Along-track Component Research Articles

Choices for temporal gravity field modeling for precision orbit determination of CryoSat-2

In this paper we review the precision orbit determination (POD) performance of the CryoSat-2 mission where we used all tracking data between June-2010 and Jan-2023; with station and beacon coordinates provided in the ITRF2020 reference system, we use a mean gravity model, and we use spacecraft specific models for modeling drag and radiation pressure. To model time variable gravity (TVG) we distinguish between two components, there is a short term oceanic and atmospheric part for which we use the AOD1B model; for the longer term part we employ GRACE and GRACE-FO monthly potential coefficient solutions. Our experience is that adding TVG information is not necessarily successful during POD, and that attention must be paid to the proper processing of the GRACE and GRACE-FO data. To demonstrate this property we define four runs where we gradually implement TVG information. An evaluation criterion is the level of POD tracking residuals, the level of the empirical accelerations, and a comparison to precision orbit ephemeris provided by the Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (CNES). Unexplained empirical accelerations found during POD are on the level of 3 nm/s2 for the along-track component and 13 nm/s2 for the cross-track component. The laser residuals converge at approximately 1.02 cm and the Doppler residuals are on the level of 0.406 mm/s, the radial orbit difference to the CNES POE-F (Precision Orbit Ephemeris version F) orbits narrows to 6.5 mm. Tracking residuals are not evenly distributed for DORIS (Doppler Orbitography and Radiopositioning Integrated by Satellite) beacons, the South Atlantic Anomaly effect is for instance clearly visible in the first empirical orthogonal function EOF mode of monthly binned DORIS residuals. After consideration of all possible TVG approaches our conclusion is that 3 hourly AOD1B model fields result in a small but visible improvement. The addition of TVG from GRACE and GRACE-FO is implemented in two different ways from which we can select a version that does lead to a reduction in the Doppler tracking residuals and which does reduce the level of solved for empirical accelerations.

TIME AND GEOLOCATION UNCERTAINTIES AS COMPONENTS OF THE ACCURACY OF NEAS’ GROUND-BASED OBSERVATIONS

The one of main tasks for solving the as teroid-cometary hazard problem is cataloging all objects that might come extremely close to Earth and pose a poten tial threat of collision. The reliability of their orbits significantly depends on the quality and the statistical treatment of astrometric observations, which are obtained by different observers and different techniques. Statistical analysis of the IAU MPC observational array of the small Solar system bodies and the development of a scheme for assigning weights to individual observation sets are im portant for performing asteroid orbit determination and refinement. Errors in the positions of asteroids associated with errors in the reference catalogs, observation epoch, observed brightness and rate of motion are considered in sufficient detail in investigations of Chesley et al. (2010), Farnocchia (2015), Vereš et al. (2017). Timing and geolo cation uncertainties of the observer are less discussed in the literature. But in the case of observations of NEAs, espe cially at the moments of the close approaches to the Earth, timing errors and errors in the observatory's geolocation can significantly affect the accuracy of the obtained positions. Residual differences (O - C) in the equatorial coordinate system are usually used to search and identify functional errors dependencies. To detect errors caused by timing uncertainties, instead of residual differences (О - С) in equatorial coordinates, it is more convenient to use their along-track and cross-track representation. The cross-track differences are independent of timing errors and indicate only astrometric errors. On the other hand, timing errors are fully contained in the along-track component. Here we present the simulation results of such errors and analysis using an array of observations from three observatories for the period 2017 - 2022. The array con tains more than 18,000 positions of about 900 objects. Most of the objects belong to the group of NEAs, which include PHAs during close approaches to the Earth.

