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Plus with the advent of Glonass, Galileo, and Beidou, the ability for the USA to turn off GPS has less strategic value. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GLONASS h

Plus with the advent of Glonass, Galileo, and Beidou, the ability for the USA to turn off GPS has less strategic value. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GLONASS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GLONASS https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_(satellite_navigation) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_(satellite_navigation) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BeiDou_Navigation_Satellite_System https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BeiDou_Navigation_Satellite_Sy...

dragonwriter 9y ago
That would be true if the US did not have it was not willing to use effective ASAT weapons to also deny opponents the use of GPS alternatives in the event of a war in which they would want to deny GPS.
- hamandcheese 9y ago
  Surely GPS satellites can also be shot down, no? It seems the best possible outcome might be a single global navigation system that all powers depend on, creating a navigational form of mutually assured destruction, ensuring its continued availability during a time of conflict. That will probably never happen, though.
  - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
    I feel like that would just encourage all parties involved to develop robust non-satellite fallback systems and procedures...which, actually, would have prevented these collisions in the first place.
    - nradov 9y ago
      All parties involved already have robust non-satellite systems for collision avoidance because satellite systems have never been used for that purpose in the first place.
      - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
        The post suggests that they weren't robust enough. That's why I said systems and procedures--backup systems don't work if the guys monitoring them aren't well-trained or paying attention because everyone assumes the GPS is infallible. Policies based on GPS MAD would place a lot more attention on the non-GPS systems.
- Johnny555 9y ago
  Seems more likely that they'd use local jammers where needed than to risk global retaliation against the USA by shooting down 10's of billions of dollars of European, Russian, and Chinese satellites. Assuming, of course that they aren't fighting a common enemy which would let them convince all of those satellite owners to shut them down or degrade the voluntarily.
- nradov 9y ago
  No one has ever tested an ASAT weapon capable of hitting GPS satellites. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-satellite_weapon#Limits_of_ASATs https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-satellite_weapon#Limits_o...

dragonwriter 9y ago

That would be true if the US did not have it was not willing to use effective ASAT weapons to also deny opponents the use of GPS alternatives in the event of a war in which they would want to deny GPS.

hamandcheese 9y ago
Surely GPS satellites can also be shot down, no? It seems the best possible outcome might be a single global navigation system that all powers depend on, creating a navigational form of mutually assured destruction, ensuring its continued availability during a time of conflict. That will probably never happen, though.
- PhasmaFelis 9y ago
  I feel like that would just encourage all parties involved to develop robust non-satellite fallback systems and procedures...which, actually, would have prevented these collisions in the first place.
  - nradov 9y ago
    All parties involved already have robust non-satellite systems for collision avoidance because satellite systems have never been used for that purpose in the first place.
    - PhasmaFelis 9y ago
      The post suggests that they weren't robust enough. That's why I said systems and procedures--backup systems don't work if the guys monitoring them aren't well-trained or paying attention because everyone assumes the GPS is infallible. Policies based on GPS MAD would place a lot more attention on the non-GPS systems.
Johnny555 9y ago
Seems more likely that they'd use local jammers where needed than to risk global retaliation against the USA by shooting down 10's of billions of dollars of European, Russian, and Chinese satellites. Assuming, of course that they aren't fighting a common enemy which would let them convince all of those satellite owners to shut them down or degrade the voluntarily.
nradov 9y ago
No one has ever tested an ASAT weapon capable of hitting GPS satellites. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-satellite_weapon#Limits_of_ASATs https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-satellite_weapon#Limits_o...