science

GPS aircraft tracking

GPS aircraft tracking is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand GPS aircraft tracking rather than just read about it. In short: GPS aircraft tracking is a means of tracking the position of an aircraft fitted with a satellite navigation device. By communication with navigation satellites, detailed real-time data on flight variables can be passed to a server on the ground.

Key takeaways

GPS aircraft tracking belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect GPS aircraft tracking to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of GPS aircraft tracking from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

GPS aircraft tracking is a means of tracking the position of an aircraft fitted with a satellite navigation device. By communication with navigation satellites, detailed real-time data on flight variables can be passed to a server on the ground. This server stores the flight data, which can then be transmitted via telecommunications networks to organizations wishing to interpret it.

Networks The different kinds of telecommunication networks used are:

ACARS - a hybrid of the VHF, satellite and HF network The transponder "Mode S" (ADS-B) network Satellite networks (Globalstar, Inmarsat, IRIDIUM, Thuraya) The GSM network

Equipment Some devices are avionics components like ACARS and ADS-B. In these cases the receiving and transmitting antenna are usually located outside of the airframe. When devices are not installed as avionics components they have to be completely independent from the aircraft. They are typically placed inside of the airframe in a location where the GPS and communication satellites are directly visible to the device, for example through the cockpit window. The output signal must also be able to penetrate the aircraft - most civil aviation authorities require compliance with DO-160 for audio frequency conducted susceptibility and induced signal susceptibility. Authorities classify non-installed components as "transmitting portable electronic devices" (T-PEDS) and as such require them to be switched off during the critical phases of flight.

Applications Accurate real-time data provided by GPS aircraft tracking may be offered to air traffic control using ADS-B technology. This can safely reduce airspace separation of aircraft. GPS aircraft tracking also enables airlines to track their fleet of aircraft over the ACARS system, and allows aircraft to be more easily located in the event of an accident. The data is processed to gather "OOOI" information about movements within the airport and to compute flight time. Finally, GPS aircraft tracking permits a flight school to track a trainee pilot and debrief his/her flight path afterwards.

Active aircraft tracking There are several active aircraft tracking systems available on the market that use the "bread-crumb approach" to SAR. Rather than relying on an emergency locator transmitter to transmit upon impact, the next generation of emergency locating devices are active tracking devices that send position reports at regular time intervals. If the unit stops transmitting upon impact, the historical transmissions will give the last known location of the aircraft, its speed, direction and altitude. Tracking as an alternative or complement to current technology has recently been encouraged by the Coroner in New Zealand.

See also Index of aviation articles Flight tracking Emergency position-indicating radiobeacon station Spidertracks

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with GPS aircraft tracking

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what GPS aircraft tracking claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to GPS aircraft tracking before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about GPS aircraft tracking ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of GPS aircraft tracking

In research: GPS aircraft tracking appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses GPS aircraft tracking in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: GPS aircraft tracking is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Aviation communications, Navigational equipment, Radio geopositioning, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for GPS aircraft tracking outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study GPS aircraft tracking in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what GPS aircraft tracking means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain GPS aircraft tracking out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is GPS aircraft tracking in simple terms?

Why does GPS aircraft tracking matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study GPS aircraft tracking?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on GPS aircraft tracking.