When GPS Tracking Loses it’s Tracking
Do Not Assume They are Always Right
The Downfall of Depending on Technology
Recently, earthquakes have struck several large areas around the world and have caused major damage to cities and towns in these locations. These events are unsettling for all who endure them and the aftermath of destruction that occurs. But there is another phenomenon that happens after an earthquake. GPS Tracking devices lose their accuracy. How much depends on how much the tectonic plates of the earth have shifted. It could be a few feet or more.
These tectonic plates cover the surface of the earth and are the very ground upon which we live and move. Just knowing that they move can be unsettling (as are most earthquakes). These plates vary in size and can move because of a variety of forces. Some even move so slowly that it cannot be detected. This type of slow movement is known as continental shift.
How Does this Affect Users of GPS Devices?
All Global Positioning Systems use satellites which orbit the earth and they depend on those satellites to deliver accurate location information to them. This is accomplished because the satellites that orbit the earth use two methods for accuracy. First is an internal atomic clock that is synchronized to all other satellites. Second is earth based ground stations which track their orbit.
Accuracy is Everything
This system allows accuracy to within a few feet of the actual location. The degree of accuracy is valuable to those who use these devices. The lower the degree of accuracy, the less value they add to the end user. Calibration of these satellites is the responsibility of the NASA and the U.S. Air Force. They have developed programs and techniques that can be used to re-calibrate them if an earthquake were to cause them to lose their accuracy.
End Users Beware
Knowing all of this should force end users to avoid depending on GPS devices like navigation units as their only source of information in gathering location data. You should already have a plan and map worked out either on paper or in your head as to where you are going and how you are going to get there. And, remember that the newest streets, roads and other objects are not always included on your devices.
Using technology makes it easy to forget that we also still need to use our brains. GPS Tracking devices help you manage your life, but they should not control us. Keep it real.
Tags: accuracy, assumptions, continental shift, destruction, earthquakes, Global Positioning Systems, GPS Tracking Devices, life, NASA, Satellites, Technology, tectonic plates, U.S. Air Force
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