setup charges to use the Global Positioning System.
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The way GPS works is simple - the satellites which circle the earth each have an atomic clock which measures time very accurately. The satellites send out signals which indicate the precise time that the signal left the satellite. The ground receiver, for example a Top GPS SatNav system, has in its memory the exact details of the orbits of all the satellites in the constellation. By analysing the incoming signal, it can recognise the particular satellite, work out the time taken by the signal to arrive and then calculate the distance from the satellite. Once the Top GPS SatNav system receives the signals from at least four satellites simultaneously it can calculate your exact position.
Galileo constellation
The European Union and the European Space Agency are planning their own Global Positioning System - to be called the Galileo project.
The first two satellites of the series will be experimental and will be launched from Baikonur, Kazakhstan by the end of 2005.
Galileo is scheduled to be operational by 2008 and will eventually have 30 satellites in medium Earth orbit, Of these 27 satellites will form the operational core and the other three will be backups.
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You may also be interested in the TopGPS Bronze Package or the
TopGPS Gold Package.
These give you either a standalone system or a Pocket PC and a Satellite Navigation system combined. Get an office in your hand - not a laptop in your briefcase!
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