Ice and the apparent variation of GPS station positions for Alaska
Name
1027723156-MIT.pdf
Description
Full printable version
Size
6.99 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
e6a6f5f9fb1db25889012fe0cbe7d612
Author(s)
Kochanski, Kelly Anne
Advisor(s)
Thomas Herring.
Alternative Title
Ice and the apparent variation of Global Positioning System station positions for Alaska
Date Issued
2015
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
Most GPS stations in Alaska show apparent seasonal variations on the order of one centimeter. The majority of these stations move downwards throughout the winter, a motion which is in phase with regional snowfall and has been attributed to hydrological loading (Fu et. al., 2012). The range of phases across the state, however, spans half the year and does not correlate with snow patterns. Six stations show discontinuous seasonal variations on the order of 1-10cm. After examining the geography and windspeed at these sites, we conclude that at least three of them will accumulate rime ice during the winter, and that this ice can cause apparent upwards motions of the stations. This hypothesis is supported by seasonal variations in the stations' multipath values, which indicate increased signal scattering during the winter.
Description
Thesis: S.B., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, 2015.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 49-50).
Subjects
Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
Terms of Use
MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission.
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