High-precision physics-based radiation force models for the Galileo spacecraft

We present two new high-precision physics-based radiation force models for the In-Orbit Validation (IOV) and Full Operational Capability (FOC) spacecraft (s/c) of the Galileo Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). In both cases, the s/c bus surfaces are covered in material types, i.e., Laser Retro-reflector Array (LRA), Optical Surface Reflector (OSR) and Single-Layer Insulation (SLI) coverings, that were either not encountered or not specifically dealt with in earlier work. To address this, a number of modelling enhancements were proposed and tested, including: a specific model to account for the direct and reflected solar radiation force for LRA surfaces; a design update of the bus model computation process to allow for more than one insulation material; a specific thermal force model for OSR surfaces; a thermal force model for the Navigation Antenna (NAVANT) surface that includes a temperature model derived from on-orbit temperature measurements; and force models to account for thermal emissions from radiator panels on the +X and ±Y surfaces for both IOV and FOC, and on the -Z surface for FOC only. In the UCL2+ model each of these effects are accounted for. The theoretical impact of each modelling concept introduced is assessed, individually, by considering the magnitude of its effect in acceleration-space. The impact on orbit accuracy is confirmed through a rigorous set of Precise Orbit Determination (POD) validation tests, in which observations from all active Galileo s/c over two full years, 2017 and 2018, including during eclipsing periods, are included in the analysis. The UCL2+ approach results in day boundary discontinuities of 22 mm, 17 mm and 27 mm in the radial, across-track and along-track components, respectively. Analysis of the one-way Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) residuals suggests that radial accuracy at better than 1 cm (3.7 mm mean residuals) and precision at better than 2 cm (17 mm root mean square (rms) error) is achievable with the UCL2+ model.

An Improved Azimuth Signal Reconstruction Algorithm for Wide-Beam Distributed SAR

Distributed multichannel synthetic aperture radar (MC-SAR) is a system in which transmitting or receiving arrays are distributed on multiple platforms or at different locations on one platform. The along-track component of the baseline makes distributed SAR promising in high-resolution wide-swath (HRWS) imaging such as azimuth MC-SAR. However, the additional channel mismatch introduced by the cross-track baseline (CTB) is considered for the distributed SAR. When the azimuth beam is wide, the azimuth-variant channel mismatch caused by the CTB must be compensated before SAR imaging. First, an improved azimuth signal reconstruction algorithm for distributed wide-beam SAR is proposed in this paper. The azimuth variance of the channel mismatch is considered in a reconstruction filter to further suppress the ambiguity, and the computational consumption is decreased by approximately decomposing the mismatch matrix. Second, the ambiguity suppression performance of the proposed method is analyzed quantitatively. Finally, a simulation and real data processing are provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Inter-satellite link augmented BeiDou-3 orbit determination for precise point positioning

Precise Point Positioning (PPP) requires precise products, including high-accuracy satellite orbit and clock parameters. It is impossible to obtain an orbit solution that is sufficiently accurate for PPP services with a regional tracking network; therefore, satellite orbits are usually estimated by a global tracking network with a large number of ground stations. However, it is expensive to build globally distributed stations. Fortunately, BeiDou-3 satellites carry an Inter-Satellite Link (ISL) payload, which can track the whole arc of the BeiDou-3 satellites and enhance the orbit determination accuracy with regional ground stations. In this contribution, a novel orbit determination strategy for BeiDou-3 PPP is proposed, in which the BeiDou-3 satellite orbits are enhanced by the ISL. First, the generation of precise satellite products is demonstrated in detail. In addition, the products are assessed by Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) residuals and overlap comparisons. Moreover, the products are used for receivers in mainland China to carry out the static and kinematic modes to research the PPP performance of BeiDou-3′s 3IGSO/24MEO constellation. The SLR validations of the satellite orbits demonstrate an accuracy better than 0.1 m in the radial component, and the orbit overlap comparisons show accuracies of 0.016 m in the radial component, 0.088 m in the along-track component and 0.087 m in the cross-track component. The Standard Deviation (STD) in the differences in overlapping arcs for the estimated satellite clocks is approximately 0.10 ns. The static PPP results demonstrate that the error in both the horizontal and vertical components is smaller than 10 cm after 30 minutes of convergence. After 24 hours of convergence, the errors are 0.70 cm, 0.63 cm and 1.99 cm for the north, east and up components, respectively. The kinematic PPP experiment illustrates that the Root Mean Square (RMS) position errors in the north, east and up components are approximately 3.23 cm, 5.27 cm and 8.64 cm, respectively, after convergence. The obtainable positioning and convergence performances are comparable to those using products generated by global tracking networks.

