CoCom regulations and GPS receivers for balloons and cubesats

According to a discussion on Hacker News, amateur space hobbyists are running into an unexpected obstacle: export controls on GPS receivers. The restrictions, known as CoCom regulations, were designed during the Cold War to prevent advanced navigation systems from reaching hostile nations. But they're still in effect today, creating bureaucratic friction for researchers launching weather balloons and cubesats. Many commercial GPS receivers are technically restricted at high altitudes, forcing amateur projects to either find workarounds or jump through regulatory hoops.

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