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Today in History: The U.S. Government Declassifies GPS
05/02/10
At midnight on May 2, 2000, the U.S. government declassified the satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS) and made the most accurate navigation information available to nonmilitary users. In the interest of national defense, the government had intentionally degraded the quality of the signal available to the public before this time. The change in policy dramatically increased the accuracy of civilian GPS units and launched a revolution in satellite navigation technology. “This increase in accuracy will allow new GPS applications to emerge and continue to enhance the lives of people around the world,” President Bill Clinton declared in an official statement announcing the new policy.
Read BILL CLINTON’S STATEMENT ANNOUNCING THE DECLASSIFICATION OF GPS