análise dos efeitos ionosféricos de ordem superior no ciclo solar 24 e influência no posicionamento GNSS absoluto

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Correlação do posicionamento por ponto GNSS com a ionosfera e com indices de atividade solar no periodo de 2002 a 2011

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Application of ionospheric corrections in the equatorial region for L1 GPS users

In the absence of the selective availability, which was turned off on May 1, 2000, the ionosphere can be the largest source of error in GPS positioning and navigation. Its effects on GPS observable cause a code delays and phase advances. The magnitude of this error is affected by the local time of the day, season, solar cycle, geographical location of the receiver and Earth's magnetic field. As it is well known, the ionosphere is the main drawback for high accuracy positioning, when using single frequency receivers, either for point positioning or relative positioning of medium and long baselines. The ionosphere effects were investigated in the determination of point positioning and relative positioning using single frequency data. A model represented by a Fourier series type was implemented and the parameters were estimated from data collected at the active stations of RBMC (Brazilian Network for Continuous Monitoring of GPS satellites). The data input were the pseudorange observables filtered by the carrier phase. Quality control was implemented in order to analyse the adjustment and to validate the significance of the estimated parameters. Experiments were carried out in the equatorial region, using data collected from dual frequency receivers. In order to validate the model, the estimated values were compared with ground truth. For point and relative positioning of baselines of approximately 100 km, the values of the discrepancies indicated an error reduction better than 80% and 50% respectively, compared to the processing without the ionospheric model. These results give an indication that more research has to be done in order to provide support to the L1 GPS users in the Equatorial region.

Higher order ionospheric effects in GNSS positioning in the European region

After removal of the Selective Availability in 2000, the ionosphere became the dominant error source for Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), especially for the high-accuracy (cm-mm) demanding applications like the Precise Point Positioning (PPP) and Real Time Kinematic (RTK) positioning.The common practice of eliminating the ionospheric error, e. g. by the ionosphere free (IF) observable, which is a linear combination of observables on two frequencies such as GPS L1 and L2, accounts for about 99% of the total ionospheric effect, known as the first order ionospheric effect (Ion1). The remaining 1% residual range errors (RREs) in the IF observable are due to the higher - second and third, order ionospheric effects, Ion2 and Ion3, respectively. Both terms are related with the electron content along the signal path; moreover Ion2 term is associated with the influence of the geomagnetic field on the ionospheric refractive index and Ion3 with the ray bending effect of the ionosphere, which can cause significant deviation in the ray trajectory (due to strong electron density gradients in the ionosphere) such that the error contribution of Ion3 can exceed that of Ion2 (Kim and Tinin, 2007).The higher order error terms do not cancel out in the (first order) ionospherically corrected observable and as such, when not accounted for, they can degrade the accuracy of GNSS positioning, depending on the level of the solar activity and geomagnetic and ionospheric conditions (Hoque and Jakowski, 2007). Simulation results from early 1990s show that Ion2 and Ion3 would contribute to the ionospheric error budget by less than 1% of the Ion1 term at GPS frequencies (Datta-Barua et al., 2008). Although the IF observable may provide sufficient accuracy for most GNSS applications, Ion2 and Ion3 need to be considered for higher accuracy demanding applications especially at times of higher solar activity.This paper investigates the higher order ionospheric effects (Ion2 and Ion3, however excluding the ray bending effects associated with Ion3) in the European region in the GNSS positioning considering the precise point positioning (PPP) method. For this purpose observations from four European stations were considered. These observations were taken in four time intervals corresponding to various geophysical conditions: the active and quiet periods of the solar cycle, 2001 and 2006, respectively, excluding the effects of disturbances in the geomagnetic field (i.e. geomagnetic storms), as well as the years of 2001 and 2003, this time including the impact of geomagnetic disturbances. The program RINEX_HO (Marques et al., 2011) was used to calculate the magnitudes of Ion2 and Ion3 on the range measurements as well as the total electron content (TEC) observed on each receiver-satellite link. The program also corrects the GPS observation files for Ion2 and Ion3; thereafter it is possible to perform PPP with both the original and corrected GPS observation files to analyze the impact of the higher order ionospheric error terms excluding the ray bending effect which may become significant especially at low elevation angles (Ioannides and Strangeways, 2002) on the estimated station coordinates.