Considering inter-receiver pseudorange biases for BDS-2 precise orbit determination

The inter-receiver pseudorange biases exist between receivers equipping with different front-end designs and correlator types. It is distinguishable from differential code biases and would affect Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) estimations if it is not taken into account in data processing. In this contribution, the effects of inter-receiver pseudorange biases on the regional BeiDou navigation satellite system (BDS-2) satellite precise orbit determination (POD) will be investigated. For validation purposes, 35 globally distributed Multi-GNSS Experiment ground stations for which the receivers are from three manufacturers were used to determine the precise orbits of BDS-2 satellites from day of year 154 to 163, 2017. The accuracy of orbit overlap and satellite laser ranging (SLR) residual validation comparisons show that by implementing inter-receiver pseudorange bias corrections, the POD accuracies of the BDS-2 satellites can be effectively improved. The root mean square errors of 24-h precise orbit determination overlap corresponding to the radial, cross-track, and along-track components are improved by 1.4%, 2.7%, and 12.7%, respectively, after correcting the inter-receiver pseudorange biases. The standard deviations of the SLR residuals of satellite C01, C13, and C11 are reduced from 30.7, 7.1, and 3.5 cm to 30.2, 6.8, and 2.9 cm, respectively. The results also showed that inter-receiver pseudorange biases will cause an along-track bias in Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite orbit determination. The performances of GEO POD in along-track component can be improved by considering the inter-receiver pseudorange biases.

The Multiple Aperture SAR Interferometry (MAI) Technique for the Detection of Large Ground Displacement Dynamics: An Overview

This work presents an overview of the multiple aperture synthetic aperture radar interferometric (MAI) technique, which is primarily used to measure the along-track components of the Earth’s surface deformation, by investigating its capabilities and potential applications. Such a method is widely used to monitor the time evolution of ground surface changes in areas with large deformations (e.g., due to glaciers movements or seismic episodes), permitting one to discriminate the three-dimensional (up–down, east–west, north–south) components of the Earth’s surface displacements. The MAI technique relies on the spectral diversity (SD) method, which consists of splitting the azimuth (range) Synthetic Aperture RADAR (SAR) signal spectrum into separate sub-bands to get an estimate of the surface displacement along the azimuth (sensor line-of-sight (LOS)) direction. Moreover, the SD techniques are also used to correct the atmospheric phase screen (APS) artefacts (e.g., the ionospheric and water vapor phase distortion effects) that corrupt surface displacement time-series obtained by currently available multi-temporal InSAR (MT-InSAR) tools. More recently, the SD methods have also been exploited for the fine co-registration of SAR data acquired with the Terrain Observation with Progressive Scans (TOPS) mode. This work is primarily devoted to illustrating the underlying rationale and effectiveness of the MAI and SD techniques as well as their applications. In addition, we present an innovative method to combine complementary information of the ground deformation collected from multi-orbit/multi-track satellite observations. In particular, the presented technique complements the recently developed Minimum Acceleration combination (MinA) method with MAI-driven azimuthal ground deformation measurements to obtain the time-series of the 3-D components of the deformation in areas affected by large deformation episodes. Experimental results encompass several case studies. The validity and relevance of the presented approaches are clearly demonstrated in the context of geospatial analyses.

