Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Gear: GPS = FAIL?


Twitter pal @BoatingMagazine tweeted some disturbing news to any person (typically the male of the species) who dislikes the thought of having to stop and ask directions. It seems the Global Positioning Satellite System might just be on its last (or significantly weakened) legs.
According to the Guardian, the report said, "It is uncertain whether the Air Force will be able to acquire new satellites in time to maintain current GPS service without interruption. If not, some military operations and some civilian users could be adversely affected."These adverse effects could range from system failures, to boaters being given unreliable or incorrect directions.
Chances are the government or even private industry would never let the system fail, but if it did, reading maps and knowing which side of a tree the moss grows on might just come back into fashion.

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