PlanetiQ has secured an expanded agreement under NASA’s Commercial Smallsat Data Acquisition (CSDA) program, allowing the scientific community broader access to advanced commercial satellite observations. The updated contract adds high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) GNSS Polarimetric Radio Occultation (GNSS-PRO) data to PlanetiQ’s existing suite of CSDA offerings, which already includes ionospheric scintillation measurements, total electron content data, and high-SNR GNSS radio occultation observations.

The enhanced dataset will provide researchers and government agencies with new tools for studying atmospheric processes, precipitation behavior, and broader Earth system interactions. By incorporating polarimetric radio occultation measurements, scientists can gain deeper insights into rainfall and snowfall patterns, atmospheric layers, and storm development.

GNSS-PRO technology has proven effective in analyzing precipitation characteristics, identifying melting layers, tracking storm intensity fluctuations, and detecting the structure of rain and snow systems. PlanetiQ’s proprietary receiver technology captures these observations with exceptionally high signal quality. The increased SNR improves the ability to detect light precipitation events and subtle cloud formations that may otherwise be difficult to observe.

Dr. E. Robert Kursinski, Chief Scientist at PlanetiQ, emphasized the significance of the expanded data access, noting that inclusion of polarimetric radio occultation measurements within the CSDA framework will allow a larger research community to explore innovative applications. He added that broader access to high-SNR PRO data is expected to accelerate scientific discoveries and support future operational uses in precipitation analysis and severe weather monitoring.

NASA highlighted that the integration of commercial satellite data reflects the agency’s commitment to fostering strong partnerships with private industry. By leveraging commercial capabilities, NASA can expand scientific research opportunities while reducing costs and delivering critical information more rapidly to researchers and decision-makers.

PlanetiQ gathers GNSS-PRO observations through specialized high-rate receivers designed to maximize signal quality. These measurements not only support atmospheric and climate research but also have practical applications in rainfall assessment, snowfall monitoring, storm tracking, and weather prediction.

Researchers interested in exploring the role of GNSS-PRO in precipitation analysis can learn more through PlanetiQ’s educational resources and technical presentations.

Frequently Asked Questions
What are the primary applications of GNSS-RO data?
GNSS Radio Occultation (GNSS-RO) data plays a vital role in weather forecasting and climate science. Leading meteorological organizations, including NOAA and ECMWF, incorporate atmospheric profiles derived from GNSS-RO into numerical weather prediction models to enhance forecast accuracy. These observations provide global atmospheric coverage from near the Earth’s surface to the upper atmosphere.

In addition to meteorology and climate studies, PlanetiQ is expanding the use of GNSS and radio frequency data into several emerging areas. These include GNSS signal intelligence, radio-frequency environment mapping, ionospheric observation, and the detection of navigation signal disruptions such as jamming and spoofing. Such capabilities are valuable to government, defense, and commercial sectors that depend on reliable positioning, navigation, timing, and spectrum awareness.

Overall, GNSS-RO data supports weather forecasting, climate research, space weather analysis, RF monitoring, GNSS intelligence applications, and interference detection.

What is GNSS Polarized Radio Occultation (GNSS-PRO)?
GNSS-PRO builds upon traditional GNSS Radio Occultation by incorporating dual-polarization measurement techniques. The method requires satellites equipped with specialized receiving antennas capable of capturing both horizontal and vertical polarization components of GNSS signals.

As precipitation particles such as raindrops and snowflakes often have flattened shapes, they interact differently with horizontally and vertically polarized signals. The horizontally polarized signal experiences slightly greater delay due to encountering more material along its path. By analyzing the phase difference between the two polarization channels, scientists can derive valuable information about precipitation characteristics.

This approach enables detailed observation of rainfall and snowfall structures, melting layers, precipitation bands, and changes in storm intensity. In essence, GNSS-PRO extends the capabilities of conventional GNSS-RO by providing additional information specifically related to precipitation and severe weather systems.

How can researchers access GNSS-RO and GNSS-PRO data?
NASA provides access to GNSS-RO and GNSS-PRO datasets through the CSDA program for eligible NASA researchers, U.S. government organizations, and approved international partners. Researchers who qualify can submit applications through the program to obtain the data.

Organizations and individuals that are not eligible for CSDA access may obtain information about acquiring the datasets directly from PlanetiQ through the company’s commercial channels.

In summary, government-affiliated and qualified research institutions can access these datasets via NASA’s CSDA initiative, while commercial users and other organizations may work directly with PlanetiQ to obtain the data.

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