Dry Snow Density Retrieval from Geodetic GNSS Signal-to-Noise Ratio Observations

A novel GNSS Signal Amplitude Ratio Model (GSARM) demonstrates the feasibility of retrieving dry snow density from geodetic GNSS receiver signal-to-noise ratio observations. The study compares GSARM-derived snow density against PBO-H2O, ERA5-Land, and in-situ measurements over two GNSS sites for six consecutive years, reporting RMSD values ranging from 0.032 to 0.040 g/cm³. Jie Zhang authored this research, which provides supportive information for extending the applications of traditional geodetic GNSS sites.

Use Cases

• Validating snow density retrieval models based on GNSS signal amplitude ratio corrections.
• Comparing satellite and model-based snow data (e.g., ERA5-Land) with ground-based GNSS observations.
• Developing new observation patterns for traditional geodetic GNSS sites to monitor snow properties.
• Analyzing the relationship between snow permittivity and reflected GNSS signal amplitude for environmental sensing.

Strengths

• Validation against three independent data sources (PBO-H2O, ERA5-Land, in-situ) over six consecutive years.
• Reports specific error metrics, including RMSD values between 0.032 and 0.040 g/cm³ and MAPD values between 18.46% and 23.05%.
• Proposes a novel, step-wise correction model (GSARM) for systematic and random errors in amplitude extraction.

Limitations

• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data is focused on dry snow density, potentially limiting applicability to wet snow conditions.

Provenance

Source

paperswithcode

Collection Method

Observations from geodetic GNSS receivers, processed using the proposed GSARM model.

Time Range

Six consecutive years (specific years not provided).

Geography

Two GNSS sites (specific locations not provided).