Trip Waypoint
How does GPS Work: A look at how GPS and Outdoor Activities by Chris Jackson
The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a network of 24 satellites orbiting earth at 7,000 miles an hour. The satellites were launched and are maintained by United States Department of Defense for the benefit of military applications. The Satellites orbit the earth twice a day at about 12,000 miles above the planet. Considering there are no obstructions, no matter where you are on the planet earth there are at least 4 GPS satellite signals visible to GPS receivers at all times making it accurate and a huge benefit for people who enjoy the outdoors.
How Does GPS Work
The idea of GPS originated in the 1960’s, but the first satellite was not put into orbit until 1978. The 24th satellite was launched in 1994 completing the mission and enabling the military to calculate positioning around the world extremely accurately. The Satellites are designed to last about 10 years, so there is constant upkeep and launching of new satellites regularly.
GPS for Civilians
GPS was not made available to the rest of the world until the 1980’s. After that point, anybody was allowed to use the data available through a GPS receiver to accurately pinpoint their location, elevation, and distance traveled, among other things. Obviously though, technology was not there to make much use of civilian GPS and the benefits associated with it. GPS receivers at the time were expensive, big and clunky, and required substantial amounts of power to run them; at least more than a few batteries could provide.
It was not until the 1990’s that technology caught up and the average outdoor enthusiast began to realize the benefits of GPS and how it could aide in their outdoor adventures such as hunting, hiking, and driving. Since then, GPS receivers have grown tremendously in popularity and are now available in compact sizes and can be run off small amounts of power offering hikers and hunters extremely accurate information on their whereabouts and travel information.
How Does GPS Work?
The Global Positioning System transmits signals from the satellites down to earth. A GPS receiver then picks up that transmission and analyzes the data that was sent. Mostly, the GPS receiver gathers the exact position of the satellite and determines the time it took for the signal to reach the receiver. The signal travels at the speed of light (186,282 miles per second) so we are talking about a very short amount of time. With the distance measurements of several different satellite signals, the GPS receiver then uses the mathematical concept of triangulation to compute the exact location of the user.
To accurately determine 2D information (longitude and latitude) a GPS receiver needs to be receiving signals from at least 3 satellites. To determine 3D information, the receiver needs to be picking up signals from 4 or more satellites which will enable it to determine more information such as exact location, elevation, altitude, distance traveled, sunrise and sunset, as well as many other useful concepts to hunters and other outdoor enthusiasts.
Accuracy:
GPS receivers are quite accurate, especially if you have an unobstructed view of the sky in all directions. There are factors that can throw off a GPS, but for the average outdoorsman, even with these factors, the accuracy is more than close enough with the average accuracy of 15 meters handheld models built for the average outdoorsman.
There are, however, units that can determine location with much greater accuracy than the standard outdoorsman model GPS. These are used by surveyors and other emergency equipment. Surveyors can actually determine elevations and distances to hundredths of an inch or better. How do these GPS work so accurately? They use land towers to correct any time issues and other things that can throw them off.
The Benefits of GPS in the Outdoors:
GPS can tell a hunter or hiker exactly where they are as long as they can get satellite signal reception. This is an obvious benefit for the outdoorsman as it will assure that a person will always have a good idea of where they are and how they can get where they are going.
After ending up in locations that were not my intentions while hiking and hunting the back country of Western North America, I finally broke down and bought a Garmin Rhino with a built in 2 way radio. I could not talk myself into buying a less expensive model that offered only GPS, as I and the people I spend time with in the outdoors rely on communication as well. It was one of the best investments I have ever made and still have it today working perfectly.
A hunter or hiker can mark a waypoint at the beginning of the journey. They can then mark places along the way that they might want to come back to in the future. Then for their return trip back to the starting point they can let the GPS tell them the exact direction and distance to the starting point. A hiker does not even need to pay attention to where they are heading and can still find their way back with great confidence. I do suggest however that you are always aware of where you are going and make sure you can get back, as you never know when your equipment is going to fail you. This would most likely be due to the unit breaking or running out of power. Rarely will it be due to the GPS receiver leading you in the wrong direction. If you are unsure, always trust what the GPS has to say as it will most times be much more accurate that a human being.
