We all rely on GPS for our modern lives. If GPS were to go offline for more than a few hours, the disruptions would spread quickly: from navigation apps, to ATM and credit card transactions, to cell phone service, to internet, before finally the power goes out.
And it is not the position and navigation piece that is the biggest concern - it is the timing. After all, we can all survive without our driving directions for a while. But try to live without communications or power.
Indeed, this has been a concern about GPS for two decades. And despite a GPS replacement being signed into law in 2018, a backup still hasn’t been built.
The push now is to incentivize private companies to offer an alternative position, navigation and timing (APNT) system. If the United States has a GPS backup or APNT in place, the GPS satellites become less of a target.
In early 2020 the US Government punted with Executive Order 13905 and put the onus on private industry and individuals to have their own GPS backup plan.
As we highlight in our overview video, this is the opportunity that Xairos seeks to address and the topic of a TTI/Vanguard presentation by our Product and Strategy Lead, Tanya Ramond, MBA PhD: “It’s All About Time: Satellite-Based Quantum Synchronization”
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