GPS to get a standardized Fallback Mode (in Britian) - Polidicks

[img]http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/78508000/jpg/_78508252_accseas004_elorantrials.jpg[/img] [quote]The General Lighthouse Authorities (GLA) have announced that they have installed a system called eLoran in seven ports across Britain. The GLA say many critical instruments on ships use Global Navigation Satellite Systems, and if they fail the consequences could be disastrous.[/quote] [quote]It is their primary means of navigation - and a massive number of instruments rely on it too. "If you don't have it, you are dead in the water."[/quote] [quote]Martin Bransby demonstrates a GPS failure by pulling the plug on the ship's receiver. Within a few seconds, alarms start to sound on the bridge as one by one the instruments stop working. "This is the gyrocompass - it steers the ship - you can see it starting to fail," says Mr Bransby. "If we walk over here, this is the radar, and that's not working either. This is the dynamic positioning: it holds the ship's position, that's not working. "The electronic chart display becomes unusable. Even the ship's clock stops working." [/quote] [quote]Mr Bransby says: "You can imagine standing watch on this ship, it's the middle of the night, it's dark, it's foggy, you are in the English Channel, and then this happens. "What do you do? You're in a right mess, basically."[/quote] [quote]The Long Range Navigation system (Loran) was the brainchild of US scientists and was used to guide US Navy warships as battles raged in the Pacific. After the war ended, it was updated and renamed Loran-C, and adopted by mariners around the world - until GPS took over. Now though, rebranded as eLoran, its infrastructure has been upgraded to make it more accurate and it is making a comeback. While GPS transmitters are based in space, eLoran's are based on the ground. Radio stations transmit long-range radio waves. They use the same method as GPS to pinpoint position, but there are crucial differences. Professor Last says: "The neat thing is this: the radio frequencies which eLoran transmits are completely different from those of GPS. [/quote] [quote]"The power levels, instead of being very weak, are very strong; the propagation of the radio signals is very different." He adds: "Everything that matters is very different (from GPS) so there is no common mode of failure. The result you get is a plug-and-play replacement for GPS."[/quote] [url=http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-29758872]**SOURCE**[/url] I still can't believe how bulletproof LORAN-C is. GPS was intended to render it obsolete, twice! But it's simply too simple and too reliable to get rid of.

GLA? GPS? They must be firing up the GPS scrambler, in order to push out their own system.

[Quote]Even the ship's clock stops working.[/quote] Okay that is plumb retarded

I suppose it makes sense if you're sailing across timezones but seriously? Just keep an analogue set to GMT at least?

[QUOTE=pentium;46373970][img]http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/78508000/jpg/_78508252_accseas004_elorantrials.jpg[/img][/QUOTE] Picture in OP reminds me of some sci fi self destruct sequence in like a space station or whatever.

[QUOTE=Elecbullet;46374891]Okay that is plumb retarded[/QUOTE] The clock itself is probably designed to keep time based on location, so that it takes into account time-zones.

[QUOTE]["What do you do? You're in a right mess, basically."[/QUOTE] This is so British.

[QUOTE=ewitwins;46375184]The clock itself is probably designed to keep time based on location, so that it takes into account time-zones.[/QUOTE] And it'd probably use the GPS clock as a time source, it's a heck of a lot more accurate than anything else you'll find in a clock you can buy (I looked into building one once, a cheap unit connected to a RPi could give you 100us accuracy)

So basically kinda-sorta like cell tower triangulation? Or like VOR/DME?

[QUOTE=Gunner th;46374571]GLA? GPS? They must be firing up the GPS scrambler, in order to push out their own system.[/QUOTE] Sneak Attack filled with GPS-scrambled Quad Cannons was the worst shit ever

[QUOTE=Snowmew;46377280]So basically kinda-sorta like cell tower triangulation? Or like VOR/DME?[/QUOTE] As far as I understand it, it broadcasts time codes much like GPS, but on a much stronger radio signal. So it uses GPS-style triangulation but from ground stations and to different receiving equipment. Or maybe I'm reading the article wrong.

Off the top of my head (and it's probably wrong) LORAN-C used the doppler effect. In the very early days of GPS it was used there as well.

[QUOTE=ewitwins;46375184]The clock itself is probably designed to keep time based on location, so that it takes into account time-zones.[/QUOTE] You can still keep time without using GPS. I would of thought that the ships clock at the very least displays UTC and Local time simultaneously from an RTC clock that is synced to a GPS clock source; if the GPS were to become unusable then at least you would have accurate UTC time. The fact that the ships clock stops working completely is retarded.

[QUOTE=ewitwins;46375184]The clock itself is probably designed to keep time based on location, so that it takes into account time-zones.[/QUOTE] Naw, the clock probably just uses GPS for the time. Having accurate time is somewhat important at sea and GPS (if it doesn't fail..) is a pretty good time source.

[QUOTE=Jsm;46378163]Naw, the clock probably just uses GPS for the time. Having accurate time is somewhat important at sea and GPS (if it doesn't fail..) is a pretty good time source.[/QUOTE] Ya but you need the clock for when the GPS fails to find your location, so by it failing it renders the redundant chart navigation systems useless