Relationship Between Temporal and Spatial Resolution for a Constellation of GNSS-R Satellites

Constellations of GNSS-R satellites improve the coverage of regions of interest by repeating measurements in a shorter period of time than with a single spacecraft. However, the temporal and spatial resolution of the samples are dependent on each other. Detecting short time scale changes is generally done with coarser spatial resolution. Likewise, detailed observations of a region with small-scale features require longer intervals of time between observations. This study demonstrates the relationship between temporal and spatial resolution and its dependence on key mission design parameters such as the number of satellites, the number of orbit planes, and their inclination.