Abstract
The Global Positioning System is a one-way ranging system. The GPS satellites emit signals — complex modulated radio waves — which propagate through space to receivers on or near the earth’s surface.1 From the signals it intercepts, a receiver measures the ranges between its antenna and the satellites. In this chapter, we will examine the nature of the GPS signals. After a brief review of the fundamentals of electromagnetic radiation, we will describe the structure of the GPS signals. Since the signals, in propagating to a receiver, must travel through the ionosphere and the neutral atmosphere, we will examine the effect these media have on the signals. Finally, we will look at the propagation phenomena of multipath and scattering and the effects they have on the measurements made by a GPS receiver.
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Langley, R.B. (1998). Propagation of the GPS Signals. In: Teunissen, P.J.G., Kleusberg, A. (eds) GPS for Geodesy. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-72011-6_3
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