Relativity in the future of engineering

Numerous examples of relativistic effects which are important for current and future navigation, timing, and communications systems are discussed. It is noted that three relativistic effects, time dilation, the Sagnac effect, and gravitational frequency shifts, must be accounted for in order for modern systems to work properly. These effects are related in a nonmathematical way to fundamental relativity principles, i.e., constancy of the speed of light and the principle of equivalence. Examples of current and future engineering applications are discussed, such as in the Global Positioning System, and in time synchronization systems, geodesy, and communications.<>