Copernicus Sentinel-3 and Sentinel-6 GNSS orbital products available

December 20, 2022  - By
Artist's depiction of the Copernicus Sentinel-6 satellite, launched in November 2020. (Image: ESA)

Artist’s depiction of the Copernicus Sentinel-6 satellite, launched in November 2020. (Image: ESA)

The Copernicus Precise Orbit Determination (CPOD) Service, in charge of computing precise orbits for the Copernicus Sentinel-1, -2, -3 and -6 missions,  routinely publishes GNSS and quaternions data and precise orbital products of these missions on the POD Data Hub of the Copernicus Open Access Hub.

The following products are published:

  1. Sentinel-1, 2, 3 A&B GNSS RINEX observation files (AUX_GNSSRD)
  2. Sentinel-1, 2, 3 A&B Quaternions files (AUX_PROQUA)
  3. Sentinel-1 A&B CPOD Predicted Orbits (AUX_PREORB)
  4. Sentinel-1 A&B CPOD Restituted Orbits (AUX_RESORB)
  5. Sentinel-1 A&B CPOD Precise Orbits (AUX_POEORB)
  6. Sentinel-3 A&B CPOD Restituted Orbits (SR___ROE_AX)
  7. Sentinel-3 A&B CPOD Medium Orbit (AUX_RESORB)
  8. Sentinel-3 A&B CPOD Precise Orbits (AUX_POEORB)
  9. Sentinel-3 A&B CPOD Precise Platform data (AUX_PRCPTF)

The following new products from Sentinel-3 and Sentinel-6 are now available as well. The Sentinel-6A GNSS RINEX observations include GPS and Galileo data — the first publicly available Galileo data obtained from an orbiting receiver.

  1. Sentinel-3A&B CNES Medium Orbit Ephemeris (SR___MDO_AX)
  2. Sentinel-3A&B CNES Precise Orbit Ephemeris (SR___POE_AX)
  3. Sentinel-6A CNES Medium Orbit Ephemeris (AX____MOED_AX)
  4. Sentinel-6A CNES Precise Orbit Ephemeris (AX____POE__AX)
  5. Sentinel-6A CPOD Restituted Orbit Ephemeris (AX____ROE__AX)
  6. Sentinel-6A GNSS RINEX observation files (AUX_GNSSRD)
  7. Sentinel-6A Quaternions files (AUX_PROQUA)

The GNSS RINEX (AUX_GNSSRD) and Quaternions files (AUX_PROQUA), together with the final orbital products (AUX_POEORB, AUX_PRCPTF, SR___POE_AX, and AX____POE__AX) are available at the beginning of each mission.

The other orbital products (AUX_RESORB, SR___ROE_AX, SR___MDO_AX, AX____MOED_AX, and AX____ROE__AX) are available for at least one month, until the final products are available.

The typical accuracy of the orbital products can be found in the Regular Service Reviews carried out by the CPOD Service quarterly.

Details about these products can be found in the POD Product Handbook.

Auxiliary data needed for precise orbit determination, such as maneuvering information, can be found in the Sentinel online:

Please send questions to mailto:eosupport@copernicus.esa.int.

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About the Author: Tracy Cozzens

Senior Editor Tracy Cozzens joined GPS World magazine in 2006. She also is editor of GPS World’s newsletters and the sister website Geospatial Solutions. She has worked in government, for non-profits, and in corporate communications, editing a variety of publications for audiences ranging from federal government contractors to teachers.