基于STK的GPS/LEO无线电掩星技术仿真研究

GPS/LEO无线电掩星技术反演地球大气参数剖面已经具有较高的精度. 国外开展了多个GPS/LEO掩星项目, 但中国还尚未深入进行相关的实验, 这制约了中国掩星技术的发展. 本文提出基于STK进行GPS/LEO掩星技术研究的方法; 根据GPS/LEO掩星的原理, 推导出掩星事件发生的条件和掩星切点的计算公式; 利用STK对掩星过程进行模拟, 得到掩星数据. 在大气球对称假设和大气模型已知的条件下, 反演得到中性大气折射指数. 通过比较模型和反演数据, 表明反演数据精度较高, 验证了利用STK模拟GPS/LEO掩星实验方法的可行性.      

Validation of FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC radio occultation electron density profiles by incoherent scatter radar data

Low Earth Orbiting satellites carrying a dual frequency GPS receiver onboard offer a unique opportunity to remote sensing of the global ionosphere on a continuous basis. No other profiling technique unifies profiling through the entire F2-layer with global coverage. The FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC data can make a positive impact on the global ionosphere study providing essential information about the height electron density distribution and particularly over regions that are not accessible with ground-based measuring instruments such as ionosondes and GPS dual frequency receivers. Therefore, it is important to verify occultation profiles with other techniques and to obtain experience in the reliability of their derivation. In the given study we present results of comparison of the electron density profiles derived from radio occultation measurements on-board FS-3/COSMIC and from the Kharkov incoherent scatter radar sounding.     

Electron density retrieval from occulting GNSS signals using a gradient-aided inversion technique

In the coming years, opportunities for remote sensing of electron density in the Earth’s ionosphere will expand with the advent of Galileo, which will become part of the global navigation satellite system (GNSS). Methods for accurate electron density retrieval from radio occultation data continue to improve. We describe a new method of electron density retrieval using total electron content measurements obtained in low Earth orbit. This method can be applied to data from dual-frequency receivers tracking the GPS or Galileo transmitters. This simulation study demonstrates that the method significantly improves retrieval accuracy compared to the standard Abel inversion approach that assumes a spherically symmetric ionosphere. Our method incorporates horizontal gradient information available from global maps of Total Electron Content (TEC), which are available from the International GNSS Service (IGS) on a routine basis. The combination of ground and space measurements allows us to improve the accuracy of electron density profiles near the occultation tangent point in the E and F regions of the ionosphere.     

Estimation of differential code biases with Jason-2/3 onboard GPS observations

With the continuous deployment of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites, the estimation of differential code biases (DCBs) based on GNSS observations from LEO has gained increasing attention. Previous studies on LEO-based DCB estimation are usually using the spherical symmetry ionosphere assumption (SSIA), in which a uniform electron density is assumed in a thick shell. In this study, we propose an approach (named the SHLEO method) to simultaneously estimate the satellite and LEO onboard receiver DCBs by modeling the distribution of the global plasmaspheric total electron content (PTEC) above the satellite orbit with a spherical harmonic (SH) function. Compared to the commonly used SSIA method, the SHLEO model improves the GPS satellite DCB estimation accuracy by 13.46% and the stability by 22.34%, respectively. Compared to the GPS satellite DCBs estimated based on the Jason-3-only observations, the accuracy and monthly stability of the satellite DCBs can be improved by 14.42% and 26.8% when both Jason-2 and Jason-3 onboard observations are jointly processed. Compared with the Jason-2 solutions, the GPS satellite DCB estimates based on the fusion of Jason-2 and Jason-3 observations have an improved consistency of better than 18.26% and 9.71% with the products provided by the Center for Orbit Determination in Europe (CODE) and Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). Taking the DCB products provided by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) as references, there is no improvement in accuracy of the GPS satellite DCB estimates based on the fusion of Jason-2 and Jason-3 observations than the Jason-2 solutions alone. A periodic variation is found in the time series of both the Jason-3 and Jason-2 onboard receiver DCB estimates. Preliminary analysis of the PTEC distribution based on the estimated SH coefficients are also presented.     

