Redlands, California-Esri recently installed a GPS base station to assist its GIS developers and to support surveyors, engineers, scientists and those in public works and public safety in the community surrounding the Esri campus in Redlands, Calif. The base station, named GISA, has been accepted by the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) and incorporated into the national Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS) network.

"GPS, originally designed as a U.S. Department of Defense system, has become part of everyday life, with the technology in all types of devices from Smartphones to shipping containers," said Brent Jones, Esri surveying and engineering industry manager. "The Esri GPS base station is a great benefit to the community, as professionals can use it in surveying and positioning to achieve accurate locations in real time."

Mounted on an Esri-owned building in Redlands, GISA operates a Trimble NetR9, dual-frequency GPS/GNSS receiver with Zephyr Geodetic Model 2 antenna. GISA broadcasts real-time GPS/GNSS data on the Internet in industry-standard Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services (RTCM) formats, which allows GPS users to obtain real-time centimeter positions. The City of Redlands allowed access to the Redlands Municipal Airport for testing of GISA. Allen Instruments and Supplies of Anaheim, Calif., performed a terrestrial laser scan of the GISA site to ensure that satellite signals would not be obstructed by the built and natural environment around the station.

GISA stores GPS and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) signals in data files on a secure Esri server accessible to the public via the Esri website gnss.esri.com.