The DoD: Stewards of a Global Information Resource, The Navstar Global Positioning System (GPS)

Michael Shaw, Peter Levin, John Martel

Abstract:	In 1973, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) began the development of the Navstar Global Positioning System (GPS) and embarked on a journey that would take radionavigation and positioning to what were then unimagined levels of performance. From its inception, GPS was viewed as a revolutionary technology that would enhance the positioning capability of U.S. and allied military forces throughout the world. GPS has evolved far beyond the vision of its original designers, and satellite navigation is now widely recognized as a worldwide information resource. The GPS user community includes an ever-expanding number of civil, scientific, and commercial applications, ranging from precision farming to pinpointing disruptions in electric power distribution networks. However, this dual military and civil aspect of GPS has posed significant challenges for DoD policy makers. Since the inception of GPS, the DoD has been confronted with the need to balance a wide range of different and sometimes competing national security, civil, foreign policy, commercial, and scientific interests. The challenge has been to exploit the full civil utility of the system without jeopardizing national security interests in the process. This challenge will become even more formidable for military leaders as U.S. and allied forces become increasingly reliant on GPS for all types of military operations, and as the applications of the worldwide civil user community continue to expand.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 10th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1997) September 16 - 19, 1997 Kansas City, MO
Pages:	1237 - 1243
Cite this article:	Shaw, Michael, Levin, Peter, Martel, John, "The DoD: Stewards of a Global Information Resource, The Navstar Global Positioning System (GPS)," Proceedings of the 10th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1997), Kansas City, MO, September 1997, pp. 1237-1243.
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