Russian military satellites are the source of systematic interference with the GPS global positioning system across European countries. This is reported by The New York Times, citing a large-scale study by leading scientists and data from classified briefings by the US Air Force. According to the publication, at least 75 incidents of large-scale interference have been recorded since 2019. For the first time, it has been reliably established that the source of the harmful signal is Earth orbit, rather than ground-based radar stations.
The European Union also conducted its own investigation into these incidents, but its findings remain classified. Key evidence of Russian involvement was made public by Todd Humphreys, head of the Radio Navigation Laboratory at the University of Texas at Austin, and experts from the Spanish technology company GMV, led by Richard Bowden.
Analysts studied several cases in detail, including three in which the satellites’ trajectories clearly indicated that the interference originated in Russia.
Experts note that, unlike conventional jamming, which manifests as chaotic digital noise, the detected signal is structured and high-tech. It is transmitted on frequencies adjacent to the civilian GPS band and, due to its high power, completely masks the original signal from US satellites. Some military analysts suggest that the jamming may be a side effect of powerful Russian military radars linked to an early nuclear warning system.