Observation of wave structures in the upper atmosphere by means of radio holographic analysis of the radio occultation data

A radio holographic approach, developed by Pavelyev (1998), Hocke (1999), Igarashi (2000), is applied to observation of wave phenomena in the upper atmosphere using Global Positioning System — “Microlab-1” satellite (GPS/MET) radio occultation data. In the current state the radio holography approach uses the radar focused synthetic aperture principle to obtain high spatial resolution, and to remove the interference part corresponding to scattering from the upper ionosphere. High spatial resolution and accuracy of the radio halographic method is validated by means of revealing the weak signal reflected from the sea in the GPS/MET radio occultation data. The radio holographic method gives a new possibility to measure directly the vertical gradient of the electron density altitude profile in the D-layer using the radio occultation signal. The results of the application of radio holographic analysis to two GPS/MET occultation events (07 February 1997, No. 0447, 0158), in the D-region of the ionosphere, are discussed. Wave structures in the electron density concentration with a vertical spatial period of 1.4–6 km, and variations in the electron density gradient from ±5·10⁹ to ±8·10⁹ [1/(m³km)], have been retrieved from the D-layer data. The features observed in the vertical electron density profiles may be connected with breaking of gravity waves in the D-layer of the ionosphere.     

Higher order ionospheric propagation effects on GPS radio occultation signals

With the increasing number of remote sensing satellites using the GPS radio occultation technique for atmospheric sounding, the estimation of higher order ionospheric effects and their mitigation have become relevant and important. Due to long ionospheric limb paths, GPS signals are strongly affected by ionospheric refraction during radio occultation. Standard dual-frequency GPS measurements may be used to estimate the first order term of the refractive index. However, non-linear terms such as the second and third order ionospheric terms and ray path bending effects are not considered in occultation measurements so far. Analysing selected CHAMP–GPS occultation events different higher order ionospheric terms are estimated and their effects on dual-frequency range estimation and total electron content (TEC) estimation are discussed. We have found that the separation between the GPS L1 and L2 ray paths exceeds the kilometer level during occultation for a vertical TEC level of more than 160 TEC units. Corresponding errors in the GPS dual-frequency range estimation and TEC estimation are found to exceed the meter and 10 TEC units level, respectively.     

A global survey of COSMIC ionospheric peak electron density and its height: A comparison with ground-based ionosonde measurements

With a network of ground-based ionosondes distributed around the world, the ionospheric peak electron density and its height measured by FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC satellites in terms of GPS radio occultation technique are extensively examined in this article. It is found that, in spite of the latitude, the mean values of the peak electron density measured by COSMIC satellites are systematically smaller than those observed by ground-based ionosondes. The discrepancy between them is dependent on the latitude, namely, it is small in low and mid-latitudes and large in high-latitude region. Moreover, statistical analysis shows that the slopes of the regression line that is best fitted to the scatter diagram of occultation-retrieved peak electron density (ordinate axis) versus ionosonde-observed peak density (abscissa axis) are universally less than one. This feature is believed to be the result of path average effect of non-uniform distribution of the electron density along the GSP ray during the occultation. A comparison between COSMIC-measured peak height and ionosonde-derived peak height hmF2 indicates that the former is systematically higher than the latter. The difference in the two can be as large as 20% or more in equatorial and low-latitude regions. This result implies that the peak height hmF2 derived from the virtual height through true height analysis based on Titheridge method seems to underestimate the true peak height. The correlation between COSMIC and ionosonde peak electron densities is analyzed and the result reveals that correlation coefficient seems to be dependent on the fluctuation of the occultation-retrieved electron density profile. The correlation will be higher (lower) for the electron density profiles with smaller (larger) fluctuations. This feature suggests that the inhomogeneous distribution of the electron density along the GPS ray path during the occultation plays an important role affecting the correlation between COSMIC and ionosonde measurements.     

Measurements of the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere during tropical cyclones using the GPS radio occultation technique

Water vapour transport to the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere by deep convective storms affects the radiation balance of the atmosphere and has been proposed as an important component of climate change. The aim of the work presented here is to understand if the GPS radio occultation technique is useful for characterization of this process. Our assessment addresses the question if severe storms leave a significant signature in radio occultation profiles in the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere. Radio occultation data from the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate (COSMIC) were analyzed, focusing on two particular tropical cyclones with completely different characteristics, the hurricane Bertha, which formed in the Atlantic Basin during July 2008 and reached a maximum intensity of Category 3, and the typhoon Hondo, which formed in the south Indian Ocean during 2008 reaching a maximum intensity of Category 4. The result is positive, suggesting that the bending angle of a GPS radio occultation signal contains interesting information on the atmosphere around the tropopause, but not any information regarding the water vapour. The maximum percentage anomaly of bending angle between 14 and 18 km of altitude during tropical cyclones is typically larger than the annual mean by 5–15% and it can reach 20% for extreme cases. The results are discussed in connection to the GPS radio occultation receiver which will be part of the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space (ACES) payload on the International Space Station.     

