Using a GPS locator to find your location and map a new route is as ubiquitous as the cellphone equipped with the technology. When GPS technology was unclassified in the 1980s, companies like Verizon, Nextel, and Sprint were among the first mobile providers for the GPS market. Soon services like OnStar flooded the automobile market and knowing where you were on the map became essential.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) was initially designed for military use. It was the guiding component for intercontinental missiles and military targeting systems. To date, it is the only fully functional satellite system that uses a series of medium-range earth orbit satellites to determine a wide spectrum of information, including location, time, speed, as well as the direction of any particular marked objects.

In 1983, President Regan made the system available to “serve the good of the people.” The GPS system is now widely used across the world. Some people use it to navigate, find directions, even to enhance maps, surveying areas that could not be done without the aid of a satellite. Various companies have made the technology available by means of our automobiles, cell phones, even our watches. Additionally, meteorologists use the GPS system to predict, and make it possible to alert people to evacuate certain areas well in advance of approaching storm systems.

Before 1939, a viable navigation system was already in existence — in theory. In 1943, a German scientist, Karl Hans Janke, patented the idea of using two satellites positioned at certain points could send electromagnetic signals, using screen vectors, and determine the direction of an object. Each satellite was proposed to send messages at the speed of light to receivers, which would then convert the messages into latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates.

Of course, the industry is always troubleshooting and perfecting their signaling systems to circumvent minor, reoccurring problems. These problems can interfere with the performance of a GPS system. Natural phenomenon, like sunspots, meteor showers, and earth-based storms can adversely affect reception. Often, the interference has a more prosaic culprit. Car defrosters can interrupt the GPS signaling as well as the grade of tint on some windows.