A Comparative Performance Analysis of Modern Ground-Based, Air-Based, and Satellite-Based Radio Navigation Systems

Abstract

THIS PAPER PRESENTS a comparison of the performance characteristics and limitations of the major radio navigation systems which are currently operational or under development. The comparative analysis concentrates on six critical operational parameters which are considered basic to both civil and military applications. These parameters are Volumet-

The Role of the Earth's Shape in Navigation: An Example

“…A point on the Earths surface is mapped by its geodetic latitude 4on and longitude X (geodetic and geocentric longitude are the same because of the postulated spheroidal shape of the Earth). The geocentric latitude +oc is obtained from the geodetic latitude @on as @cc = $JCD + E, where E is given by (3) tan l = f tan $GD 1 + (b/a)tan'+co (4) In the remaining part of the paper we specify that the latitude is in the geocentric form (3) and henceforth the subscript GC is implied.…”

Late 19th-Century Navigational Uncertainties and Their Influence on Sea Surface Temperature Estimates

“…Despite quantification of many contributors to SST uncertainties, we are unaware of previous studies having quantitatively assessed navigational uncertainties associated with historical sea surface temperature observations. That is, errors in position associated with incorrectly recording or transcribing locations have been recognized (Woodruff et al, 1998), as have errors introduced by rounding of positions (Kent et al, 1999), but the magnitude of navigational uncertainties prior to the widespread deployment of radio navigation in the 1930s (Fried, 1977) appears not to have been quantified. Prior to radio navigation, ship position in the open ocean was mainly estimated by dead reckoning and celestial techniques (Bowditch, 1906).…”