ITRF2020 Reference Frame Data from Satellite Laser Ranging

NASA CDDIS hosts the International Laser Ranging Service (ILRS) contribution to the ITRF2020 reference frame. This dataset provides combined time series of weekly and bi-weekly station position estimates and Earth Orientation Parameters from seven official analysis centers. Data spans from January 1983 to 2021, with solutions aligned to calendar weeks and generated under strict international standards.

Use Cases

• Analyzing long-term station position changes for tectonic plate motion studies using weekly/bi-weekly coordinate estimates.
• Studying Earth rotation variations through daily and 3-day averaged X-pole, Y-pole, and Length-of-Day parameters.
• Validating and combining geodetic solutions by comparing outputs from the seven official ILRS Analysis Centers.
• Providing foundational data for aligning satellite orbits and other space geodetic techniques to a consistent reference frame.

Strengths

• Data combines solutions from seven official ILRS Analysis Centers, ensuring cross-validation.
• Time series covers a long temporal range from 1983 to 2021.
• Products follow strict standards agreed upon by the ILRS Analysis Standing Committee for high quality.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and dataset size are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the last updated date: datagov lists 2026-03-12, while nasa_earthdata lists 2021-12 31.

Provenance

Source

International Laser Ranging Service (ILRS), via NASA Crustal Dynamics Data Information System (CDDIS).

Collection Method

Combination of loosely constrained weekly/biweekly solutions submitted by seven official ILRS Analysis Centers.

Time Range

1983 to 2021

Freshness

2026-03-12

Geography

Global network of Satellite Laser Ranging stations.