ORCID Number

0009-0002-3361-0879

Date of Award

Spring 2026

Access Type

Thesis - Open Access

Degree Name

Master of Science in Engineering Physics

Department

Physical Sciences

Committee Chair

Alan Liu

Committee Chair Email

liuz2@erau.edu

First Committee Member

Aroh Barjatya

First Committee Member Email

barjatya@erau.edu

Second Committee Member

Kshitija Deshpande

Second Committee Member Email

deshpank@erau.edu

College Dean

Jayathi Raghavan

Abstract

Flash flood nowcasting in Central and Southern Appalachia is particularly challenging due to steep terrain, narrow valleys, highly localized rainfall patterns, and limited measurement coverage. Traditional remote sensing methods, such as Doppler radar and microwave radiometry, suffer from reduced resolution at long range and signal blockage by mountains. GNSS-meteorology offers an established alternative for measuring precipitable water vapor and is currently integrated into several numerical weather models. Recent research demonstrates that commercial-grade GNSS receivers can produce tropospheric products comparable to those from geodetic-grade equipment. The gaps in mountain coverage can be addressed by developing a low-cost, self-contained embedded system that processes raw GNSS data in real-time. Consolidating all necessary components into easily deployable units with minimal ground infrastructure and network overhead enables dense GNSS networks that provide high-resolution precipitable water vapor measurements for meteorologists to improve flash flood nowcasting in mountainous regions. This thesis presents the design, fabrication, and initial evaluation of such a station, built around the u-blox ZED-F9P multi-band receiver and a dual-core STM32H745 microcontroller. Preliminary data collected against the nearby ORMD CORS station demonstrates the receiver's viability for tropospheric applications, while exposing remaining work in clock stabilization and bias correction.

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