GPS in the cosmos

Abstract

This note chronicles the early steps and incidences from over four decades ago, that gave a kickstart to research on the now prominent subclass of radio galaxies, called 'Gigahertz-Peaked-Spectrum' (GPS) sources. In this first-hand account, the origin of the acronym 'GPS' in this context is retraced, along with the first crucial steps and the major milestones set in course of evolution of this now vibrant branch of extragalactic radio astronomy. A brief update on the recent developments in this field is also presented.