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An Accuracy Assessment of Satellite Navigation in Natural-Resource Management

The article deals with the possibilities of applying GPS navigation technology to the management of natural resource. It is based on the results of GPS soil mapping at about 30 locations in Baranja (Eastern Croatia). The GPS receivers were used primarily for the positioning of soil-sampling site. Dynamic mapping was not monitored. The practical purpose of research was to learn more about working with GPS data, integrate GPS into GIS and test the possibilities of precise Differential GPS (DGPS). The differences between the data obtained using three methods of point positioning in space were tested: a) georeferenced aerial photographs (AERO), b) a standard GPS signal and c) a corrected DGPS signal. A systematic deviation and an error radius were established in relation to the reference value (DGPS results). Testing the difference between the GPS and AERO did not show any statistically significant difference between these two methods. According to the results of research, GPS positioning can be successfully applied in soil mapping and in natural-resource inventories in general. Positioning with an uncorrected GPS signal provides equal or better positioning accurancy than those obtained from aerial photographs at an approximate scale 1:20, 000. The use of satellite positioning depends on the needs of a given user group, where aspects relating to precision, 95% probability radius, reliability of results and feasibility are of particular importance.

Satellite navigation; precision agriculture; forest management; GPS; differential GPS; accuracy assessment

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