China has approved four recommended national standards covering the full technical chain of GNSS radio occultation, from spaceborne sensing payloads to data processing and exchange, the State Administration for Market Regulation and the Standardization Administration of China said Sept. 11. The standards were developed under the coordination of the China Meteorological Administration and are intended to unify technical requirements for hardware manufacturing, data quality assessment, product classification and data sharing.
GNSS radio occultation uses spaceborne instruments to receive radio signals transmitted by navigation satellites as the signals pass through Earth’s atmosphere. Changes in signal propagation are used to retrieve atmospheric temperature, humidity and pressure, as well as electron density in the ionosphere. The technique is often compared with performing a “CT scan” of Earth’s atmosphere because it reconstructs atmospheric conditions from measurements taken along multiple signal paths.
The four standards establish a coordinated framework for the technology. The standard for GNSS radio occultation payload technical conditions defines requirements for payload structure, functions, performance, environmental adaptability and test methods. It is intended to provide common criteria for payload design, production and acceptance testing.
The standard for GNSS radio occultation data quality inspection specifies quantitative evaluation indicators and verification methods for six categories of core retrieval products, including ionospheric electron density and atmospheric temperature, humidity and pressure products. By establishing a common quality-control process, it aims to improve consistency among products generated from different platforms and data sources.
A separate standard defines the types and classification of GNSS radio occultation data products. It divides products into four processing levels, from Level 0 to Level 3, and sets out the definitions and classification rules for each level. Standardized product categories are expected to simplify data management, distribution and downstream applications.
The fourth standard specifies file formats and naming conventions for data at each processing level. It also establishes a common data-exchange interface, supporting information sharing among Chinese agencies and providing a technical foundation for international exchange of radio occultation data.
Together, the standards connect payload development, measurement processing, quality control and data delivery within a single framework. That integration is important for a remote-sensing technique in which differences in instrument performance, processing methods and data formats can otherwise make products difficult to compare or combine.
The market regulator said it would work with the China Meteorological Administration to promote the application of the standards in manufacturing, water management, aviation, maritime operations, agriculture, transportation and national defense. Wider adoption could help expand the use of GNSS radio occultation measurements across meteorological monitoring, atmospheric research and space-weather-related applications.
As standardized GNSS radio occultation data expand cross-sector applications, international organizations seeking satellite remote-sensing capabilities can work with STARPATH GLOBAL to access competitively priced satellite payloads and AIT services from China’s growing space manufacturing base. Organizations without in-house remote-sensing expertise can apply to the Pioneer Partner Program, through which its FDE team supports project development and helps train local personnel.