Assessment of precision in ionospheric electron density profiles retrieved by GPS radio occultations

The Constellation Observing System for Meteorology Ionosphere and Climate (COSMIC) is a six satellite radio occultation mission that was launched in April 2006. The close proximity of these satellites during some months after launch provides a unique opportunity to evaluate the precision of Global Positioning System (GPS) radio occultation (RO) retrievals of ionospheric electron density from nearly collocated and simultaneous observations. RO data from 30 consecutive days during July and August 2006 are divided into ten groups in terms of daytime or nighttime and latitude. In all cases, the best precision values (about 1%) are found at the F peak height and they slightly degrade upwards. For all daytime groups, it is seen that electron density profiles above about 120 km height exhibit a substantial improvement in precision. Nighttime groups are rather diverse: in particular, the precision becomes better than 10% above different levels between 120 and 200 km height. Our overall results show that up to 100–200 km (depending on each group), the uncertainty associated with the precision is in the order of the measured electron density values. Even worse, the retrieved values tend sometimes to be negative. Although we cannot rely directly on electron density values at these altitudes, the shape of the profiles could be indicative of some ionospheric features (e.g. waves and sporadic E layers). Above 200 km, the profiles of precision are qualitatively quite independent from daytime or latitude. From all the nearly collocated pairs studied, only 49 exhibited a difference between line of sight angles of both RO at the F peak height larger than 10°. After analyzing them we find no clear indications of a significant representativeness error in electron density profiles due to the spherical assumption above 120 km height. Differences in precision between setting and rising GPS RO may be attributed to the modification of the processing algorithms applied to rising cases during the initial period of the COSMIC mission.     

FY-3D卫星的北斗掩星分布特征与误差特性

利用2018年1－3月FY-3D卫星的掩星折射率数据,研究了北斗导航卫星系统的掩星分布特点、数据精度以及误差统计特征。北斗导航卫星系统同步静止轨道掩星沿卫星轨道呈弧状分布在南北两极地区,倾斜轨道掩星在东西半球低纬度地区分别形成一小一大两个空洞,中地球轨道掩星则全球均匀分布。北斗掩星折射率数据精度在探测核心区域,即12~32 km范围内,与ERA5再分析资料计算的折射率相比,平均偏差的标准差约为1.5%,在核心区外,标准差从1.5%逐渐增大到6%。静止轨道掩星的平均偏差在高层略大于倾斜轨道和中地球轨道掩星。下降掩星在20 km以上区域的标准差大于上升掩星,20 km以下区域小于上升掩星。高纬地区北斗掩星标准差最小,低纬地区最大,对流层中下层尤其明显。分析结果表明,北斗掩星的数据精度和误差特征与GPS掩星数据相似。      

An alternative Shell inversion technique - Analysis and validation based on COSMIC and ionosonde data

Multi-channel Global Positioning System (GPS) carrier phase signals, received by the six low Earth orbiting (LEO) satellites from the Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate (COSMIC) program, were used to undertake active limb sounding of the Earth’s atmosphere and ionosphere via radio occultation. In the ionospheric radio occultation (IRO) data processing, the standard Shell inversion technique (SIT), transformed from the traditional Abel inversion technique (AIT), is widely used, and can retrieve good electron density profiles. In this paper, an alternative SIT method is proposed. The comparison between different inversion techniques will be discussed, taking advantage of the availability of COSMIC datasets. Moreover, the occultation results obtained from the SIT and alternative SIT at 500 km and 800 km, are compared with ionosonde measurements. The electron densities from the alternative SIT show excellent consistency to those from the SIT, with strong correlations over 0.996 and 0.999 at altitudes of 500 km and 800 km, respectively, and the peak electron densities (N_mF₂) from the alternative SIT are equivalent to the SIT, with 0.839 vs. 0.844, and 0.907 vs. 0.909 correlation coefficients when comparing to those by the ionosondes. These results show that: (1) the N_mF₂ and h_mF₂ retrieved from the SIT and alternative SIT are highly consistent, and in a good agreement with those measured by ionosondes, (2) no matter which inversion technique is used, the occultation results at the higher orbits (∼800 km) are better than those at the lower orbits (∼500 km).     