Reproductive phenology of Atlantic forest tree species in Brazil: An eleven year study

This paper describes the reproductive phenorhythms of tree species in a tropical seasonal lowland forest in Southeastern Brazil. Every two weeks, five individuals of 41 species were observed for the occurrence of flowering and fruiting, from May 1982 to December 1992. All phenophases showed high seasonality, when considering the whole set of species, but the amplitude of the cycles was much more variable between years; only 13 species had regular flowering. Infra-annual flowering and fruiting were found in 11 and four species, respectively, while only one species flowered and fruited continually. Supra-annual cycles were observed in four (flowering) and seven (fruiting) species. An increase was observed in number of species and individuals flowering and fruiting from 1990 to 1992, following mainly an elevation in the absolute minimum air temperature. These data suggest a relationship between reproductive phenology and major climatic phenomena like El Niño events and solar activity cycles. © International Society for Tropical Ecology.

Estimativa e análise de índices de irregularidades da ionosfera utilizando dados GPS de redes ativas

Observable GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) are affected by systematic errors due to free electrons present in the ionosphere. The error associated with the ionosphere depends on the Total Electron Content (TEC), which is influenced by several variables: solar cycle, season, local time, geomagnetic activity and geographic location. The GPS (Global Positioning System), GLONASS (Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System) and Galileo dual frequency receivers allow the calculation of the error that affects the GNSS observables and the TEC. Using the rate of change of TEC (ROT - Rate of TEC) indices that indicate irregularities of the ionosphere can be determined, allowing inferences about its behavior. Currently it is possible to perform such studies in Brazil, due to the several Active Networks available, such as RBMC/RIBaC (Rede Brasileira de Monitoramento Contínuo/Rede INCRA de Bases Comunitárias) and GNSS Active Network of São Paulo. The proposed research aimed at estimating and analysing of indexes of irregularities of the ionosphere, besides supplying the geosciences of information about the behavior of the ionosphere.

Avaliação de funções para modelagem do efeito da refratação ionosférica na propagação dos sinais GPS

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Investigações preliminares sobre a influência do clima espacial no posicionamento relativo com GNSS

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Desempenho do RTK em rede sob efeito da cintilação ionosférica

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Radiação solar em ambiente protegido cultivado com tomateiro nas estações verão-outono do Rio Grande do Sul

O crescimento e desenvolvimento de uma planta dependem da intensidade, qualidade e duração da radiação solar. Por esse fator ser de importância vital às plantas, o presente trabalho objetivou fazer uma avaliação sobre sua variação, bem como sobre a sua disponibilidade no interior do ambiente protegido durante o ciclo do tomateiro nas estações verão-outono em Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul. O experimento foi conduzido de janeiro a junho de 2003 no Campus da Universidade Federal de Pelotas (latitude 31°52'S; longitude 52°21'W e altitude de 13m), em estufa plástica disposta no sentido Leste-Oeste, com área de 180m². A cultivar utilizada foi Flora-dade, semeada em 24/01/03, transplantada no dia 28/02/03, sendo a última colheita em 12/06/03. Avaliou-se a radiação solar global externa (Rgext) e interna (Rgint), transmitância, radiação fotossinteticamente ativa (RFA) e o albedo da cultura a partir de sensores eletrônicos conectados a um datalloger. Durante o ciclo da cultura, o total de Rgext foi 1161,21MJ m-2, enquanto a Rgint foi 881,85MJ m-2. A Rgint e a RFA apresentaram valores médios diários de 8,5MJ m-2 dia-1 e 3,4MJ m-2 dia-1, respectivamente. A transmitância média da cobertura plástica à radiação solar global foi de 76%. O albedo médio diário da cultura foi 0,23, com albedo de 0,17 nos estádios iniciais, 0,26 no período de máximo crescimento e 0,23 no final do ciclo.

Major Aspects of the Mercury Cycle in the Negro River Basin, Amazon

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Global and diffuse solar irradiances in urban and rural areas in southeast Brazil

