U.S. unscrambles GPS signals, making them more accurate for scientific and public use

James Baker, administrator for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, announced the read‐out from his hand‐held global positioning system (GPS) device. Ground zero, in this case, he said, was pinpointed at 39°, 24 minutes north, and 77°, 58 minutes west: the White House press briefing room. After years of intentional degradation of GPS location and timing information for national security reasons, Clinton Administration officials—including Baker—on May 1 announced the immediate curtailment of GPS' “selective availability” feature, and the worldwide unscrambling of GPS signals.