A Comparison of Pole Positions Derived from GPS Satellite and Navy Navigation Satellite Observations,

Abstract

The observation of the motion of the Earth's spin axis with respect to the crust has been done continuously sincce the latter part of 1899 by the International Service. With the advent of new technologies, new determinations of polar motion have been possible. Doppler tracking of the Navy Navigation Satellites has provided estimates of the polar motion on a permanent basis since 1969. Currently, these estimates are done at the Defense Mapping Agency and are distributed to several agencies including the Bureau International de l'Heure (BIH), which has the responsibility of centralizing polar motion data. The NAVSTAR Global Positioning System (GPS) is a new navigation satellite system which will eventually replace the existing Navy Navigation Satellite System. As a byproduct of the orbit estimation process for the GPS satellites, values for the position of the pole are determined. In this paper the two different methods for computing the pole's position from satellite observations are described. The most recent results from each method are compared to each other and to the standard BIH values. (Author)

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 06, 1982
Accession Number
ADA110765

Entities

People

  • William H. Wooden Ii

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Artificial Satellites
  • Computational Science
  • Data Processing
  • Data Reduction
  • Ephemerides
  • Global Positioning Systems
  • Kalman Filters
  • Latitude
  • Measurement
  • Navigation
  • Navigation Satellites
  • Observatories
  • Satellite Constellations
  • Satellite Orbits
  • Solar Radiation
  • Standards

Readers

  • Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) Technology.
  • Space Exploration and Orbital Mechanics.

Technology Areas

  • Space
  • Space - Orbital Debris