The seasonal evolution of daily and hourly values of global and diffuse solar radiation at the surface are compared for the cities of São Paulo and Botucatu, both located in Southeast Brazil and representative of urban and rural areas, respectively. The comparisons are based on measurements of global and diffuse solar irradiance carried out at the surface during a six year simultaneous period in these two cities. Despite the similar latitude and altitude, the seasonal evolution of daily values indicate that São Paulo receives, during clear sky days, 7.8% less global irradiance in August and 5.1% less in June than Botucatu. on the other hand, São Paulo receives, during clear sky days, 3.6% more diffuse irradiance in August and 15.6% more in June than Botucatu. The seasonal variation of the diurnal cycle confirms these differences and indicates that they are more pronounced during the afternoon. The regional differences are related to the distance from the Atlantic Ocean, systematic penetration of the sea breeze and daytime evolution of the particulate matter in São Paulo. An important mechanism controlling the spatial distribution of solar radiation, on a regional scale, is the sea breeze penetration in São Paulo, bringing moisture and maritime aerosol that in turn further increases the solar radiation scattering due to pollution and further reduces the intensity of the direct component of solar radiation at the surface. Surprisingly, under clear sky conditions the atmospheric attenuation of solar radiation in Botucatu during winter - the biomass burning period due to the sugar cane harvest - is equivalent to that at São Paulo City, indicating that the contamination during sugar cane harvest in Southeast Brazil has a large impact in the solar radiation field at the surface.

Diurnal evolution of solar radiation at the surface in the city of São Paulo: Seasonal variation and modeling

Seasonal variations in the diurnal evolution of the global, diffuse and direct solar radiation at the surface, the clearness index, diffuse fraction and direct fraction are described in detail for the City of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The description is based on measurements of global and diffuse solar radiation carried out over 5.25 years. The diffuse component was measured with a shadow-band device. The annual evolution of the amplitude of the diurnal cycle of all radiometric parameters indicates a seasonal pattern with two distinct periods: autumn-winter and spring-summer. About 10% of the observed period was characterized by clear sky days. This seasonal variation is determined by a larger incidence of clear sky days in the autumn-winter period. Reductions of up to 10% in hourly and daily values of global radiation were observed in conjunction with an increase in particulate matter concentration on clear sky days. The pollution effect may be responsible for the discrepancy, of 16%, found between local and more regional estimates of global solar radiation in Sao Paulo. The diurnal evolution of hourly values of monthly-averaged global and diffuse solar radiation were successfully estimated by the empirical expressions derived here. Daily values of monthly-averaged global solar radiation were satisfactorily estimated using the Angstrom expression.

Brazilian solar water heating systems evaluation

The Brazilian National Electricity Conservation Program - PROCEL - runs regular surveys in the electric-energy-consumption market. These studies are used as valuable data to better plan the actions of this program. These data also evaluate the program's performance by identifying the level of penetration of the most efficient electric equipment within the residential sector. PROCEL's main lines of action is to promote and make available the most efficient technologies. Based on the results from the latest survey, it is estimated that 24% of the electric-energy consumption of the residential sector is used by electric shower devices, which instantaneously heat the water that flows through them, normally using an electric resistance of 5 kW. These are an important factor in a country where electric-heating devices are present in about 73% of Brazilian households. Keeping that in mind, the purpose of this work is to present the main results of the Brazilian Solar-Water-Heating-Systems Evaluation, finished in 2010, where 535 installations were visited and more than 50 researchers from different universities participated in the project. Moreover, seven Brazilian cities were selected to be studied. The information was collected from field research and statistically treated. The collected information focused on the adequacy of the project to the household, installation, operation and life cycle of the systems, as well as the users' satisfaction level. Technical questionnaires were developed to summarize all the required information, such as a Web site designed to organize and manage the data collected and a Matlab application that performed the dimensioning and F-chart systems evaluation. Quality indicators were created through a full system monitoring, with thermographic analysis and evaluation of shading influence at the system's efficiency, using the Ecotect software.

Análise dos parâmetros técnicos e econômicos do aquecedor solar a vácuo, visando economia de energia

This work is about a development of a vacuum solar water heater. To accomplish this, some measurements were made, such as flow, water temperature and room temperature, relative humidity, solar power density and wind speed. It first presents a brief explanation about the global situation in relation to the accelerated use of exhaustible energy sources which can result in a breakdown of these for future generations. From this, is proposed to analyze this solar water heater with vacuum tubes during the winter season in Brazil southeastern region, under different environmental conditions. From such ideas became possible to prove through the experimental part, calculations and graphical results that technology and the performance of this device are technical and economically viable, according to the life cycle of this. It was also found that the average monthly production in a maximum heat stroke situation was 193,33kWh and minimum isolation was 57,76kWh. This reveals that this instrument should start to be examined more closely by all, as a way to reduce the use of electricity, which will protect the environment without reducing the comfort of people