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Overviewofgps002 Module 1
Overviewofgps002 Module 1
DEFINITION OF GPS
Control Segment
User Segment
SPACE SEGMENT
• GPS satellites fly in medium Earth orbit (MEO) at an altitude of
approximately 20,200 km (12,550 miles). Each satellite circles the
Earth twice a day.
• The satellites in the GPS constellation are arranged into six equally-
spaced orbital planes (A to F)surrounding the Earth. Each plane
contains four "slots" occupied by baseline satellites.
• This 24-slot arrangement ensures users can view at least four
satellites from virtually any point on the planet.
• The Air Force normally flies more than 24 GPS satellites to maintain
coverage whenever the baseline satellites are serviced or
decommissioned. The extra satellites may increase GPS
performance but are not considered part of the core constellation.
• NAVSTAR GPS satellites are more than 20,000 km above the earth in
a posigrade orbit. A posigrade orbit is one that moves in the same direction as the
earth’s rotation.
• Since each satellite is nearly three times the earth’s radius above the surface, its orbital
period is 12 sidereal hours.
• The sidereal (star time) time scale is different from Mean Solar Time (the normal
time scale on which we operate) and different from UTC 4 minute difference.
• When an observer actually performs a GPS survey project, one of the most
noticeable aspects of a satellite’s motion is that it returns to the same position in
the sky about 4 minutes (3 minutes and 56 seconds) earlier each day. This
apparent regression is attributable to the difference between 24 solar hours and
24 sidereal hours, otherwise known as star-time. GPS satellites retrace the same
orbital path twice each sidereal day, but since their observers on earth measure
time in solar units, the orbits do not look quite so regular to them. The satellites
actually lose 3 minutes and 56 seconds with each successive solar day.
DILUTION OF PRECISION
• The accuracy of a GPS position is
subject to a geometric phenomenon
called dilution of precision (DOP).
• This number is somewhat similar to
the strength of figure consideration in
the design of a triangulation network.
• A low DOP factor is good,
• a high DOP factor is bad.
• In other words, when the satellites are
in the optimal configuration for a
reliable GPS position, the DOP is
low, when they are not, the DOP is
high.
THE HIGHER THE DOP, THE
WEAKER THE GEOMETRY
LOW/HIGH DOP
• A)
B)
• DOP is often divided up into components. These componets are
used because the accuracy of the GPS system varies. The satellites
move, so the geometry varies with time, but it is very predictable.
• For example, the configuration of the satellites over the entire span of
the observation is important; as the satellites move, the DOP changes.
• DOP can be predicted.
• It depends on the orientation of the GPS satellites relative to the GPS
receivers. And since most GPS software allow calculation of the
satellite constellation from any given position and time, they can also
provide the accompanying DOP factors.
LIVE TRACKING REPORT
https://www.gnssplanning.com/#/skyplot
BLOCK BLOCK
BLOCK I
II IIA
• Civil Signal
• M-Code and C-Code
• L5 Demo (carrier)
BLOCK IIF
(F := FOLLOW ON)
• These facilities not only monitor the L-band signals from the
GPS satellites and update their Navigation Messages but also
track the satellite’s health, their maneuvers, and many other
things, even battery recharging. Taken together, these facilities
are known as the Control Segment.
• The Master Control Station (MCS), once located at Vandenberg
Air Force Base in California, now resides at the Consolidated
Space Operations Center (CSOC) at Schriever (formerly
Falcon) Air Force Base near Colorado Springs, Colorado.
• They maneuver the satellites from the highly eccentric orbits into
which they are originally launched to the desired mission orbit and
spacecraft orientation.
• They monitor the state of each satellite's onboard battery, solar, and
propellant systems.
• They resolve satellite anomalies, activate spare satellites, and
control Selective Availability (SA) and Anti-Spoofing (A/S).
• The data that feeds the MCS comes from monitoring stations. These
stations track the entire GPS constellation.
• In the past, there were limitations. There were only six tracking stations.
It was possible for a satellite to go unmonitored for up to two hours
each day.
• It was clear that the calculation of the ephemerides and the precise
orbits of the constellation could be improved with more monitoring
stations in a wider geographical distribution.
• It was also clear that if one of the six stations went down, the
effectiveness of the Control Segment could be considerably hampered.
• Today, there are 6 Air Force and the 11 National Geospatial-
Intelligence Agency (NGA) monitoring stations.
• Every GPS satellite is tracked by at least 3 of these stations all the
time.
• The monitoring stations collect range measurements, atmospheric
information, satellite's orbital information, clock errors, velocity,
right ascension, and declination and send them to the MCS.
• The MCS needs this constant flow of information. It provides the basis
for the computation of the almanacs, clock corrections, and other
components that make up the Navigation message. The new stations also
improve the geographical diversity of the Control Segment, and that helps
with the MCS isolation of errors, for example, making the distinction
between the effects of the clock error from ephemeris errors.
GPS SIGNAL
YMCA Receiver
(Track L1 C/A, L1
and L2 P(Y), and L1
and L2Mcode)
A Generic block diagram of SPS receiver
NOTE: PICTORIAL DESCRIPTION OF
WHY GPS REQUIRE 4 SATELLITE?