Surface Deformation Related to the 2019 Mw 7.1 and 6.4 Ridgecrest Earthquakes in California from GPS, SAR Interferometry, and SAR Pixel Offsets

Abstract We analyzed Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images from Copernicus Sentinel-1A and 1B satellites operated by the European Space Agency and the Advanced Land Observation Satellite-2 (ALOS-2) satellite operated by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) data from the Network of the Americas for the 4 July 2019 Mw 6.4 and 5 July (local; 6 July UTC) Mw 7.1 Ridgecrest earthquakes. We integrated geodetic measurements for the 3D vector field of coseismic surface deformation for the two events, using SAR data from Sentinel-1 and ALOS-2 satellites. We combined less precise large-scale displacements from SAR images by pixel offset tracking or matching, including the along-track component, with the more precise SAR interferometry (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar [InSAR]) measurements in the radar line of sight (LoS) direction and intermediate-precision along-track InSAR to estimate all three components of the surface displacement for the two events together. We also estimated the coseismic deformation for the two earthquakes from time-series processing of continuous Global Navigation Satellite System data stations in the area. InSAR coherence and coherence change maps the surface disruptions due to fault ruptures reaching the surface. Large slip in the Mw 6.4 earthquake was on a NE-striking fault that intersects with the NW-striking fault that was the main rupture in the Mw 7.1 earthquake. The main fault bifurcates towards the southeast ending 3 km from the Garlock Fault. The Garlock fault had triggered slip of about 20 mm in the radar LoS along a short section directly south of the main rupture. About 3 km northwest of the Mw 7.1 epicenter, the surface fault separates into two strands that form a pull-apart with about 1 m of down-drop. Further northwest is a wide zone of complex deformation.

Contribution analysis of inter-satellite ranging observation to BDS-2 satellite orbit determination based on regional tracking stations

In order to analyse the contribution of inter-satellite ranging observation to the BeiDou regional navigation satellite system (BDS-2) satellite orbit determination under the condition of regional ground tracking stations, first, the methods of using the observation model, the dynamic parameters dilution of precision (DPDOP), and the satellite position dilution of precision (SPDOP) to describe the contribution of inter-satellite ranging observation to orbit determination accuracy are proposed. Then, based on the measured observation data of the regional ground tracking stations located in China, as well as simulated inter-satellite ranging observation data, the contribution of inter-satellite ranging observation to orbit determination accuracy for the three types of satellites used by BDS-2 is analysed. The results show that the inter-satellite ranging observation improves the solution strength of the dynamic parameters by adding redundant observations without adding new parameters to be estimated, which effectively improves the orbit determination accuracy of the along-track component of Geostationary Earth Orbit (GEO) satellite and the cross-track and radial components of Inclined Geosynchronous Orbit (IGSO) and Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) satellites. In addition, under the condition of the regional tracking stations, the inter-satellite ranging observation compensates for the disadvantage that the satellite cannot be tracked by the whole arc segment. The accuracy and continuous stability of the orbit determination solution and the geometry structure of satellites that can be observed by stations and other satellites are significant improved, for which the average DPDOP values of GEO, IGSO, and MEO satellites are improved 50.2%, 73.0%, and 72.1%, respectively.

Optimal data acquisition in multi‐pass geosynchronous SAR tomography

Geosynchronous SAR tomography (GEO TomoSAR) techniques exploit multi-pass SAR acquisitions of the same scene, taken with slightly different view angles, and allow generating fully 3D images. Compared to low earth orbit (LEO) SAR case, GEO SAR has the advantages of shorter revisit time period and wider coverage, which can greatly shorten the data acquisition time, improve the coherence of collected data and effectively improve the 3D imaging accuracy. However, GEO SAR has curved trajectories and un-parallel repeated trajectories, which introduce the along-track component of the spatial baseline. The obtained GEO TomoSAR data based on the data acquisition method using in LEO TomoSAR have the significant rotation-induced decorrelation. Thus, the imaging performance in the elevation is severely degraded. In this paper, we first analyse the feasibility of GEO TomoSAR to achieve 3D imaging. In view of the special issues existing in GEO TomoSAR, we adopt an optimal minimal rotation-induced decorrelation data acquisition method to obtain repeated trajectories data, which can effectively improve the coherence between the collected data. Then, performance of imaging in elevation was analysed based on the spatial baseline distribution. Finally, the feasibility and validity of GEO TomoSAR techniques are validated through computer simulation.

