The Global Positioning System (or NAVSTAR) has been called the most si
gnificant civil spinoff of the cold war, It evolved from technology ef
forts in the Navy and in the Air Force but was almost canceled before
gaining approval by the Department of Defense, Although it offers phen
omenal accuracy (centimeters for landing aircraft), it still requires
some expansions to satisfy integrity, continuity, and availability req
uirements, Most of all, to be formally accepted (and certified) intern
ationally, the world will need greater confidence in commitments by th
e U.S. and greater participation by the world community.