The GPS (Global Positioning System) has been used over time for many organizations. First, it was used in the U.S Department of defense to navigate the military around the 1970s, and in 1978, the first completely operational sattelite was launched. However, when it was finally released to the public, its accuracy was limited by something called Selective Availabilty.
However, in 1983, Korean Airlines Flight 007 crashed, causing President Reagan to cut Selective Availability for civilian use. Because of this, the 2000's had a breakthrough in GPS technology, such as location tracking for phones, Google maps, and even delivery driving apps!
A U.S Air Force facility conducts flight tests of GPS recievers over White Sands Missile Range.
A Soviet Union interceptor aircraft shot down a civilian airliner when it went into prohibited airspace and President Ronald Reagan announced that GPS would be made available for civilian uses once it was completed.
GPS achieved Initial Operational Capability with 24 satellites available.
Vice President Al Gore announced plans to upgrade GPS with two new civilian signals for enhanced user accuracy and reliability.
The first modernized GPS satellite was launched and began transmitting a second civilian signal for enhanced user performance.
The GPS is used today in many devices and is important for safety and other uses.
The GPS has evolved tremendously throughout the years, and there is still room to improve! It is also a very important part in our lives today.
Information: History of the GPS: Wikipedia
Image 1: Tyler Reid, 2017, (https://www.researchgate.net/)