Title
GPS based TEC estimation algorithm evaluation using simultaneous incoherent scatter radar measurements
Date Issued
01 January 2015
Access level
metadata only access
Resource Type
conference paper
Author(s)
Jicamarca Radio Observatory
Publisher(s)
The Institute of Navigation
Abstract
This paper presents a comparison between TEC estimated using a spatial gradient based approach for dual frequency receivers and using two Incoherent Scatter Radars (ISRs), one at the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center (NAIC) near Arecibo, Puerto Rico and another at the Jicamarca Radar Observatory (JRO) near Lima Peru. The purpose of this comparison is to verify the accuracy of the spatial gradient TEC estimation method in measuring the overall electron content and small fluctuations caused by ionospheric structures such as sporadic-E in the receiver viewing area. A conventional dual frequency receiver calculates the ionosphere error by differencing the L1 and L2 pseudorange measurements. The results are contaminated by the difference in the two signals' propagation times through the satellite transmission system and the receiver, known as satellite and receiver differential code bias (DCB) respectively. While satellite DCBs are relatively stable and well monitored, the receiver DCB is dependent on the receiver environment, antenna and circuit design, and receiver signal processing algorithms making it difficult to calibrate or model. In this paper the ionosphere slant TECs and the receiver DCB are treated as unknowns in the range equations. Each slant TEC is related to the vertical TEC at the corresponding receiver-satellite ionosphere piercing point (IPP) through the mapping function. We model the vertical TEC at an IPP as having contributions from the receiver zenith vertical TEC and from the TEC spatial gradients. The paper compares the TEC estimated by our dual frequency GPS spatial gradient based method with TEC derived from ISR electron density profiles. The GPS and ISR data were collected simultaneously between March 25 and 27 2011 as well as January 23 and 26 2014 at NIAC using an array of four GPS receivers and from March 6 to March 11 2013 at JRO using a single GPS receiver.
Start page
78
End page
84
Volume
2015-April
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Meteorología y ciencias atmosféricas
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-84978807581
Source
Proceedings of the Institute of Navigation Pacific Positioning, Navigation and Timing Meeting, Pacific PNT
ISSN of the container
23316284
Sponsor(s)
This project is supported by AFRL-OSURF grant #FA8650-08-D-1451 and the Dayton Area Graduate Studies Instate (DAGSI). The Arecibo Observatory is operated by SRI International under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation (AST-1100968), and in alliance with Ana G. Méndez-Universidad Metropolitana, and the Universities Space Research Association. The Jicamarca Radio Observatory is a facility of the Instituto Geofisico del Peru operated with support from the NSF AGS-0905448 through Cornell University.
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus