GPS is a relativity hack!

Added: 2026-05-22

[00:00:01]You probably think GPS works because your phone knows where it is.

[00:00:05]>> [music] >> But your phone actually has no idea where it is.

[00:00:09]It's solving a giant timing puzzle [music] using signals from satellites in space.

[00:00:17]Your phone measures how long each signal took to arrive [music] because radio waves travel at the speed of light.

[00:00:24]But here's [music] the insane part. The clocks in those satellites tick differently than clocks on Earth.

[00:00:30]>> [music] >> Because of relativity, GPS satellites gain about 38 microseconds every day.

[00:00:41][music] If engineers didn't correct for Einstein's relativity, your GPS would drift by kilometers every single [music] day.

[00:00:50]Your phone navigates using space-time physics.

[00:00:54]>> [music] >> Follow for more science mind benders.