Global Positioning System is a navigational aid, funded and controlled by the U.S. Department of Defense. Since GPS systems utilize 24 satellites that orbit the earth in a grid pattern, there are always six to eight satellites that are able to communicate with any given position on earth at any given time. What this does is give the average consumer the power to find any place on earth at any time day or night. Just think of the benefits this provides for a wide variety of the public.