I am hoping all of the wise people here can help explain this to me.
I am using a Garmin GPSMap 76csx.
I am a student and was interested in seeing how far I actually walked each day so started my GPS in the morning when I left for school and left it on until I returned home, about 6 hours later. I know that I walk 2.8 miles (round trip) to and from the university. On campus I estimate about .5 miles, for an estimated total of 3.3 miles. Most of the day is spent sitting studying or in class.
When I returned home from school the GPS said I had gone 5.4 miles! There is no way that was correct. I left the GPS on while studying at home and noticed that about every 10 minutes the distance increased by a tenth of a mile while sitting on the table.
What is going on? Is the rotation of the earth changing my position relative to the satellites and recording that as movement? If so, the accuracy of the distance traveled comes in to question. I may go for a day long hike and the distance says 10 miles. Is it actually 9 or 11 depending on which way I move?
I appreciate insight into why this is and helping me understand!
Chris
http://www.qualityitemsofmontana.com
http://blog.qualityitemsofmontana.com