BBC reported that a Ryanair flight from London to Vilnius, Lithuania, had its descent abruptly aborted on 17 January due to unexplained interference with its Global Positioning System (GPS). The Boeing 737 MAX 8-200 was forced to divert to Warsaw, Poland, instead of landing just minutes before touching down. This incident was part of a larger pattern of GPS interference in Lithuanian airspace, with over 800 cases recorded in the last three months of 2024. Estonia and Finland have also raised concerns about Russian technology jamming satellite navigation signals near Nato’s eastern flank. The potential cost of losing GPS is estimated at £1.4bn per day, making it a significant threat to the UK.
To address this threat, a group of British scientists, known as the “Time Lords”, are working on developing a secure alternative to GPS using new atomic clocks. These clocks would be portable and not reliant on satellite signals that can be jammed. The UK government has initiated research initiatives to tackle the issue, but the development of this new technology is complex and urgent.
The search for a new portable alternative to GPS involves quantum technologies, particularly in the field of quantum navigation and time measurement. Prof Douglas Paul of the UK Hub for Quantum Enabled Position Navigation and Timing (QEPNT) believes that a new navigation system could be in the marketplace within two to five years. The “Time Lords” at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) are at the forefront of this research, building on their history of developing atomic clocks. This new technology could have a transformative impact similar to the invention of Harrison’s marine clock in the 18th century. BBC Scientists are working on developing a new type of atomic clock as an alternative to GPS. This clock needs to be miniaturized and robust enough to work in everyday situations, rather than just in lab conditions. The NPL researchers are working on an optical clock that is 100 times more accurate than current caesium clocks. This clock is stimulated with laser light instead of microwaves. When optical clocks replace caesium clocks as the timepieces for Universal Coordinated Time (UTC), the definition of time will also need to change. The NPL’s goal is to have a national network of atomic clocks by 2030, connecting four clocks across the UK for businesses to use. However, the transition to this new technology will take time, with critical systems like finance, telecommunications, and national security potentially switching over in the future. The new technology offers an alternative to GPS, which could be disrupted in conflicts or accidents. The UK is leading the research on this new technology, with recent test flights demonstrating its potential. The ultimate goal is to have miniaturized optical clocks, gyroscopes, and accelerometers in everyday devices like phones. This technology is still in development and faces challenges similar to those encountered by John Harrison in creating portable marine clocks in the 18th century. Despite the challenges, the potential benefits of this new technology are significant. ¿Podrán los científicos que trabajan en el problema encontrar soluciones lo suficientemente rápido?
Tal vez algún día los tengamos en nuestros bolsillos, pero el objetivo más urgente es lograr que estén en un estado en el que podamos volar de forma segura, ya que aumentan los incidentes de interferencia de GPS en aviones y sistemas informáticos críticos. Los Señores del Tiempo y los científicos cuánticos esperan continuar el legado del humilde relojero, transformando la medición del tiempo y protegiendo los sistemas críticos del Reino Unido de los ataques al GPS.
Crédito de la imagen principal: Getty Images
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