Multi-GNSS orbit determination using satellite laser ranging

Galileo, BeiDou, QZSS, and NavIC are emerging global navigation satellite systems (GNSSs) and regional navigation satellite systems all of which are equipped with laser retroreflector arrays for range measurements. This paper summarizes the GNSS-intensive tracking campaigns conducted by the International Laser Ranging Service and provides results from multi-GNSS orbit determination using solely SLR observations. We consider the whole constellation of GLONASS, all active Galileo, four BeiDou satellites: 1 MEO, 3 IGSO, and one QZSS. We analyze the influence of the number of SLR observations on the quality of the 3-day multi-GNSS orbit solution. About 60 SLR observations are needed for obtaining MEO orbits of sufficient quality with the root mean square (RMS) of 3 cm for the radial component when compared to microwave-based orbits. From the analysis of a minimum number of tracking stations, when considering the 3-day arcs, 5 SLR stations do not provide a sufficient geometry of observations. The solution obtained using ten stations is characterized with RMS of 4, 9, and 18 cm in the radial, along-track, and cross-track direction, respectively, for MEO satellites. We also investigate the impact of the length of orbital arc on the quality of SLR-derived orbits. Hence, 5- and 7-day arcs constitute the best solution, whereas 3-day arcs are of inferior quality due to an insufficient number of SLR observations and 9-day arcs deteriorate the along-track component. The median RMS from the comparison between 7-day orbital arcs determined using SLR data with microwave-based orbits assumes values in the range of 3–4, 11–16, and 15–27 cm in radial, along-track, and cross-track, respectively, for MEO satellites. BeiDou IGSO and QZSS are characterized by RMS values higher by a factor of 8 and 24, respectively, than MEO orbits.

Sea Surface Current Estimation Using Airborne Circular Scanning SAR with a Medium Grazing Angle

Circular scanning synthetic aperture radar (SAR) is a novel imaging mode wherein the radar antenna rotates from 0 degrees to 360 degrees along the platform flight direction, providing us with a potentially effective technique to estimate the sea surface current velocity. In this paper, we propose a novel method to estimate the sea surface current velocity utilizing the Doppler centroid shifts of different scan angles over 360 degrees after the airborne platform motion compensation. In this method, the Doppler centroid shifts of the sea clutter at different scan angles are first extracted, and the corresponding compensation errors caused by the azimuth pointing and the incidence angle of the radar beam are considered. Finally, the least squares (LS) technique is applied to estimate the along-track velocity component and the cross-track velocity component of the sea surface current. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by the real data recorded by an airborne circular scanning SAR system.

