The U.S. Air Force launched Navigation Technology Satellite 2 (part of the program that became GPS) in 1977, with the first dedicated Navstar GPS satellite following in February 1978 — the beginning of the satellite navigation constellation that today underlies navigation, timing, and positioning for billions of devices worldwide, originally developed for military use before being opened to civilian applications.
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The U.S. Air Force launched Navigation Technology Satellite 2 (part of the program that became GPS) in 1977, with the first dedicated Navstar GPS satellite following in February 1978 — the beginning of the satellite navigation constellation that today underlies navigation, timing, and positioning for billions of devices worldwide, originally developed for military use before being opened to civilian applications.
The year the first satellite of what became the Global Positioning System (GPS) was launched.
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Permanent ID limitsregistry.com/limits/LR-FIRST-GPS-SATELLITE
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Limits Registry. LR-FIRST-GPS-SATELLITE. First GPS satellite launched. 2026.