These three pictures show how Global Positioning System works.

Also, only man-made process is involved in this system. Our planet is orbited every 12 hours by 24 satellites so that they cover the entire surface of the Earth. As a result we can find our location almost anywhere on the planet. There are three main parts which provide operability of satellites. They are: antennae which transmit and receive gathered data, solar panels which provide essential energy for satellite, and atomic clock, which is located on board, which keeps precise time. First of all, changes in orbits of satellites are detected and control center is informed. The next step is when monitor station data is sent back to satellites by control center. Then this information is broadcasted to users of GPS. By this stage, coded data including exact position and time is continually transmitted so that we can accurately know our real time location. At this time, distance to each satellite is calculated by comparing time message was transmitted with the time it was received. Calculation is done by hand held receiver which is built in our GPS devices. Exact location is assembled by measuring distance from four satellites.