clacke: inhibited exhausted pixie dream boy πΈπͺππ°ππ> GPS is also used in TDD based 4G and 5G networks. The towers use GPS to synchronize timing for uplink and downlink duty cycles. It is possible to deploy precision clocks and sync towers, but it requires all the equipment to support it, so it isn't very common.
Wow, I had no idea. If asked, I would have assumed that the GSM+++ system has its own timekeeping, maybe anchored in a GPS reference somewhere, but not relying on GPS at every base station.
I bet a lot of civil defense services are thinking about improving that resilience right now.
Is it only for TDD though? Or is it for encryption and other timing in the packet network too? Wouldn't the whole base station be on the same time source?
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