The Global Positioning System (GPS) is managed by the U.S. Air Force and became fully operational in 1993. It uses 24 satellites that orbit 11,000 miles above Earth and constantly broadcast signals. A GPS receiver needs signals from at least 4 satellites to determine its 3D position and time offset. The system has three segments - space (satellites), control (ground stations), and user (receivers). Receivers use trilateration of distance measurements to satellites to calculate their latitude, longitude, or UTM coordinates. Accuracy can be affected by satellite geometry, orbits, multipath signals, and atmospheric conditions.