Investigation on Reference Frames and Time Systems in Multi-GNSS

Receivers able to track satellites belonging to different GNSSs (Global Navigation Satellite Systems) are available on the market. To compute coordinates and velocities it is necessary to identify all the elements that contribute to interoperability of the different GNSSs. For example the timescales kept by different GNSSs have to be aligned. Receiver-specific biases, or firmware-dependent biases, need to be calibrated. The reference frame used in the representation of the orbits must be unique. In this paper we address the interoperability issues from the standpoint of a Single Point Positioning (SPP) user, i.e., using pseudoranges and broadcast ephemeris. The biases between GNSSs timescales and receiver-dependent biases are analyzed for a set of 31 MGEX (Multi-GNSS Experiment) stations over a time span of more than three years. Time series of biases between timescales of GPS (Global Positioning System), GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System), Galileo, BeiDou, QZSS (Quasi-Zenith Satellite System), SBAS (Satellite Based Augmentation System) and NAVIC (Navigation with Indian Constellation) are investigated, in addition to the identification of events like discontinuity of receiver-dependent biases due to firmware updating. The GPS broadcast reference frame is shown to be aligned to the one (IGS14) realized by the precise ephemeris of CODE (Center for Orbit Determination in Europe) to within 0.1 m and 2 milliarcsec, with values dependent on whether IIR-A, IIR-B/M or IIF satellite blocks are considered. Larger offsets are observed for GLONASS, up to 1 m for GLONASS K satellites. For Galileo the alignment of the broadcast orbit to IGS14/CODE is again at the 0.1 m and several milliarcsec level, with the FOC (Full Operational Capability) satellites slightly better than IOV (In Orbit Validation). For BeiDou an alignment of the broadcast frame to IGS14/CODE comparable to GLONASS is observed, regardless of whether IGSO (Inclined Geosynchronous Orbit) or MEO (Medium Earth Orbit) satellites are considered. For all satellites, position differences according to the broadcast ephemeris relative to IGS14/CODE orbits are projected to the radial, along-track and crosstrack triad, with the largest periodic differences affecting mostly the along track component. Sudden discontinuities at the level of up to 1 m and 2–3 ns are observed for the along-track component and the satellite clock, respectively. The time scales of GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, SBAS and NAVIC are very closely aligned to GPS, with constant offsets depending on receiver type. The offset of the BeiDou time scale to GPS has an oscillatory pattern with peak-to-peak values up to 100 ns. To characterize receiver-dependent biases the average of six Septentrio receivers is taken as reference, and relative offsets of the other receiver types are investigated. These receiver-dependent biases may depend on the individual station, or for the same station on the update of the firmware. A detailed calibration history is presented for each multiGNSS station studied.

Cooperative GNSS positioning aided by road-features measurements

Cooperation between road users through V2X communication is a way to improve GNSS localization accuracy. When vehicles localization systems involve standalone GNSS receivers, the resulting accuracy can be affected by satellite-specific errors of several meters. This paper studies how road-features like lane marking detected by on-board cameras can be exploited to reduce absolute position errors of cooperative vehicles sharing information in real-time in a network. The algorithms considered in this work are based on a error bounded set membership strategy. In every vehicle, a set membership algorithm computes the absolute position and an estimation of the satellite-specific errors by using raw GNSS pseudoranges, lane boundary measurements and a 2D georeferenced road map which provides absolute geometric constraints. As lane-boundary measurements provide essentially cross-track corrections in the position estimation process, cooperation enables the vehicles to improve their own estimates thanks to the different orientation of the roads. Set-membership methods are very efficient to solve this problem since they do not involve any independence hypothesis of the errors and so, the same information can be used several times in the computation. Such class of algorithm provides a novel approach to improve position accuracy for connected vehicles guaranteeing the integrity of the computed solution which is pivoting for automated automotive systems requiring guaranteed safety-critical solutions. Results from simulations and real experiments show that sharing position corrections reduces significantly satellite-specific GNSS errors effects in both cross-track and along-track components. Moreover, it is shown that lane-boundary measurements help reducing estimation errors for all the networked vehicles even those which are not equipped with an embedded perception system.

Validation of Swarm accelerometer data by modelled nongravitational forces

Swarm is a three-satellite mission of the European Space Agency, in orbit since November 2013, whose main objective is the study of the Earth’s magnetic field from space. As part of other scientific payload, each Swarm satellite is equipped with an accelerometer that measures the nongravitational forces (e.g. atmospheric drag and radiation pressure). Since the mission beginning, the Swarm onboard accelerometer observations have been facing a problem of much higher temperature influence than it had been anticipated in the pre-launch tests. In our paper, we use the a posteriori computed models of physical nongravitational forces acting on each satellite for external validation of the accelerometer measurements. To reduce the high temperature dependence, we apply a simple and straightforward method of linear temperature correction. The most successful application of this approach is for the along-track component of the accelerometer data, where the signal magnitude is strongest. The best performing accelerometer is that of the Swarm C satellite, the accelerometer of Swarm A displays more temperature dependence and noise, the noisiest accelerometer data set is provided by Swarm B. We analyzed the occurrence of anomalous periods in the along-track accelerometer component of Swarm A and Swarm C, when the number of accelerometer hardware anomalies is peaking. Over the time interval from June 2014 to December 2015, we found a correlation between these anomalous periods and the minima in the time-varying part of the modelled nongravitational signal.

