In-Orbit Performance of the CanX-2 Nanosatellite's GPS Receiver

The CanX-2 Nanosatellite is a student built satellite launched into orbit April 28th, 2008. Among its scientific payloads, CanX-2 is carrying a commercial off the shelf dual frequency geodetic grade GPS receiver. The receiver, a NovAtel OEM4-G2L, is operated intermittently and has been used for the collection of both radio occultation data and orbit determination data.;This thesis presents an empirical study of the acquisition properties of the OEM4-G2L under orbital dynamics. A method has been designed for rapidly acquiring a position fix in spite of CanX-2's orbital velocity. First hand experiences of acquisition successes and challenges in orbit have helped refine the method, ultimately cutting the average acquisition time down from 20 minutes to 3.5 minutes, at the cost of operational complexity. An algorithm enabling the same rapid acquisition without ground support has been designed based on the constraints of nanosatellite operations, and validated using CanX-2 data.