News from SKPOS – 1st half of 2024
Launch of 3rd generation BeiDou (BeiDou-3) corrections
On 13 May 2024, we started the distribution of 3rd generation BeiDou (BeiDou-3) real-time corrections in the network solution. It brings you up to 7 more satellites on average, lower PDOP values and more stable fixed solution in situations where the sky is partially obscured. BeiDou-3 corrections are available at following mountpoints:
- SKPOS_CM_32
- SKPOS_CM_32_MSM7
- SKPOS_CM_CMRx
For more information about BeiDou-3 system, please refer to the Manual section.
Change of GNSS receivers at SKPOS stations
In April and May, old Trimble NETR9 receivers in central and eastern Slovakia were replaced with new Trimble Alloy receivers supporting BeiDou-3.
Increased solar activity
We are now in the 25th cycle of solar activity, which was predicted to peak in 2025. However, as you can see in the graph, the situation is even worse, because the values of the expected maximum have already been higher this year. Increased solar activity can cause problems with your measurements, especially during the noon hours. During these hours, we recommend monitoring the status of the ionosphere, which is available after logging SKPOS Online Datashop. You can find answers to frequently asked questions about that problem for example, on the solar cycle page.
SKPOS Control Software upgrade
We have upgraded the SKPOS Control software TPP to version 5.1.1. The new version includes a number of improvements and bug fixes in post-processing data generation, in the SKPOS Online Postprocessing application and it supports new receiver types.
Antenna replacement at SKPB station
At the SKPB reference station (Považská Bystrica), an antenna was replaced with a new Trimble Zephyr 3 geodetic.
Receiver firmware upgrade
All SKPOS receivers have undergone a firmware upgrade to the latest version. The biggest benefit of the latest firmware version is a technology called “Trimble IonoGuard”, which suppresses increased ionospheric activity.
Record number of simultaneous connections
During the second week of April, we set a new record for the number of simultaneous connections, with 772 in one second. This was 82 more connections than the last year´s record.
Presentation of the activities of the SKPOS National Service Center
At the GNSS seminar in Brno we presented the activities of the SKPOS National Service Centre. The Presentation is available on the SKPOS website.
