What Goes Up Must Talk Down

For decades, Lockheed Martin has been modernizing GPS satellites to keep our world running smoothly for both civilian and military users. But there's a catch: The advanced tech aboard these satellites is only as powerful as the ground system supporting it. That is why for the last decade, our team has been quietly upgrading the GPS ground segment to strengthen the GPS enterprise for the future - mission critical work that is accelerating today.

The next generation of GPS is bringing powerful, advanced capabilities to orbit. Think military signals with up to 63-times greater anti-jamming capability, new technology to support life-saving search and rescue missions, and a spacecraft built to evolve through on-orbit upgrades.

Keeping Space and Ground in Sync

GPS satellites and ground systems are in constant conversation, working together to keep positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) accurate, secure and resilient. While GPS satellites broadcast positioning and timing signals, ground systems monitor their accuracy, calculate corrections and send updates back to the satellites to keep the system precise.

Satellites depend on the ground. The ground depends on satellites. And the rest of us? We depend on both to keep our world moving.

The Invisible Power Behind Your Day

When was the last time you tracked your morning run on a fitness tracker? Got a package delivered directly to your front door? Took a flight to a different city? Paid for your morning coffee? Yes, even that last one. GPS does more than tell us where we are. Its precise timing helps keep the financial networks behind everyday transactions synchronized.

And for those serving in uniform? GPS is navigating them through unfamiliar territory where every coordinate counts.

Now imagine a world where GPS satellites weren't receiving critical updates from the ground. From missed deliveries to disrupted military missions, the consequences could reach far beyond a wrong turn.

To ensure the ground can support advanced GPS satellites, we are continuing to upgrade the ground segment. Recently, Lockheed Martin secured two U.S. Space Force contracts to further modernize the GPS ground segment - advancing a more capable, resilient GPS enterprise from the ground up.

So, what's changing on the ground? Our engineers are upgrading ground systems to operate next-generation GPS IIIF satellites while modernizing the hardware and software behind the signals we depend on every day.

The future of GPS isn't just being built in space. It's being built right here on the ground, too. And both are essential to keeping our world moving.