AbstractThe Swarm mission consists of three satellites orbiting the Earth at low orbital altitudes. The onboard GPS receivers, star cameras, and laser retro-reflectors make the Swarm mission an interesting candidate to explore the contribution of Swarm GPS data to the recovery of both the static and time-variable gravity fields. We use 1.5years of Swarm GPS and attitude data to generate kinematic positions of high quality to perform gravity field determination using the Celestial Mechanics Approach. The generated gravity fields reveal severe systematic errors along the geomagnetic equator. Their size is correlated with the ionospheric density and thus strongly varying over the analyzed time period. Similar to the findings of the GOCE mission, the systematic errors are related to the Swarm GPS carrier phase data and may be reduced by rejecting GPS data affected by large ionospheric changes. Such a measure yields a strong reduction of the systematic errors along the geomagnetic equator in the gravity field recovery. Long wavelength signatures of the gravity field may then be recovered with a similar quality as achieved with GRACE GPS data, which makes the Swarm mission well suited to bridge a potential gap between the current GRACE and the future GRACE Follow-On mission.


    Access

    Check access

    Check availability in my library

    Order at Subito €


    Export, share and cite



    Title :

    Swarm kinematic orbits and gravity fields from 18months of GPS data


    Contributors:
    Jäggi, A. (author) / Dahle, C. (author) / Arnold, D. (author) / Bock, H. (author) / Meyer, U. (author) / Beutler, G. (author) / van den IJssel, J. (author)

    Published in:

    Advances in Space Research ; 57 , 1 ; 218-233


    Publication date :

    2015-10-24


    Size :

    16 pages




    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English




    Mitigation of ionospheric effects on Swarm GPS observations and kinematic orbits

    Ren, Le / Lück, Christina / Kermarrec, Gael et al. | BASE | 2019

    Free access


    Gravity field models from kinematic orbits of CHAMP, GRACE and GOCE satellites

    Bezděk, Aleš / Sebera, Josef / Klokočník, Jaroslav et al. | Elsevier | 2013


    PPP-based Swarm kinematic orbit determination

    Ren, Le / Schön, Steffen | BASE | 2018

    Free access

    Precise science orbits for the Swarm satellite constellation

    Van den IJssel, Jose | Online Contents | 2015