Question

Mention the reason for clock offset error in GPS.

Hint:

GPS uses extra satellites to correct clock errors and improve accuracy.

Answer 1

Clock offset error in GPS occurs because the satellite clocks and the receiver clock are not perfectly synchronized.
GPS satellites use highly accurate atomic clocks, but GPS receivers use quartz clocks, which are less precise due to cost and size limitations.
Any difference in timing between the satellite clock and the receiver clock causes a small error in calculating the distance (pseudorange) from the satellite to the receiver.
Even a microsecond timing error can translate into significant position errors on the ground.
GPS receivers account for this by receiving signals from at least four satellites to solve for the receiver’s position and clock bias simultaneously.
Therefore, imperfect synchronization is the main cause of clock offset error in GPS.