Monitoring of ducting by using a ground-based GPS receiver

Abstract

In this paper, we describe the estimation of low-altitude refractivity structure from simulation and real ground-based GPS delays. The vertical structure of the refractive environment is modeled using three parameters, i.e., duct height, duct thickness, and duct slope. The refractivity model is implemented with a priori constraints on the duct height, thickness, and strength, which might be derived from soundings or numerical weather-prediction models. A ray propagation model maps the refractivity structure into a replica field. Replica fields are compared with the simulation observed data using a squared-error objective function. A global search for the three environmental parameters is performed using a genetic algorithm. The inversion is assessed by comparing the refractivity profiles from the radiosondes to those estimated. This technique could provide near-real-time estimation of the ducting effect. The results suggest that ground-based GPS provides significant atmospheric refractivity information, despite certain fundamental limitations of ground-based measurements. Radiosondes are typically launched just a few times daily. Consequently, estimates of temporally and spatially varying refractivity that assimilate GPS delays could substantially improve over-estimates caused by using radiosonde data alone.