Precise High-Rate Measurements from a GPS-Equipped Buoy

Thomas M. Kelecy, Gerald L. Mader

Abstract:	This paper examines the use of GPS for extended high-rate monitoring of sea level and sea surface positioning for oceanographic applications requiring high accuracy (centimeter-level) and high temporal resolution (seconds). The Offshore Test Platform (OTP) is a 10 m discus buoy located about 30 km off the Mississippi Gulf coast and is maintained by the National Data Buoy Center (NDBC) of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). On April 2, 1993, a TurboRogue GPS receiver was installed on the OTP and allowed to run continuously for a 3 day period. Dual frequency phase and pseudo-range data were collected at a l-Hz sample rate and used for determining positions of the OTP relative to shore-based reference GPS receivers. Kinematic positioning and “on-the-fly” carrier phase bias estimation techniques were used to determine precise relative positions of the buoy-mounted GPS receiver. These positions can be used for the purpose of examining precise measurements of tides, waves, and buoy dynamics. Very good GPS tracking coverage and geometry contributed to the accurate determination of phase biases and permitted the computation of continuous kinematic solutions. One-second solutions of the OTP antenna position relative to a reference receiver located about 36 km away at Pascagoula, MS, show wave motion and buoy dynamics. Filtered solutions of the OTP relative to the reference site show the tidal signature over a 20-hour period. These results demonstrate that the present GPS coverage has the potential to provide centimeter-level multi-day monitoring of sea level.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 6th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1993) September 22 - 24, 1993 Salt Palace Convention Center Salt Lake City, UT
Pages:	1571 - 1579
Cite this article:	Kelecy, Thomas M., Mader, Gerald L., "Precise High-Rate Measurements from a GPS-Equipped Buoy," Proceedings of the 6th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GPS 1993), Salt Lake City, UT, September 1993, pp. 1571-1579.
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