The IGS contribution to ITRF2014

Abstract

Following the first reprocessing campaign performed by the International GNSS Service (IGS) in 2008, a second reprocessing campaign (repro2) was finalized in 2015. Nine different Analysis Centers (ACs) reanalyzed the history of GNSS data collected by a global tracking network back to 1994 using the latest available models and methodology, and provided daily terrestrial frame solutions among other products. Daily combinations of the AC terrestrial frame solutions provided the IGS input to the next release of the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF2014). From weighted root mean squares values of the residuals of the daily repro2 combinations, the overall inter-AC level of agreement is assessed to be 1.5 mm for the horizontal components and 4 mm for the vertical component of station positions, 25–40 $$\upmu $$ as for pole coordinates, 140–200 $$\upmu $$ as/day for pole rates, 8–20 $$\upmu $$ s/day for calibrated length-of-day estimates, 4 mm for the X and Y components of geocenter motion, 8 mm for its Z component and 0.5 mm for the terrestrial scale. On the long term, the origins (resp. scales) of the AC terrestrial frames show relative offsets and rates within $$\pm $$ 3 mm and $$\pm $$ 0.3 mm/year (resp. $$\pm $$ 0.5 mm and $$\pm $$ 0.05 mm/year). The combination residuals also present AC-specific features, some of which are explained by known analysis specifics, while others remain under investigation.