Radio navigation - a curious development
Developed during WWII,
LOng RAnge Navigation has been considered to be 'obsolete'. There have been a few developments (LORAN-C is the latest) but it was shut down on 2010.
I subscribe to an email list for precise timekeeping and members noted that supposedly closed stations have recently begun transmitting off and on.
And now this -- from
Engineering and Technology Magazine:
eLoran stations to be rolled out across UK
A navigation system resilient to GPS jamming will be installed along the south and east coast of the UK, it was announced today.
Following approval by the Department for Transport, seven differential eLoran stations will be installed to provide alternative position, navigation and timing (PNT) information to ensure that ships equipped with eLoran receivers can navigate safely in the event of GPS failure in one of the busiest shipping regions in the world.
The GPS signals most ships rely on are vulnerable to both deliberate and accidental jamming, which is causing increasing concern because of the wide availability of GPS jammers online for as little as �30 that are capable of causing complete outages across all receivers currently on the market.
The rollout, led by the General Lighthouse Authorities (GLAs) of the UK and Ireland, is the first in the world to deploy this technology for shipping companies operating both passenger and cargo services.
The article mentions that they are looking at coverage for all ports worldwide by 2019. There is a lot that can be done by just piloting -- visual navigation. Still, ships trying to enter a large port at night require active navigation like GPS -- if GPS is jammed suddenly, chaos could result. This is a working alternative.
Posted by DaveH at July 17, 2013 10:03 PM