Open AccessTest of GPS for permanent ionospheric TEC monitoring at high latitudes
Author(s) -
N. Zarraoa,
E. Sardón
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
annales geophysicae
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.522
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1432-0576
pISSN - 0992-7689
DOI - 10.1007/s00585-996-0011-0
Subject(s) - tec , global positioning system , latitude , ionosphere , total electron content , geodesy , longitude , geographic coordinate system , remote sensing , assisted gps , differential gps , geology , environmental science , meteorology , geography , computer science , geophysics , telecommunications
The Global Positioning System (GPS)observables are affected by the ionosphere. The dispersive nature of this effectand the use of two frequencies in the GPS observations make possible to measurethe ionospheric total electron content (TEC) from dual frequency GPS data. Inthis work we test the concept of permanent monitoring of TEC using a network ofGPS receivers at high latitudes. We have used GPS data from five permanentreceivers in Scandinavia, from 1-30 January 1994, with geographic latitudesranging from 57.4°N to 78.9°N. The results show thecapability of the method to monitor the evolution of TEC as a function of timeand geographical location. We have detected night-time enhancements almost everynight for some of the stations, and we have also been able to produce maps ofthe instantaneous TEC as a function of both latitude and longitude around theGPS network. We also present some of the current limitations in the use of GPSfor estimating TEC at high latitudes such as the difficulties in solving forcycle-slips, and the necessity of reliable values for the receiver and satellitedifferential instrumental biases