Theodore L. Beach

Simultaneous Global Positioning System observations of equatorial scintillations and total electron content fluctuations

One aspect of the Global Positioning System (GPS) is the potential to conduct geophysical research, and worldwide networks of GPS receivers have been established to exploit this potential. Several research groups have begun using this global GPS data to study ionospheric total electron content (TEC) variations, also referred to as GPS phase fluctuations, as surrogates for ionospheric scintillations. This paper investigates the relationship between GPS amplitude scintillations and TEC variations for the same line of sight using observations from Ancon, Peru. These observations were taken under equatorial spread F conditions for three nights in April 1997. As expected, only when the spectrum of TEC fluctuations includes significant power at the Fresnel scale do scintillations appear. We also find that when the TEC fluctuation spectrum includes the Fresnel scale, the S4 scintillation index is roughly proportional to measures of TEC fluctuation for the weak scintillations observed. The proportionality constant varies from night to night, however, casting doubt on the ability to predict GPS S4 successfully from TEC fluctuation data alone. We also present a simple theoretical phase screen model and show that if a relationship between TEC fluctuation measures and S4 exists, that relationship depends on the power spectrum of phase variations at the screen. Unfortunately, the available TEC data, at 30 s per sample (with some aliasing apparently permitted), offer limited spectral information. A preliminary comparison of 1 s/sample data with the same data decimated to a 30 s/sample interval suggests, however, that the level of successful S4 prediction, based on TEC fluctuation measures alone, is comparable at either sample rate.

Fading timescales associated with GPS signals and potential consequences

The effect of equatorial ionospheric scintillations on the operation of GPS receivers is investigated, with special attention given to the effect of scintillation timescales on the code division multiple access (CDMA) protocol used by GPS. We begin by examining the timescales of scintillation fades modeled as a horizontally drifting pattern whose timescales are determined by the Fresnel length and the drift speed. The model is tested by comparing the speed, determined by dividing the Fresnel length by the autocorrelation time (width), with the speed estimated using spaced receivers, and the two independent estimates of speed are shown to possess a linear relationship. Next we show that the scintillation pattern drift speed is given by the difference of the ionospheric drift and the speed of the GPS signal F region puncture point. When the ionosphere and GPS signal puncture point speeds match, the fade timescales lengthen. Additionally, if the fade depth is adequate, during periods of longer fade times the loss of receiver lock on GPS signals is more likely, as shown in several examples; that is, both larger fade depths and longer fade timescales are required to produce loss of tracking. We conclude by demonstrating that speed matching or resonance between the ionosphere and receiver is most likely when the receiver is moving from west to east at speeds of 40–100 m/s (144–360 km/h). This is in the range of typical aircraft speeds.

Development and use of a GPS ionospheric scintillation monitor

Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite signals provide convenient radio beacons for ionospheric studies. Among other propagation phenomena, the ionosphere affects GPS signal propagation through amplitude scintillations that develop after radio waves propagate through ionospheric electron density irregularities. This paper outlines the design, testing, and operation of a specialized GPS receiver to monitor L-band amplitude scintillations: the Cornell scintillation monitor. The Cornell scintillation monitor consists of a commercial GPS receiver development kit with its software modified to log signal strength from up to 12 channels at a high data rate (50 samples/s). Other features of the receiver include the optional assignment of a channel to monitor the receiver noise level in the absence of signal tracking and the means to synchronize measurements between nearby independent receivers to perform drift measurements and correlation studies. The Cornell scintillation monitor provides characterization of the operational L-band scintillation environment and additionally permits study of the multipath environment of a static antenna, GPS scintillation monitors can provide information about the state of ionospheric irregularities for pure research purposes as well. Their strength lies in the fact that they are inexpensive and compact and therefore can he readily proliferated. Even a single scintillation monitor can supplement radar spatial coverage of irregularities in a limited way because it monitors several satellite lines of sight simultaneously.

