Imagine your phone stops working while you are driving in a new city. Or a pilot loses their way while carrying hundreds of people through the clouds.
WHAT HAPPENED
U.S. military leaders and scientists say Russia is using its satellites to mess with GPS signals. This is happening all over Europe right now.
The trouble happens in short bursts, but it covers a lot of ground. It makes it hard for tools to know exactly where they are on Earth.
This is not just a glitch. Experts say it is a choice made by the Russian military to show their power in space.
WHAT THE EVIDENCE SHOWS
Signals are being blocked from high in space.
- The outages are short but cover huge areas of land and sea.
- Commercial planes are losing their tools to find the way.
- Ships at sea are seeing their digital maps go dark.
- The U.S. military linked the trouble to Russian satellite paths.
THE BIGGER QUESTION
We rely on GPS for almost everything, from banking to food delivery. If one country can flip a switch and break it, how safe is our modern world?
We should be asking if we have become too weak by trusting one system for everything. What happens if the maps stay dark for a week instead of an hour?
WHAT HAPPENS NOW
This makes travel more dangerous for everyone. Pilots and ship captains have to go back to old ways to find their way.
This takes more time and can lead to more mistakes. It also means the cost of shipping and flying could go up as companies try to stay safe.
WHAT WE STILL DON'T KNOW
- Will this move to other parts of the world soon?
- Can the West stop these signals from being blocked?
- Is this a test for a much bigger move in the future?