Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2024-150
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2024-150
02 Oct 2024
 | 02 Oct 2024
Status: this preprint is currently under review for the journal AMT.

Quality Assessment of YUNYAO GNSS-RO Refractivity Data in the Neutral Atmosphere

Xiaoze Xu, Wei Han, Jincheng Wang, Zhiqiu Gao, Fenghui Li, Yan Cheng, and Naifeng Fu

Abstract. GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) Radio Occultation (RO) data is an important component of numerical weather prediction (NWP) systems. To incorporate more GNSS RO data into NWP systems, commercial RO data has become an excellent option. Tianjin Yunyao Aerospace Technology Co., Ltd. (YUNYAO) plans to launch a meteorological constellation of 90 satellites equipped with GNSS-RO instruments, which will significantly increase the amount of GNSS-RO data in NWP systems. This study evaluates the quality of neutral atmosphere refractivity profiles from YUNYAO satellites Y003 to Y010 during the period from May 1 to July 31, 2023. Compared with the refractivity calculated from ERA5, the absolute value of the mean bias (MB) for YUNYAO refractivity data is generally less than 1.5 % between 0 and 40 km, and close to 0 between 4 and 40 km. The standard deviation (SD) is less than 3.4 %, and there are differences in the SDs for different GNSS satellites, especially in the lower troposphere and the stratosphere. Second, the refractivity error SD of YUNYAO RO data is estimated using the "three-cornered hat" (3CH) method and multiple data sets. In the pressure range of 1000–10 hPa, the refractivity error SD of YUNYAO RO data is below 2.6 %, and the differences in refractivity error SD among different GNSS satellites do not exceed 0.5 %. Finally, compared to COSMIC-2 and Metop-C RO data, YUNYAO RO data exhibit consistent refractivity error SD and are smaller within 300–50 hPa.

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Xiaoze Xu, Wei Han, Jincheng Wang, Zhiqiu Gao, Fenghui Li, Yan Cheng, and Naifeng Fu

Status: final response (author comments only)

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on amt-2024-150', Anonymous Referee #1, 04 Nov 2024
  • RC2: 'Comment on amt-2024-150', Anonymous Referee #2, 28 Nov 2024
Xiaoze Xu, Wei Han, Jincheng Wang, Zhiqiu Gao, Fenghui Li, Yan Cheng, and Naifeng Fu
Xiaoze Xu, Wei Han, Jincheng Wang, Zhiqiu Gao, Fenghui Li, Yan Cheng, and Naifeng Fu

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Short summary
Commercial GNSS-RO satellites are generally low-cost and can generate a large volume of globally distributed observations in a short period of time. To evaluate the practical application value of these data, it is necessary to assess their quality. This study evaluates the refractivity profile data quality from 8 YUNYAO satellites. By using the "three-cornered hat" (3CH) method and comparing with data from Metop-C and COSMIC-2, it was found that the YUNYAO GNSS-RO data has high data quality.