Assessment of MISR Cloud Motion Vectors (CMVs) Relative to GOES and MODIS Atmospheric Motion Vectors (AMVs)

AbstractCloud motion vector (CMV) winds retrieved from the Multiangle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) instrument on the polar-orbiting Terra satellite from 2003 to 2008 are compared with collocated atmospheric motion vectors (AMVs) retrieved from Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) imagery over the tropics and midlatitudes and from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) imagery near the poles. MISR imagery from multiple view angles is exploited to jointly retrieve stereoscopic cloud heights and motions, showing advantages over the AMV heights assigned by radiometric means, particularly at low heights (<3 km) that account for over 95% of MISR CMV sampling. MISR–GOES wind differences exhibit a standard deviation ranging with increasing height from 3.3 to 4.5 m s−1 for a high-quality [quality indicator (QI) ≥ 80] subset where height differences are <1.5 km. Much of the observed difference can be attributed to the less accurately retrieved component of CMV motion along the direction of satellite motion. MISR CMV retrieval is subject to correlation between error in retrieval of this along-track component and of height. This manifests as along-track bias varying with height to magnitudes as large as 2.5 m s−1. The cross-track component of MISR CMVs shows small (<0.5 m s−1) bias and standard deviation of differences (1.7 m s−1) relative to GOES AMVs. Larger differences relative to MODIS are attributed to the tracking of cloud features at heights lower than MODIS in multilayer cloud scenes.

GLACIER VOLUME CHANGE ESTIMATION USING TIME SERIES OF IMPROVED ASTER DEMS

Abstract. Volume change data is critical to the understanding of glacier response to climate change. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) system embarked on the Terra (EOS AM-1) satellite has been a unique source of systematic stereoscopic images covering the whole globe at 15m resolution and at a consistent quality for over 15 years. While satellite stereo sensors with significantly improved radiometric and spatial resolution are available to date, the potential of ASTER data lies in its long consistent time series that is unrivaled, though not fully exploited for change analysis due to lack of data accuracy and precision. Here, we developed an improved method for ASTER DEM generation and implemented it in the open source photogrammetric library and software suite MicMac. The method relies on the computation of a rational polynomial coefficients (RPC) model and the detection and correction of cross-track sensor jitter in order to compute DEMs. ASTER data are strongly affected by attitude jitter, mainly of approximately 4 km and 30 km wavelength, and improving the generation of ASTER DEMs requires removal of this effect. Our sensor modeling does not require ground control points and allows thus potentially for the automatic processing of large data volumes. As a proof of concept, we chose a set of glaciers with reference DEMs available to assess the quality of our measurements. We use time series of ASTER scenes from which we extracted DEMs with a ground sampling distance of 15m. Our method directly measures and accounts for the cross-track component of jitter so that the resulting DEMs are not contaminated by this process. Since the along-track component of jitter has the same direction as the stereo parallaxes, the two cannot be separated and the elevations extracted are thus contaminated by along-track jitter. Initial tests reveal no clear relation between the cross-track and along-track components so that the latter seems not to be easily modeled analytically from the first one. We thus remove the remaining along-track jitter effects in the DEMs statistically through temporal DEM stacks to finally compute the glacier volume changes over time. Our method yields cleaner and spatially more complete elevation data, which also proved to be more in accordance to reference DEMs, compared to NASA’s AST14DMO DEM standard products. The quality of the demonstrated measurements promises to further unlock the underused potential of ASTER DEMs for glacier volume change time series on a global scale. The data produced by our method will help to better understand the response of glaciers to climate change and their influence on runoff and sea level.

