What is A Marine GPS Navigation?

With the debut of GPS for the consumer and business market, the technology has seen tremendous growth in its use and applications. From smartphones to vehicles, GPS services are often just a click away and can provide life saving information. Within marine equipment, GPS can now help increase safety and navigation while traversing the open waters. As the years go by, technology for marine navigation is constantly improving as well. In this blog, we will give a short overview of the various types of GPS and navigational systems that can be used for vessels.

The first type of GPS Antenna that can be used are handheld devices. These prove to be reliable, easily transportable, and fairly cheap. As they are not specifically designed for marine vessels, they can be used for other things such as driving, travelling, hiking, and more. As they are smaller it is recommended that external antennas be attached for increased signal if possible, as well as have them mounted for easier use.

The second type of marine navigation is through chartplotters. With chartplotters, GPS information can be displayed with nautical charts, making them more suitable and useful for marine vessels. These types of systems often need to be mounted, and with an external antenna and a GPS receiver, which are often included, they can be very powerful and reliable.

The last type is through connecting a computer through a GPS, which allows for the use of chartplotters, various software, planning routes, and navigating all through one system. These can be extremely useful, through their drawbacks come in their price.

With a GPS, navigation through open waters can be much easier and safer. If there is an emergency, many GPS allow for the sending of your vessel’s coordinates to rescuers so they can easily locate you and provide assistance. Some GPS even can provide warnings if you stray too far off your plotted course, increasing the ease of traversing the ocean. A reliable GPS can be one of the most important marine hardware and hull items, and with their technology constantly growing in power and decreasing in price, having one can be a major benefit for any vessel.