An introduction of mountain-based GPS radio occultation experiments in China

The mountain-based GPS radio occultation is a novel approach to lower atmospheric profiling. The experiments of the mountain-based GPS radio occultation were conducted on the top of Mt. Yaogu (29.38°N, 113.68°E, ∼1240 m) on December 17, 2003, and on the top of Mt. Jiugong (29.39°N, 114.65°E, ∼1550 m) on July 24, 2004. Based on these observation data, the scientific data processing software has been developed and is used to retrieve successfully the atmospheric refractivity profiles. The validation experiment was performed on the top of Mt. Wuling (40.60°N, 117.48°E, ∼2118 m) during August 1–29, 2005. Collocated automatic weather station and the radiosondes nearby were operated simultaneously for the comparison campaign. Results show that the radio occultation technique obtained about 40 profiles every day with the receiver antenna pointing to the south. Comparisons show that the refractivity measured by occultation agree well with those by the radiosondes, but not well with those by the automatic weather station due to their much different geographic locations of measurements. Results of these experiments suggest that the mountain-based GPS radio occultation is an economic reliable novel technique monitoring temporal and spatial variations of local lower atmospheric environments.     

NeQuick G model based scale factor determination for using SBAS ionosphere corrections at low earth orbit

A space-based augmentation system (SBAS) provides real-time correction data for global navigation satellite system (GNSS) users near ground. In order to use the SBAS ionosphere correction for low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites, the correction should be scaled down for the LEO altitude. This scale factor varies with ionosphere distribution and it is hard to determine the value at LEO in real time. We propose a real-time scale factor determination method by using Galileo GNSS’s NeQuick G model. A LEO satellite GPS data and SBAS data received on ground were used to evaluate the performance of the NeQuick G derived variable scale factor. The NeQuick G derived scale factor shows a significant accuracy improvement over NeQuick G model or pre-determined constant scale factor. It improves a vertical positioning accuracy of the LEO satellite. The error mean reductions of the vertical positioning over NeQuick G and the constant scale factor are 31.5% and 11.7%, respectively.     

利用COSMIC掩星数据监测电离层的异常变化

分析了COSMIC掩星数据反演电子密度的方法,利用实例研究反演方法的特点,并采用ISR非相干散射雷达获取的电子密度数据进行验证,进而反演了长三角区域SHAO（IGS）站上空在日全食和太阳风暴期间的电子密度廓线图. 通过与平静日期间电离层电子密度进行比较,发现日全食及太阳风暴导致电离层发生的异常变化,从而提出COSMIC掩星数据反演电子密度在监测电离层变化时所具有的优势.      

A comparative and numerical study of effects of gravity waves in small miss-distance and miss-time GPS radio occultation temperature profiles

The Global Positioning System (GPS) Radio Occultation (RO) technique has global coverage and is capable of generating high vertical resolution temperature profiles of the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere with sub-Kelvin accuracy and long-term stability, regardless of weather conditions. In this work, we take advantage of the anomalously high density of occultation events at the eastern side of the highest Andes Mountains during the initial mission months of COSMIC (Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate). This region is well-known for its high wave activity. We choose to study two pairs of GPS RO, both containing two occultations that occurred close in time and space. One pair shows significant differences between both temperature profiles. Numerical simulations with a mesoscale model were performed, in order to understand this discrepancy. It is attributed to the presence of a horizontal inhomogeneous structure caused by gravity waves.     

An introduction to China FY3 radio occultation mission and its measurement simulation

GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) radio occultation mission for remote sensing of the Earth’s atmosphere will be performed by GNOS (GNSS Occultation Sounder) instrument on China FengYun-3 (FY3) 02 series satellites, the first of which FY3-C will be launched in the year 2013. This paper describes the FY3 GNOS mission and presents some results of measurement simulation. The key designed specifications of GNOS are also shown. The main objective of simulation is to provide scientific support for GNOS occultation mission on the FY3-C satellites. We used EGOPS software to simulate occultation measurements according to GNOS designed parameters. We analyzed the accuracy of retrieval profiles based on two typical occultation events occurring in China South–East area among total simulated events. Comparisons between the retrieval atmospheric profiles and background profiles show that GNOS occultation has high accuracy in the troposphere and lower stratosphere. The sensitivities of refractivity to three types of instrumental error, i.e. Doppler biases, clock stability and local multipath, were analyzed. The results indicated that the Doppler biases introduced by along-ray velocity error and GNOS clock error were the primary error sources for FY3-C occultation mission.     