GLACIER VOLUME CHANGE ESTIMATION USING TIME SERIES OF IMPROVED ASTER DEMS

Volume change data is critical to the understanding of glacier response to climate change. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) system embarked on the Terra (EOS AM-1) satellite has been a unique source of systematic stereoscopic images covering the whole globe at 15m resolution and at a consistent quality for over 15 years. While satellite stereo sensors with significantly improved radiometric and spatial resolution are available to date, the potential of ASTER data lies in its long consistent time series that is unrivaled, though not fully exploited for change analysis due to lack of data accuracy and precision. Here, we developed an improved method for ASTER DEM generation and implemented it in the open source photogrammetric library and software suite MicMac. The method relies on the computation of a rational polynomial coefficients (RPC) model and the detection and correction of cross-track sensor jitter in order to compute DEMs. ASTER data are strongly affected by attitude jitter, mainly of approximately 4 km and 30 km wavelength, and improving the generation of ASTER DEMs requires removal of this effect. Our sensor modeling does not require ground control points and allows thus potentially for the automatic processing of large data volumes. <br><br> As a proof of concept, we chose a set of glaciers with reference DEMs available to assess the quality of our measurements. We use time series of ASTER scenes from which we extracted DEMs with a ground sampling distance of 15m. Our method directly measures and accounts for the cross-track component of jitter so that the resulting DEMs are not contaminated by this process. Since the along-track component of jitter has the same direction as the stereo parallaxes, the two cannot be separated and the elevations extracted are thus contaminated by along-track jitter. Initial tests reveal no clear relation between the cross-track and along-track components so that the latter seems not to be easily modeled analytically from the first one. We thus remove the remaining along-track jitter effects in the DEMs statistically through temporal DEM stacks to finally compute the glacier volume changes over time. Our method yields cleaner and spatially more complete elevation data, which also proved to be more in accordance to reference DEMs, compared to NASA’s AST14DMO DEM standard products. <br><br> The quality of the demonstrated measurements promises to further unlock the underused potential of ASTER DEMs for glacier volume change time series on a global scale. The data produced by our method will help to better understand the response of glaciers to climate change and their influence on runoff and sea level.

Extending Required Navigation Performance to Include Time Based Operations and the Vertical Dimension

Extending Required Navigation Performance to Include Time Based Operations and the Vertical Dimension

Robust and precise baseline determination of distributed spacecraft in LEO

Recent experience with prominent formation flying missions in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), such as GRACE and TanDEM-X, has shown the feasibility of precise relative navigation at millimeter and sub-millimeter levels using GPS carrier phase measurements with fixed integer ambiguities. However, the robustness and availability of the solutions provided by current algorithms may be highly dependent on the mission profile. The main challenges faced in the LEO scenario are the resulting short continuous carrier phase tracking arcs along with the observed rapidly changing ionospheric conditions, which in the particular situation of long baselines increase the difficulty of correct integer ambiguity resolution. To reduce the impact of these factors, the present study proposes a strategy based on a reduced-dynamics filtering of dual-frequency GPS measurements for precise baseline determination along with a dedicated scheme for integer ambiguity resolution, consisting of a hybrid sequential/batch algorithm based on the maximum a posteriori and integer aperture estimators. The algorithms have been tested using flight data from the GRACE, TanDEM-X and Swarm missions in order to assess their robustness to different formation and baseline configurations. Results with the GRACE mission show an average 0.7mm consistency with the K/Ka-band ranging measurements over a period of more than two years in a baseline configuration of 220km. Results with TanDEM-X data show an average of 3.8mm consistency of kinematic and reduced-dynamic solutions in the along-track component over a period of 40days in baseline configurations of 500m and 75km. Data from Swarm A and Swarm C spacecraft are largely affected by atmospheric scintillation and contain half cycle ambiguities. The results obtained under such conditions show an overall consistency between kinematic and reduced-dynamic solutions of 1.7cm in the along-track component over a period of 30days in a variable baseline of approximately 60–175km. An analysis of one orbital period excluding a region where errors due to atmospheric scintillation occur, shows a consistency between kinematic and reduced-dynamic solutions of 3mm in the along-track direction.