A SATELLITE JUST REVEALED SOMETHING SHOCKING: GPS JAMMING IS FAR MORE WIDESPREAD THAN ANYONE REALIZED.
An experimental navigation satellite called Pulsar-0, flying just 500 km above Earth, has mapped GPS signal tampering from space for the first time and the scale surprised even the engineers who built it.
As soon as the satellite passed over Europe and parts of the Middle East, its GPS receiver showed massive signal degradation. In the worst areas, signal strength dropped from a normal 40 decibels all the way down to just 10 decibels.
Why this matters:
• Ground-based jammers (used in conflicts like Ukraine and the Middle East) are now reaching all the way into low Earth orbit
• Satellites like Starlink that rely on GPS for collision avoidance and positioning are being affected across a huge region from France to the borders of Pakistan
• When GPS drops out, satellites can’t accurately point their antennas, maintain formation, or safely maneuver
• This isn’t just a military problem it threatens the growing network of commercial satellites we increasingly depend on
The deeper implication:
We’ve long known that GPS signals on the ground can be jammed. What we didn’t fully appreciate is how far those jamming signals reach into space.
Even satellites in low Earth orbit the backbone of global communications, Earth observation, and future mega-constellations are now operating in an increasingly hostile electromagnetic environment.
Xona’s upcoming constellation aims to fix this with signals 100 times stronger than traditional GPS. But the bigger question remains: as more nations and groups weaponize jamming and spoofing, how resilient will our orbital infrastructure actually be?
How concerned are you that GPS jamming is now reaching into space and affecting satellites?
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🚨 A SATELLITE JUST REVEALED SOMETHING SHOCKING: GPS JAMMING IS FAR MORE WIDESPREAD THAN ANYONE REALIZED.
An experimental navigation satellite called Pulsar-0, flying just 500 km above Earth, has mapped GPS signal tampering from space for the first time and the scale surprised… pic.twitter.com/ll8bc6rvvd
— TheNewPhysics (@CharlesMullins2) June 19, 2026
RUIDOSO, N.M. — A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board revealed there was military GPS jamming active when an air ambulance crashed near Ruidoso in May, killing all four on board.
On May 14, an airplane ambulance based out of Roswell, New Mexico, was called to the Sierra Blanca Regional Airport in Ruidoso to pick up a patient. Before they arrived in Ruidoso, the plane went down shortly after midnight. The victims included two pilots and two flight nurses.
According to the preliminary NTSB report, investigators stated the crew reported losing GPS at midnight, minutes after departure. The report said they had to request assistance from air traffic control.
“GPS jamming activities that encompassed the area around the accident flight were being conducted by the United States military during the time of the flight,” the report stated.