The Pentagon has developed a spacecraft for navigation without GPS. It uses the quantum properties of atoms

In early October 2023, it became known that the California startup Vector Atomic, in collaboration with Honeywell Aerospace Corporation, developed a new type of navigation sensor that uses an atomic clock to make accurate measurements. At the same time, receiving data from GPS satellites or other auxiliary readings is not required.

In 2020, the defense innovation unit as part Pentagon of entered into an agreement with Vector Atomic to develop a special device that uses the quantum properties of atoms to take measurements with very high accuracy. $10 million has been allocated for the implementation of the project. Vector Atomic specialists have created an atomic inertial navigation sensor that can withstand the harsh conditions of outer space.

A new type of navigation sensor using an atomic clock

Inertial navigation systems rely on accelerometers and gyroscopes to continuously calculate the position, orientation and speed of an object without the need for external signals, such as from GPS devices. Such devices have existed since the early 1950s, but the atomic variant is a more sophisticated technology. One of the difficulties is that instruments based on the quantum properties of atoms have insufficient strength and can therefore be easily damaged. The Pentagon's new project aims to build reliable atomic navigation sensors capable of functioning in space.

In the case of conventional inertial navigation devices, measurement errors may occur over time. An atomic sensor is devoid of this drawback. The product will be sent to space as part of one of the upcoming missions of the Ministry of Defense, USA but the agency does not disclose the timing of the launch of the comic apparatus and other details about the project as of October 13, 2023.^[1]

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