GPS data release to boost space-weather science
January 30, 2017
Today, more than 16 years of space-weather data is publicly available for the first time in history. The […]
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Today, more than 16 years of space-weather data is publicly available for the first time in history. The […]
A bi-partisan group of legislators led by Congressman John Garamendi (D-Calif.) has introduced a bill that would require the U.S. […]
A G4 (severe) geomagnetic storm is now taking place, the most powerful solar storm of the current solar cycle, […]
Ten years ago, scientists watching the skies experienced a Halloween fright of cosmic proportions, when space weather degraded […]
You may not have noticed it, but last Friday we experienced the first serious geomagnetic storm in this solar cycle (Solar Cycle 24), which began in 2009. Not all types of solar activity (sun spots, solar flares, solar burst, and solar radiation) affect GPS receiver operations. Geomagnetic storms are the ones that can cause problems for GPS receivers if those storms are powerful enough.
This week I’m following up on my article from a couple of weeks ago about the potential effects of LightSquared’s plans. As a user of high-precision GPS receivers (particularly GPS L1 sub-meter, but also dual-frequency), you should be particularly concerned about this issue. I’ll tell you why. Also, I have a note on recent the solar activity.
You might have heard reports this week about a solar storm this week. This is part of the new solar cycle (Solar Cycle 24) that I’ve written about several times. I want to periodically touch on this subject as the solar activity is going to increase over the next few years, and if the solar activity (geomagnetic storms, not sunspots) is severe enough, it will have an effect on GPS accuracy and tracking. Here’s the scoop on this week’s solar activity.
It’s time to touch on the solar activity subject again, as there was an event earlier this week and rumors began to fly. The mainstream press jumped on a story back in January when the first solar flare of Solar Cycle 24 occurred.
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