In 2021, a group led by Zak Kassas, director of the Autonomous Systems Perception, Intelligence, and Navigation (ASPIN) Laboratory at The Ohio State University, demonstrated how digitally eavesdropping on signals from 6 Starlink satellites might determine areas in the world to within 8 meters of precision– although that needed 13 minutes of tracking instead of providing rapid outcomes.

Such opportunistic eavesdropping is tough, since Starlink is regularly enhancing for its main satellite Internet service by turning beams on and off, or often changing beams as the fast-moving satellites talk with various users, Kassas described. That develops unforeseeable dives in the signal timing approximates that the scientists trust to determine placing information.

To take on those obstacles, Kassas and his coworkers utilize Doppler measurements of signal frequency modifications that show satellite movements relative to the receiver, in addition to software application algorithms to fix for timing mistakes. They have actually likewise released phased-array antennas– efficient in interacting with simply a couple of satellites at a time– in mix with low-gain, omnidirectional antennas that can catch signals from almost 10 satellites at a time. By 2025, the scientists had actually demonstrated how to harness signals from approximately 3 Starlink satellites to provide placing outcomes to within 2 meters of precision in simply 20 seconds.

This basic eavesdropping method is not simply restricted to Starlink’s thousands of satellites– they have actually likewise made use of satellite signals from Orbcomm, Iridium, Starlink, OneWeb, NOAA, and the devoted PNT constellation, Xona. “I’m not actually wed to Starlink– I enjoy them all,” Kassas stated.

The group has actually shown this alternative navigation service with ground lorries, a high-altitude balloon, and a drone. Among the current experiments demonstrated how making use of signals from both Starlink and OneWeb satellites might enhance ship navigation precision off the west coast of Greenland in the Arctic, implying that the method might most likely work almost anywhere in the world.

All this recommends that individuals might not need to wait a lot longer for brand-new GPS options, whether they come straight from Starlink or 3rd parties. Kassas and his group have actually currently certified their innovation to some companies. “I believe individuals are starving and harming in the lack of GPS or GNSS, and they desire these options,” Kassas informed Ars.