Ionospheric Radio Tomography Based on the GPS/GLONASS Navigation Systems

The specific features of the problem of ionospheric radio tomography based on the data from high-orbital navigation systems such as GPS and GLONASS are considered. An approach to solving this problem, which implies finding the solution with the minimum Sobolev's norm (i.e., the smoothest solution) is proposed. The possibilities of the proposed approach are studied by numerical modeling with the use of real geometry of high-orbital satellite constellation and the layout of the receivers. The modeling shows that the proposed approach is very efficient in the regions with a sufficiently dense network of receivers. The resolution of possible radio tomographic systems over the territory of Russia is estimated. Examples of radiotomographic reconstructions of the ionosphere obtained from real high-orbital satellite data for the European region are presented.