Nighttime equatorial ionosphere: GPS scintillations and differential carrier phase fluctuations

The presence of scintillation-producing irregularities in the nighttime equatorial ionosphere, in the path of Global Positioning System (GPS) signals received at an equatorial station, causes dual-frequency measurements of the differential carrier phase of GPS L1 and L2 signals to have a contribution from phase scintillations on the two signals. Dual-frequency data for fluctuations in the total electron content (TEC) along the path of GPS signals to the equatorial station Ancon (1.5° dip), sampled at a rate of 1 Hz, are used to separate this contribution from the slower TEC variations. Rapid fluctuations in the differential carrier phase, usually on timescales < 100 s, which result from diffraction, are seen to follow the pattern of intensity scintillations on the L1 signal. Intensity scintillations are also related to the variations in TEC which arise from density fluctuations associated with ionospheric irregularities. An approximate version of the transport-of-intensity equation, based on a phase screen description of the irregularities, suggests that a quantitative measure of intensity scintillations may be provided by the derivative of rate of change of TEC index (DROTI), obtained from the second derivative of TEC. This equation also yields the dependence of the scaling factor between DROTI and S4 on the Fresnel frequency. Comparison of DROTI computed from relative TEC data to corresponding S4 indices indicates that there may be lesser uncertainity in a quantitative relation between the two than between the index ROTI, introduced in recent years, and S4. Power spectral analysis of TEC fluctuations and simultaneous intensity scintillations on L1 signal, recorded at Ancon, does not indicate any simple dependence of the scaling factor between DROTI and S4 on the spectral characteristics.

Ionospheric scintillation monitoring and mitigation using a software GPS receiver

Ionospheric scintillation can degrade GPS performance in many ways. The scintillations are caused by ionospheric irregularities and affect the amplitude, phase, dispersion, and related parameters of GPS signals. Both L1 and L2 are affected in a somewhat uncorrelated fashion. All these factors contribute to the performance of GPS receivers under scintillating conditions and different receiver implementations behave differently. Adequate understanding of the scintillation related effects on GPS signals is essential in order to develop GPS receivers which could be immune from ionospheric scintillation related effects. The software GPS receiver developed by CRS facilitates advanced development of GPS receivers under different conditions. We present the results obtained with scintillating data collected over Ascension Island during March 2001. The raw signals (under scintillating conditions) have been processed using the software GPS receiver in order to derive the scintillation parameters. The receiver has been configured to provide stable operation during scintillation. This implementation provides configurations of receivers for ionospheric monitoring as well as for receivers that provide reliable operation during scintillating conditions.

Diffraction by a sinusoidal phase screen

In order to develop computer simulations of diffraction patterns produced by scintillations, it is important to verify the simulations with examples of diffraction patterns that may be calculated analytically. One such example is classical knife-edge diffraction from a conducting half plane. Here we present another test case based on the one-dimensional sinusoidal phase screen first considered by A. Hewish. Using Huygens-Fresnel diffraction theory, we derive expressions, as a function of sinusoid scale size (Λ) and maximum phase deviation (ϕ0) for (1) the intensity, (2) the horizontal wave number spectrum of the intensity pattern, and (3) the modulation index, seen by an observer situated below a one-dimensional phase screen with an incident plane wave. Then we compare the analytic results with a computer simulation. Provided that the frequency resolution of the simulation is adequate, the simulation agrees quite well with the analytic results. Additionally, diffraction from a sinusoidal phase screen provides a case in which the influence of increasing distance from the screen on the modulation index (deviation of intensity from its mean) may be explored analytically for both weak and strong scattering.

C/NOFS: a demonstration system to forecast equatorial ionospheric scintillation that adversely affects navigation, communication, and surveillance systems

The purpose of the Communication/Navigation Outage Forecasting System (C/NOFS) is to detect and forecast ionospheric irregularities that adversely impact communication, navigation and surveillance systems. The C/NOFS consists of ground sites that monitor the radio link to geosynchronous and GPS spacecraft, a fully-instrumented monitoring satellite scheduled for launch in 2005 and a central data collection facility that creates scintillation warnings in near real-time. The C/NOFS spacecraft will be launched into a low inclination (13°), elliptical (~ 375 x 710 km) orbit. Sensors on the C/NOFS spacecraft measure the ambient ionosphere near the equator and detect density fluctuations which cause scintillation. Ionospheric irregularities often occur after sunset within ±20° of the magnetic equator. These irregularities can be fairly benign, causing a small amount of radio scintillation and perturbing only UHF/VHF communications, or they can be very severe, causing L-band scintillation that interfere with the functioning of GPS receivers. In these severe cases, the ionospheric irregularities can extend beyond 1000 km altitude. One of the challenges of this project is to go beyond detecting irregularities and to predict scintillation-producing irregularities up to 8 hours into the future and estimating changes in the climatology 24 hours or more into the future.