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LiveScience
LiveScience
Rory Bathgate

New navigation system uses cellphone signals to fly a plane in case GPS fails

A plane flying over a mountain at sunset.

Scientists are testing an alternative to the global position system (GPS) that uses phone signals to act as an emergency backup for pilots in case their standard in-flight equipment is jammed or malfunctions.

The 31 operating GPS satellites orbit Earth twice daily, emitting precise signals that receivers on the ground can pick up and analyze to determine how far away they are from the satellites. GPS devices use data from three satellites to precisely triangulate the user's precise location.

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