SLR Technique Used For Description Of The Earth Elasticity

We present estimated values for the global elastic parameters (h₂, l₂) derived from the analysis of Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) data. We analyse SLR data for LAGEOS 1 and LAGEOS 2 and for two low satellites, STARLETTE and STELLA, collected over a period of 2.5 years, from January 1 2005 to July 1 2007, from 18 globally distributed ground stations. The adjusted final values (h₂, l₂) for all satellites are compared. A major discrepancy between the two solutions was only found for the Shida number l₂. Computations were performed using GEODYN II NASA/GSFC software.

The following analysis is the continuation of our research published in Jagoda and Rutkowska (2013); that analysis was conducted separately for the two low satellites, STELLA and STARLETTE (separately for STELLA and separately for STARLETTE) whereas in this study we present the results of determining h₂ and l₂ parameters obtained from the joint observation of the STELLA and STARLETTE satellites (STARLETTE + STELLA) and joint observation of high satellites: LAGEOS 1 and LAGEOS 2 (LAGEOS 1 + LAGEOS 2). The combination of the observation aims at an increased stability of the estimates and reduced errors of the means of the parameters being determined.