Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsGPS radio occultation is a way to profile the atmosphere from space: a receiver on a low-Earth-orbit satellite tracks a GPS signal as it rises or sets behind Earth’s atmospheric limb. The atmosphere bends and delays the signal; scientists use those changes to calculate vertical profiles of atmospheric conditions and, separately, ionospheric electron density.
How GPS radio occultation works
The transmitter, the atmospheric limb, and the receiver form a moving satellite-to-satellite path. As the GPS satellite appears to rise or set behind Earth from the receiver’s perspective, the radio signal travels through successive atmospheric heights. “Occultation” describes that apparent passage behind the limb.
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Atmospheric molecules and ionospheric electrons affect the signal’s path and travel time. Processing measures those effects—especially changes in signal phase—and estimates bending and delay. Retrieval algorithms then use the estimates to infer geophysical properties. GPS-RO is remote sensing, not the ordinary use of GPS to determine a receiver’s position on the ground. UCAR explains GPS as one example of the broader GNSS radio occultation technique.
What it measures—and what scientists retrieve
The receiver observes radio-signal behavior; it does not directly measure every atmospheric quantity reported in a profile. The distinction matters when interpreting GPS-RO data.
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| Stage | Examples |
|---|---|
| Signal effects estimated from the observation | Bending and delay |
| Atmospheric properties retrieved from the signal effects | Bending angle, refractivity, temperature, pressure, and water vapor |
| Ionospheric property retrieved from the signal effects | Electron density |
UCAR’s overview describes atmospheric and ionospheric products, while NOAA’s COSMIC-2 overview also lists temperature, pressure, density, and water vapor.
Why GPS-RO is used
Weather forecasting
Weather prediction systems use radio-occultation profiles as observations of the atmosphere. They complement other observing systems, including in-situ networks that may be sparse over some regions; they do not replace those systems. UCAR identifies forecasting as a principal application and describes the observations as all-weather. UCAR’s overview discusses the technique and its uses.
Rank #2
- Built-in high-performance UBX-G7020KT multi-GNSS chip supports GPS, GLONASS, QZSS and SBAS, enabling fast and accurate positioning and obtain error-free NTP network time service. With official free GNSS software U-Center, it is easier to parsing the data of GPGGA, GPGLL, GPGSA, GPGSV, GPRMC, GPVTG and GPZD via PC, Laptop.
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Climate and atmospheric research
Profiles also support climate monitoring, model verification, and research into atmospheric processes. UCAR describes global three-dimensional coverage as a program-level capability, including coverage from 40 km to the surface. That overview specification should not be read as a guarantee of uniform measurement performance at every location and altitude. UCAR’s COSMIC Program page summarizes these characteristics.
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Because the signal is also affected by ionospheric electrons, GPS-RO can provide retrieved electron-density information for ionospheric and space-weather research. NOAA lists space-weather monitoring among the uses of the COSMIC-2 mission. NOAA’s COSMIC-2 overview describes the mission’s applications.
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Resolution and accuracy claims need context
UCAR’s COSMIC Program overview reports approximately 100 m vertical resolution in the lower troposphere and better than 0.1 K accuracy for averaged profiles. The accuracy figure applies to averages, not necessarily to an individual occultation. UCAR also describes all-weather observations and global three-dimensional coverage from 40 km to the surface; these are overview-level program specifications, not a promise of consistent performance at every height and location. The consulted overview does not provide an altitude-by-altitude error budget. See UCAR’s COSMIC Program description.
How GPS-RO fits into satellite observing
GPS-RO is a subset of GNSS radio occultation: GPS is one of the satellite navigation systems whose signals can be used by an orbiting receiver. The technique’s all-weather operation and complementarity with other atmospheric sounders make it useful alongside infrared and microwave observations, rather than a universal substitute for them. The cited overviews do not provide a complete quantitative, side-by-side comparison of cloud response, vertical coverage, sampling, calibration assumptions, or retrieved variables, so they do not support a general ranking of the methods. UCAR describes radio occultation’s complementarity.
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- WIRELESS BLUETOOTH GPS & UNIVERSAL COMPATIBILITY - Instantly strengthen your GPS signal on iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, or Windows. This water-resistant receiver connects via Bluetooth in seconds and works with the free GPS Status Tool app to provide high-precision coordinates and real-time position updates.
- WIRELESS BLUETOOTH GPS & UNIVERSAL COMPATIBILITY - Instantly strengthen your GPS signal on iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, or Windows. This water-resistant receiver connects via Bluetooth in seconds and works with the free GPS Status Tool app to provide high-precision coordinates and real-time position updates.
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Mission examples
GPS/MET
The GPS/MET experiment demonstrated the use of GPS radio occultation to sound Earth’s atmosphere from 1995 to 1997. UCAR’s overview describes the experiment.
COSMIC-2 (FORMOSAT-7)
NOAA describes COSMIC-2, also known as FORMOSAT-7, as a network of six remote-sensing small satellites collecting data for weather forecasting, space-weather monitoring, and climate research. NOAA announced that the mission had achieved Full Operational Capability after a review in September 2021; that announcement is a dated milestone, not a current status update. Read NOAA’s October 12, 2021 announcement.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Connects wirelessly to your mobile device: iPad, iPhone and other Bluetooth enabled smartphones, tablets and laptops to provide precise position information
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- Charge Garmin Glo 2 easily with the included USB cable or optional 12/24 V vehicle power cable
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