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Thread: Satellite singal

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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
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    Default Satellite singal

    Is there a difference in the satellite signal versus cell tower signal in terms of effect on a human health?

  2. #2
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    Jun 2004
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    Fairfield, Maine
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    Well, the NAVSTAR GPS satellites orbit the earth at ~12,600 MILES, and cell towers are spaced withing several miles of us, so it would, I think, be safe to say that cell signals are much more likely to have an effect. Also, it is the cell phones transmitter that is a concern--a GPS receiver is just that, a receiver, just like your FM radio.

    If you're interested in GPS technology, the Wiki article is a good place to start learning:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Positioning_System

  3. #3
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    Ah, so that's why you hear people complain about drivers using their cell phones while driving, but you never hear anything bad about them using their GPSr...

    Welcome to the site, gpsfaq. If you don't mind my asking, how is it someone with a web site about GPS information comes to geocachingmaine.org to ask such a question?
    DNFTT! DNFTT! DNFTT!

    "The funniest thing about this particular signature is that by the time you realize it doesn't say anything it's to late to stop reading it..."

  4. #4
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    Default

    And it's the microwave signals from tower to tower that are the most dangerous (the way it was put to me when I was doing the refrigeration on the towers "don't stand in front of the microwaves because if they become active they'll make your *insert name for male reproductive organs here* shrivel up like rasins...*) the microwave signals excite water molocules causing them to heat up and evaporate...

    i heard a story on the news a few years back, about a lady who lived near a tower, there was a malfunction with the tower, and it was broadcasting a low frequency microwave signal and pretty much fried all the vegitation in her yard...

    I'll get the marsmallows!!!
    Once the game is over, the king and the pawn go back in the same box.

  5. #5
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    This could be "rural legend", but I've been told that when testing the Over the Horizon radar in Moscow (Maine!) - see our "Over the Horizon" cache - small animals in front of the antenna were toasted quite nicely.


  6. #6
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    Jun 2004
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    Talking mmmmmmmm!!

    "toasted small animals"

    One of my favorite snacks...


    Just don't tell Jock and Sweetie!
    Happy Trails!



  7. #7
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    I do not agree with what you say.

    The GPS signal from the satellites is around you whether you have a GPS or not, just as radio and TV and received cellphone signals are around you whether you are using them or not. Of these only a cellphone is a transmitter and therefore may have a stronger signal when using it.

    I do not believe that any caution is necessary when using a GPS except to pay more attention to where you are stepping than to the GPS screen. Watching the screen while stepping off a cliff hurts, a lot.




    A house is not a home without a cat.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sabby View Post
    I do not believe that any caution is necessary when using a GPS except to pay more attention to where you are stepping than to the GPS screen. Watching the screen while stepping off a cliff hurts, a lot.
    Unless of course, you have some fluffy, low frequency radio signals to break your fall.
    DNFTT! DNFTT! DNFTT!

    "The funniest thing about this particular signature is that by the time you realize it doesn't say anything it's to late to stop reading it..."

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sabby View Post
    I do not believe that any caution is necessary when using a GPS except to pay more attention to where you are stepping than to the GPS screen. Watching the screen while stepping off a cliff hurts, a lot.


    Not to mention tripping on roots, twisting your ankle in that little divot in the trail, missing the trail and going head-long into an alder thicket/thorns/boggy area (pick one or all of the above) or of course going right pass the cache that is right in plain view.

    For the record, I agree with you . . . this thread kind of reminds me of the cell phone warnings on the gas pumps. While the older cell phones may have had some potential to cause a spark, research on the newer tech seems to indicate that the potential hazard is over-stated, but nevertheless we have the warning labels . . .
    "Courage is not the absence of fear, but the realization that there is something more important than fear."

    "Death is only one of many ways to die."

  10. #10
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    Jul 2004
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    Smile

    Sounds like you have experiences similar to mine.




    A house is not a home without a cat.

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