First evidence of anisotropy of GPS phase slips caused by the mid-latitude field-aligned ionospheric irregularities

The mid-latitude field-aligned irregularity (FAI) along the magnetic field line is a common phenomenon in the ionosphere. However, few data reveal the field-aligned ionospheric irregularities. They are insufficient to identify FAIs effects so far, particularly effect on global positioning system (GPS) signals. In this paper, the mid-latitude FAIs by line-of-sight angular scanning relative to the local magnetic field vector are investigated using the denser GPS network observations in Japan. It has been the first found that total GPS L2 phase slips over Japan, during the recovery phase of the 12 Feb 2000 geomagnetic storm were caused by GPS signal scattering on FAIs both for the lines-of-sight aligned to the magnetic field line (the field of aligned scattering, FALS) and across the magnetic field line (the field of across scattering, FACS). The FALS results are also in a good agreement with the data of the magnetic field orientation control of GPS occultation observations of equatorial scintillation during thorough low earth orbit (LEO) satellites measurements, e.g. Challenging Minisatellite Payload (CHAMP) and Satellite de Aplicaciones Cientificas-C (SAC-C). The role of large-angle scattering almost along the normal to the magnetic field line in GPS scintillation is determined by attenuation of the irregularity anisotropy factor as compared with the other factors.     

Comparative analysis of Venusian ionosphere dual-frequency radio soundings with the satellites Venera-9, 10 and Pioneer-Venus

A comparison of the Venusian ionosphere electron density profiles obtained by the dual-frequency radio occultation method for the satellites Venera-9,10 (1975) and the Pioneer-Venus orbiter (1978–1979) has been carried out. It is shown that the general nature of the profiles, the main maximum heights and electron densities, the ionopause height positions determined with the satellites Venera-9, 10 on the one hand and Pioneer-Venus orbiter on the other hand are in good agreement. This fact testifies to the reliability of the experimental dual-frequency radio occultation data. An attempt to compare the radio occultation data with the direct measurements points out the essential contradictions between them, which need detailed analysis and discussion.     

GRAS radio occultation on-board of Metop

The GRAS radio occultation instrument is flying on Metop-A and belongs to the EPS (EUMETSAT Polar System). GRAS observes GPS satellites in occultation. Within this work, validation of GRAS closed-loop bending angle data against co-located ECMWF profiles extracted from model fields and occultations from the COSMIC constellation of radio occultation instruments is shown. Results confirm the high data quality and robustness, where GRAS shows lower bending angle noise against ECMWF than COSMIC and in terms of occultations per day, one GRAS ≈ two COSMIC satellites. This is partly due to the operational setup of EPS. For the investigation we focus on two observation periods where updates in the ECMWF (March 2009) and COSMIC processing (October 2009) have improved the statistics further. Bending angles biases agree to within 0.5% against ECMWF and to within 0.1% against COSMIC after the updates for altitudes between 8 and 40 km. In addition, we also analyze the impact of the Metop orbit processing on the derived GRAS bending angle data, where different GPS and Metop orbit solutions are analyzed. Results show that a batch based orbit processing would improve in particular the bending angle bias behavior at higher altitudes. Requirements for the operational processing of GRAS data are briefly outlined, options to ease the use of other positioning system satellites in the near future are discussed. A simplified analysis on the observation of several of these systems, e.g. GPS and Galileo, from one platform shows that about 16% of occultations are found within 300 km, ±3 h, thus providing similar information. A constellation of 2 GRAS like instruments would have only about 10% close-by.     

Regional 4-D modeling of the ionospheric electron density

The knowledge of the electron density is the key point in correcting ionospheric delays of electromagnetic measurements and in studying the ionosphere. During the last decade GNSS, in particular GPS, has become a promising tool for monitoring the total electron content (TEC), i.e., the integral of the electron density along the ray-path between the transmitting satellite and the receiver. Hence, geometry-free GNSS measurements provide informations on the electron density, which is basically a four-dimensional function depending on spatial position and time. In addition, these GNSS measurements can be combined with other available data including nadir, over-ocean TEC observations from dual-frequency radar altimetry (T/P, JASON, ENVISAT), and TECs from GPS-LEO occultation systems (e.g., FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC, CHAMP) with heterogeneous sampling and accuracy.