As you may know, the Geneva Motor Show public days are this week, and while we’ve been covering a number of interesting concepts and cars at the show, there’s also something happening there that no one can really explain. For some reason, many of the cars are showing their location as being in Buckingham, England, and the year as 2036.
So, what the hell is going on there? Did a wormhole open up in the Palexpo Center?
While we’re pretty sure it’s not a wormhole in spacetime, it’s not entirely clear what actually isgoing on. We have some good clues, however, thanks to the location shown on the GPS screens. The Buckingham, England address is actually the address of Racelogic, a UK company that happens to make a device called LabSat, which can simulate GPS signals.
So, could this be some publicity stunt from a daring equipment company? Possibly. But Julian Thomas, the Managing Director of Racelogic, was the person to bring this to our attention, and says it is not some publicity stunt, because, in his words, “… it is highly illegal, then it would be a pretty reckless stunt.”
Also, there’s the fact that their systems can broadcast a simulated
GPS signal in a range between 10 and 20 meters (30 and 60 feet) and the
false GPS signal is being broadcast across the entire Geneva show.
Thomas admitted that the location is the default setting of their LabSat device, which suggests that it is one of their devices sending the signal. But, in order to cover as much area as the signal is covering, someone would have to deliberately amplify the signal, or connect the LabSat to a much larger antenna.