Getting the Right GPS for Your Situation:
Now that we have answered the question about how does a GPS work , you can make an educated decision about what the best GPS for the outdoors is as well as which one is best for you specific situation. At the webpage in the next link you will find a list of what are determined by outdoorsman, hunters and hikers alike to be the best GPS broke down by price range so you can find the GPS receiver that fits your budget. You can see them by clicking here:http://www.bestforhunting.com/?page_id=180
About the Author
Chris lives in the arid canyon lands of the northwest U.S. where he lives, works and plays in the great outdoors with his family. He owns and operates websites such as www.OnlineFlyFishingGuide.com and www.SnakeProofGear.com
Fall road trip – Ruston way, Point Defiance, Tacoma, WA test
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Garmin MapSource U.S.A. Topographical Map CD-ROM (Windows) $46.00 Weve mapped every hill and valley. Download data from the MapSource TOPO U.S. 2008 DVD directly to your compatible Garmin GPS. Now you can enjoy topographic mapping detail no matter where your adventures take you. TOPO U.S. 2008 features digital topographic maps for the U.S., including Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. It is available in two different formats making it easy and convenient to load da… |
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Garmin Bluechart Pacific Saltwater Map CD-ROM (Windows) $138.50 Garmin’s exclusive line of BlueChart marine cartography products is designed to provide interactive viewing of detailed nautical chart data. These detailed electronic nautical charts look just like paper charts when displayed on your Garmin chart plotter. Descriptive details for features typically found on nautical charts can easily be viewed with a simple key press. Cursor movements over the char… |
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Garmin MetroGuide 2001 U.S.A. Street Map CD-ROM (Windows) $124.99 The MapSource MetroGuide U.S.A. CD-ROM contains the electronic equivalent of several paper maps and represents the same information found on MetroGuide cartridges. MetroGuide U.S.A. includes trip and waypoint management functions that allow you to transfer waypoints, routes, and tracks between your PC and nearly all Garmin GPS units while viewing detailed maps on your PC screen. With a map-downlo… |
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Garmin Foretrex 401 Waterproof Hiking GPS $424.99 The Foretrex 401 is a slim wrist-mounted GPS navigator perfect for outdoor activities that require the use of both hands. Foretrex 401 combines a high-sensitivity waterproof GPS receiver, electronic compass and barometric altimeter into a lightweight device ideal for hikers, skiers, campers and military personnel. To share data easily, you can connect Foretrex to your computer with USB or just sen… |
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Garmin eTrex Venture HC GPS Receiver $169.99 eTrex Venture HC is an essential for any outdoor excursion. It features a high-sensitivity GPS receiver for peak performance in any environment and includes 24 megabytes (MB) of internal memory, a detailed basemap and crisp color screen. An essential for any outdoor excursion. The H series marries high-sensitivity GPS with full-featured mapping, for a … |
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Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator $399.99 With Oregon 450 you can really get in touch with nature. This next-generation handheld features a rugged, sunlight-readable, touchscreen along with a built-in basemap with shaded relief, a high-sensitivity receiver, barometric altimeter, 3-axis electronic compass, microSD card slot, picture viewer and more. Even exchange tracks, waypoints, routes and geocaches wirelessly between similar units. Tou… |
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Garmin City Navigator North America for Detailed Maps of the United State, Canada and Mexico (DVD) $70.99 Thanks to the Garmin MapSource City Navigator North America NT Version 8, which gives you access to all the data you need to navigate North America, you may never have to ask for directions again. This software automatically creates point-to-point routes in MapSource and on your NT compatible Global Positioning System (GPS), and includes detailed, premium street maps of North America, plus a hefty… |
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Garmin MapSource Trip and Waypoint Manager $29.99 This product is a low cost solution for you to simply transfer waypoints, routes and tracks between your Garmin GPS and PC. Included in Trip and Waypoint manager is a general worldwide basemap providing basic cartography including: interstates, highways, motorways, cities, oceans and various other background features for general reference. This product does not include any detailed maps for dow… |
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Garmin MapSource WorldMap (CD-ROM) $116.65 Garmin’s WorldMap MapSource CD-ROM provides worldwide coverage with base map-level detail, including political boundaries, cities, towns, major motorways and/or interstates, and principal highways; lakes, major streams, and rivers; and urban areas and railroads. WorldMap displays excellent coastline detail that includes many offshore islands, as well as worldwide nautical navigation aids such… |
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Holux M-1000C Bluetooth GPS Data Logger Travel Recorder (Bluetooth, USB , 66CH, WAAS, 200k Waypoints, M1000c) $53.99 Holux M-1000C Bluetooth GPS Data Logger Travel Recorder (Bluetooth, USB , 66CH, WAAS, 200k Waypoints, M1000c)… |
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GPS Navigation | admin | 
January 17, 2012 12:50 am
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