Smart Government: Collaborative Use of Coast Guard Differential GPS Broadcast Sites

D. B. Wolfe, C. L. Judy, A. B. Kritz and J. A. Chop

Abstract:	The U.S. Coast Guard’s Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) consists of 72 remote transmitting sites broadcasting C/A code corrections to users in the continental United States, Hawaii, Alaska, and Puerto Rico. Initial implementation of the system provided DGPS coverage to harbors and harbor approaches. Under nationwide expansion, the Coast Guard DGPS system is expected to grow to over 126 broadcast locations and provide overlapping coverage within the continental U.S. with single coverage in Hawaii, Alaska, and Puerto Rico. Implementation of the Coast Guard DGPS system involved a highly collaborative inter-agency effort that minimized cost and maximized efficiency over a wide range of services provided by various state and federal government agencies. Partnerships established with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE), the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) and National Weather Service (NWS) divisions of National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the university NAVSTAR consortium (UNAVCO) have led to low-cost high-yield expansion of numerous public service programs. These collaborative efforts created mutual benefits to participating agencies by shared use of property, equipment, and maintenance resources resulting in significant expansion of agency services to their respective user groups at minimal cost. Using the Coast Guard DGPS signal available on the Great Lakes and various inland waterways, USACOE waterways managers oversee and validate dredging projects. Costs associated with these projects are significantly reduced through the ease of validating channel depths within a contracted work area. As a partner in the Coast Guard DGPS system, USACOE provides real property leasing and site maintenance at various Great Lakes and inland waterway locations. Shared use of Coast Guard GPS Reference station receivers at DGPS broadcast sites efficiently expand the Constantly Operating Reference Station System (CORS) network managed by NGS under NOAA. In return, NGS provides GPS signal analysis for broadcast site selection, antenna position surveys during broadcast site installation, and monitoring of antenna positions after site certification. Additionally, GPS Surface Observing System (GSOS) equipment is installed at Coast Guard DGPS broadcast sites to monitor atmospheric water vapor and aid weather forecast models. Lastly, special GPS masts and antennas are being installed at Nationwide DGPS (NDGPS) sites to aid in plate tectonics research funded by the National Science Foundation through the University NAVSTA Consortium (UNAVCO). Geodetic quality choke-ring antennas will be mounted on rigid UNAVCO pedestals and connected to Coast Guard DGPS reference station receivers. GPS observables will be processed at UNAVCO to monitor geological movement of the earth’s crust.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 2002 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation January 28 - 30, 2002 The Catamaran Resort Hotel San Diego, CA
Pages:	339 - 348
Cite this article:	Wolfe, D. B., Judy, C. L., Kritz, A. B., Chop, J. A., "Smart Government: Collaborative Use of Coast Guard Differential GPS Broadcast Sites," Proceedings of the 2002 National Technical Meeting of The Institute of Navigation, San Diego, CA, January 2002, pp. 339-348.
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