Introduction

Principal Investigators: Kristine M. Larson (CU-Aerospace), Eric. E. Small (CU-Geological Sciences), and John J. Braun (UCAR-COSMIC)

Publications about our reflections work.

Collaborators in Boulder: Valery Zavorotny (NOAA-ERL), Mark Williams (CU-INSTAAR), Ethan Gutmann (NCAR), Dennis Akos (CU-Aerospace), Andria Bilich (NOAA-NGS).

Plate Boundary Observatory GPS Sites p355 (Borah Peak, Idaho) and p041 (Marshall, Colorado).

Our multipath research has benefited from the assistance of EarthScope, PBO, UNAVCO and funding from NSF AGS 0740515, EAR 0948957, NSF AGS 0935725, two University of Colorado Interdisciplinary Seedgrants and NASA NNH09ZDA001N, and NASA NNH10ZDA001N. Trimble Navigation has generously lent us equipment.

The Global Positioning System continuously transmits L-band signals to support real-time navigation users. These same signals are being tracked by networks of high-precision GPS instruments that were installed by geophysicists and geodesists to measure plate tectonics. We are using these same GPS networks to measure terrestrial essential climate parameters, including near-surface soil moisture, snow cover, and above-ground biomass.

For most sites the footprint of the method is ~30 meter in radius, which complements small-scale in situ sensors and large-scale satellite methods. We are currently developing methods to extract these climate parameters from GPS observations on a daily basis, e.g. PBO H2O. Click on the tabs on the top of this page to find out more about this project.

Felipe Nievinski is partially funded by a NASA Fellowship and a Capes-Fulbright Scholarship. Much of this research benefited from previous funding aimed at removing multipath effects (EAR 0003943 and EAR 0538116).

iRocco is partially funded by a Discovery Learning Apprenticeship. Earlier CU was fu

Some of this material is based on data, equipment, and engineering services provided by the Plate Boundary Observatory operated by UNAVCO for EarthScope and supported by the National Science Foundation (EAR-0350028 and EAR-0732947). All data from our research are archived at UNAVCO. Engineers from UNAVCO help maintain our sites.

Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations are ours and do not necessarily reflect the views of NSF, CU, or NASA.

Students: Felipe Nievinski (CU-Aerospace), Clara Chew (CU-Geological Sciences), Sarah Evans (CU-Geological Sciences), Maria Rocco (CU-Aerospace), Kyle Wolma (CU-Aerospace.