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A global zenith tropospheric delay model with ERA5 and GNSS-based ZTD difference correction

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Abstract

Highly accurate tropospheric delay information is essential for global navigation satellite system (GNSS) data processing. However, the current models still have limitations such as a lack of systematic difference correction and appropriate fitting functions. We investigated the performances of different order polynomials in developing ERA5 (the fifth generation of European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts Reanalysis)-based zenith tropospheric delay (ZTD) vertical adjustment model, and it is noticed that a cubic polynomial fitting function is optimal. Considering there is a difference between the ERA5 and GNSS-based ZTD, its characteristic is analyzed using 5 years data. This difference is found to have a noticeable variation of the annual period and is modeled in each window, which depends on ERA5-based ZTD vertical adjustment model. An improved ZTD vertical adjustment model is constructed using the modeled difference, and it has a 20% improvement in accuracy compared with that of ERA5-based ZTD vertical adjustment model. When the proposed ZTD vertical adjustment model is used to establish a ZTD empirical global grid model, the model, which includes systematic differences correction, has an accuracy improvement of 6 and 2%, respectively, compared with GGZTD-H (global grid zenith tropospheric delay) and without correction models. The proposed model also exhibits superior performance in precise point positioning, particularly in the vertical direction. This ZTD empirical global grid model delivers highly accurate ZTD values and can thus be a viable option for GNSS precise positioning.

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Data availability

The ERA5 data can be accessed at https://cds.climate.copernicus.eu/cdsapp#!/search?text=ERA5/. The IGS data can be found at https://cddis.nasa.gov/archive/gnss/products/.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) (Nos. 42174019 and 41974025), the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities, Guangxi Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 2023GXNSFAA026355), and the State Key Laboratory of Geodesy and Earth’s Dynamics, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Nos. SKLGED2023-3-1).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Surveying and Geo-Informatics, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China

    Haojun Li & Ge Zhu

  2. Department of Control Science and Engineering, Tongji University, Shanghai, 201804, China

    Qi Kang

  3. College of Geomatics and Geoinformation, Guilin University of Technology, Guilin, 541004, China

    Liangke Huang

  4. Chinese Academy of Surveying and Mapping, Beijing, 100036, China

    Hu Wang

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  1. Haojun Li
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  4. Liangke Huang
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  5. Hu Wang
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Contributions

Conceptualization, H.L.; methodology, H.L. G.Z. and L.H.; validation,H.L. and G.Z.; writing the main manuscript, H.L.; formal analysis, Q.K. and H.W. All authors reviewed the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Ge Zhu.

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Li, H., Zhu, G., Kang, Q. et al. A global zenith tropospheric delay model with ERA5 and GNSS-based ZTD difference correction. GPS Solut 27, 154 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10291-023-01503-8

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