It is easy to forget that GPS technology hasn’t really been around that long. Many of us remember printing off directions from systems like MapQuest and having to try to follow them while driving. Others remember looking at a road atlas or other map to try to get where you’re going. Of course, most people also use less accurate directions like, “Go down past the big tree until you get to the red barn.”

Today, however, when it comes to getting where you are going, GPS is king. Virtually every car, phone, plane, and other device has a GPS built in so you can always get where you are going. For the most part, GPS technology works exceptionally well. There are some places that aren’t covered well, and GPS systems can fall victim to certain types of disruption.

So, Q-CTRL, which is an Australian company, has decided to come up with what might end up being a better system. At the very least, it has a lot of potential to serve as an effective backup to GPS that works anywhere in the world.

The system uses quantum sensors that are able to read the magnetic field of the planet. This means, at least in theory, it could be adapted for use on other planets as well, without the need to have satellites in place. But that is an option for the future.

For now, the technology has been tested, and the results published in a paper are quite impressive. When used on a flight, the system is able to operate much more accurately than the inertial navigation system (INS), which is what flights use as a backup of GPS. It is seven times more accurate than INS on ground vehicles.

In a statement about the device, Q-CTRL CEO and founder, Michael J. Biercuk said:

“We achieved an accuracy in some trials comparable to a sharpshooter hitting a bullseye from 1,000 yards [914 meters] away. But because our quantum-assured navigation system allows a vehicle to position itself accurately irrespective of how far it’s travelled, by analogy that sharpshooter can hit the same bullseye no matter how far away they move from the target.”

Once an accurate map of a magnetic field is available, the system can operate without an active connection to things like satellites, which is very important. The device that they have already tested is small enough to be used on planes, cars, trains, and even drones. Since it uses the magnetic fields rather than a connection to an outside device, it is much more resilient to disruptions from things like water, being underground, skyscrapers, and more.

Check out this brief video to learn more about how it works:

The company says that they believe that their technology has achieved what is known as quantum advantage. This is a concept where a solution using quantum technology outperforms a classic system in real world conditions. While quantum technology is undoubtedly impressive, it is rarely a better solution to everyday needs at this point (though that won’t be the case forever). This new technology, they argue, is superior today.

Additional testing is undoubtedly needed, and it will be a while before we find it in use for cars and other consumer goods, but the technology is very impressive and may someday replace GPS, thus eliminating the need to have hundreds of satellites in orbit.

This could help to reduce the ‘space junk’ problem, while also being able to operate at a much lower cost.

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