NASA's CDDIS provides Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) data. The data is generated by measuring the time-of-flight of laser pulses between ground stations and satellite retroreflectors. These repetitive measurements over months and years can determine station locations and crustal motion with centimeter-level precision.
Use Cases
- Measure tectonic plate motion and crustal deformation based on repetitive distance measurements between stations.
- Determine precise locations of ground-based ranging stations based on time-of-flight and satellite orbit data.
- Calculate intercontinental distances with high precision based on coordinated measurements from distant stations.
- Study long-term changes in Earth's shape and rotation based on multi-year measurement series.
Strengths
- Data enables distance measurements with precision at the centimeter level or better.
- Measurements are taken over months and years, providing a time-series for change detection.
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
- Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
Provenance
- Source
- NASA Crustal Dynamics Data Information System (CDDIS)
- Collection Method
- Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) using ground stations and satellite retroreflectors.
- Geography
- Global, with stations potentially on different continents.