Global Navigation Satellite Systems – Perspectives on Development and Threats to System Operation

The rapid development of satellite navigation and timing technologies and the broad availability of user equipment and applications has dramatically changed the world over the last 20 years. It took 38 years from the launch of the world’s first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, (October 4, 1957) to the day NAVSTAR GPS became fully operational (July 17, 1995). In the next 20 years user equipment became widely available at the consumer level, and 10 global and regional satellite systems were partially or fully deployed. These highly precise signals provided free to the user have been incorporated by clever engineers into virtually every technology. At the same time interference with these signals (spoofing and jamming) have become a significant day to day problem in many societies and pose a significant threat to critical infrastructure. This paper provides information on the current status and development of navigation satellite systems based on data provided by the systems' administrators. It also provides information on Loran/eLoran, a system which many nations have selected as a complement and backup for satellite navigation systems.