The integrity and strength of multi-technique terrestrial reference frames, such as realisations of the International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF), depend on the precisely measured and expressed local-tie connections between space geodetic observing systems at co-located observatories. Australia has several observatories which together host the full variety of space geodetic observation techniques, including Global Navigation Satellites Systems (GNSS), Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) and Doppler Orbitography and Radiopositioning Integrated by Satellite (DORIS) beacons.
This report documents the technical aspects of the survey undertaken to determine the local-tie connections at the Mount Stromlo SLR Observatory. The Mount Stromlo laser ranging observatory is located next the Australian National University (ANU) Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics on Mount Stromlo in Canberra. The observatory has a Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) telescope co-located with three permanent GNSS sites, two of which contribute to the International GNSS Service (IGS) network. Nearby there is a national gravity observatory at the ANU school and a radio telescope used for Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) at the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex (CDSCC) which is operated by NASA. The survey was conducted in November 2009 by surveyors from Geoscience Australia. Precision classical geodetic observations were combined with geodetic GNSS observations to determine the repeat relationship between the SLR system invariant point (IVP) and the conventional reference points of the GNSS antennas and the surrounding survey control.
The results of this survey have been provided to the International Earth Rotation Service (IERS) for inclusion in the next realisation of the ITRF.
