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Flightradar24's new GPS jamming map

flightradar24.com

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Re: Flightradar24's new GPS jamming map

#141
post #9

So how should I interpret this? The map lacks geopolitical boundaries, so it's hard to interpret. There looks like a big hole of no data over Ukraine, where I'd most expect GPS jamming, but I suppose there are no civilian flights either. Maybe they could setup an GPS observation station on the ground at a surveyed point to get data there. There's a big red blob over Turkey, is that maybe the southern edge of the reac…

I see 2 red cells on the US/Mexico border right about Texas/Coahuila region. Navigating that dessert region without GPS or with GPS for that matter can be deadly.

If you line it up with that big lake, you can see there's an Air Force base right nearby

https://www.google.com/maps/@29.3385589,-100.8055747,12.72z?...

Re: Flightradar24's new GPS jamming map

#142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I see 2 red cells on the US/Mexico border right about Texas/Coahuila region. Navigating that dessert region without GPS or with GPS for that matter can be deadly.

That's the most curious jamming I see on the map—anybody know why jamming is present there? Is there a military base in that region?

Laughlin air force base is there.

Re: Flightradar24's new GPS jamming map

#143
post #139

Interesting - as I'm in the middle of one of the red blobs on the map and just used my phone with google maps to drive around. It worked fine. All the local services that rely on positioning via phones seemed to work fine as well. I wonder how the jamming works - is it just for higher altitudes or maybe it only affects GPS and my phone also uses GLONASS or something?

On your phone the GPS is just one input to determine its position. It's most likely also triangulating cell phone towers. Get an app that only shows GPS data and check if you see coordinates jumping around.

Re: Flightradar24's new GPS jamming map

#145

https://www.flightradar24.com/data/gps-jamming Also: https://gpsjam.org/ | https://hn.algolia.com/?q=gpsjam (am I missing any other GPS jamming mapping or data collection projects?)

Thanks for linking gpsjam -- flightradar24's map is total trash by comparison (colours, lack of borders). Does anyone know if a similar service covers things like GLONASS, Galileo or BeiDou? EDIT: nevermind, these services can't distinguish. From the FAQ: > The ADS-B data used by this map includes information on the accuracy of the navigation system used by each aircraft, but doesn't specify the type of navigation sy…

Flightradar24's visual representation definitely sucks, but comparing the two, gpsjam has a lot of unexpected missing areas across Africa, South America, and SE Asia that at least have some data on FR24.

I'm not sure if that means FR24 has a better dataset, or they're processing it differently or if they're just extrapolating from few data points when they maybe shouldn't be.

Re: Flightradar24's new GPS jamming map

#147
post #139

Interesting - as I'm in the middle of one of the red blobs on the map and just used my phone with google maps to drive around. It worked fine. All the local services that rely on positioning via phones seemed to work fine as well. I wonder how the jamming works - is it just for higher altitudes or maybe it only affects GPS and my phone also uses GLONASS or something?

Google maps (and your phone's location services) seldom rely only on GPS.

For one, accelerometer-based location has become pretty good. You can usually get by for a few kilometers on the average road.

For two, Google maps is aware that you are driving, and this it sticks to roads, especially ones that are on your itinerary, because of your GPS registers as the middle of a field, it's more likely that you're experiencing GPS issues rather than you driving at 130km/h in a potato field.

Finally, location services are amplified by nearby wifi signals, mapped by google with street view. Your phone can say "here is the Mac address of every wifi network I can see and a rough estimate of my position" and Google's services can very accurately triangulate where you are.

Re: Flightradar24's new GPS jamming map

#149

Most of these GPS-jammed zones are, obviously, near areas of active conflicts (Ukraine, Myanmar, Isreal/Palestine, Kashmir, etc). But what's going on in Western Australia? And South-west Texas?

Western Australia could be the ongoing emu war - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emu_War
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