Transformations Between ECEF and ECI Reference Frames

This package currently provides two models to transform reference systems: the IAU-76/FK5 and the IAU-2006/2010 (CIO and Equinox-based approach). The following table lists the available coordinate frames and how they can be referenced in the functions that will be described later on.

Earth Orientation Parameters (EOP)

Some conversions here requires additional data related to the Earth orientation. This information is provided by IERS (International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service). This package has the capability to automatically download and parse the IERS EOP (Earth Orientation Parameters).

The function that will automatically download the files, store them in the package scratch space, and parse the data is:

fetch_iers_eop([data_type]; kwargs...)

in which data_type specifies what EOP type is desired (Val(:IAU1980) for IAU1980 and Val(:IAU2000A) for IAU2000A). If omitted, then it defaults to Val(:IAU1980).

This function returns an instance of the structure EopIau1980 or EopIau2000A depending on the selection of data_type. The returned value should be passed to the reference frame conversion functions as described in the following.

The following keywords are available:

• force_download::Bool: If the EOP file exists and is less than 7 days old, it will not be downloaded again. A new download can be forced by setting this keyword to true. (Default = false)
• url::String: URL of the EOP file.

julia> eop_iau1980 = fetch_iers_eop()EopIau1980:
     Data │ Timespan
 ─────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────────
        x │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2026-08-15T00:00:00
        y │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2026-08-15T00:00:00
  UT1-UTC │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2026-08-15T00:00:00
      LOD │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2025-08-06T00:00:00
      δΔψ │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2025-10-23T00:00:00
      δΔϵ │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2025-10-23T00:00:00
julia> eop_iau2000a = fetch_iers_eop(Val(:IAU2000A))EopIau2000A:
     Data │ Timespan
 ─────────┼──────────────────────────────────────────────
        x │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2026-08-15T00:00:00
        y │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2026-08-15T00:00:00
  UT1-UTC │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2026-08-15T00:00:00
      LOD │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2025-08-06T00:00:00
       δx │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2025-10-23T00:00:00
       δy │ 1973-01-02T00:00:00 -- 2025-10-23T00:00:00

ECEF to ECEF

One ECEF frame can be converted to another one by the following function:

r_ecef_to_ecef([T, ]ECEFo, ECEFf, jd_utc::Number, eop) -> T

where it will compute the rotation from the ECEF reference frame ECEFo to the ECEF reference frame ECEFf at the Julian Day jd_utc [UTC]. The rotation description that will be used is given by T, which can be DCM or Quaternion. If T is omitted, then it defaults to DCM. The eop in this case is always necessary. Hence, the user must initialize it as described in the section Earth Orientation Parameters (EOP).

julia> r_ecef_to_ecef(PEF(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
  1.0          -0.0         -4.34677e-7
 -6.29476e-13   1.0         -1.44815e-6
  4.34677e-7    1.44815e-6   1.0
julia> r_ecef_to_ecef(TIRS(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)DCM{Float64}:
  1.0          3.08408e-11  -4.34677e-7
 -3.14703e-11  1.0          -1.44815e-6
  4.34677e-7   1.44815e-6    1.0
julia> r_ecef_to_ecef(Quaternion, PEF(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 1.0 - 7.24073e-7⋅i + 2.17339e-7⋅j - 0.0⋅k
julia> r_ecef_to_ecef(Quaternion, TIRS(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 1.0 - 7.24073e-7⋅i + 2.17339e-7⋅j + 1.55778e-11⋅k

ECI to ECI

One ECI frame can be converted to another ECI frame by one of the following functions:

r_eci_to_eci([T, ]ECIo, ECIf, jd_utc::Number[, eop]) -> T
r_eci_to_eci([T, ]ECIo, jd_utco::Number, ECIf, jd_utcf::Number[, eop]) -> T

where it will compute the rotation from the ECI reference frame ECIo to another ECI reference frame ECIf. If the origin and destination frame contain only one of date frame, the first signature is used and the Julian Day jd_utc [UTC] is the epoch of this frame. On the other hand, if the origin and destination frame contain two of date frame^[1], e.g. TOD => MOD, the second signature must be used in which the Julian Day jd_utco [UTC] is the epoch of the origin frame and the Julian Day jd_utcf [UTC] is the epoch of the destination frame. The rotation description that will be used is given by T, which can be DCM or Quaternion. If T is omitted, then it defaults to DCM. The EOP data eop_data, as described in section Earth Orientation Parameters (EOP), is required in some conversions, as described in the following table.

¹: In this case, the terms that account for the free-core nutation and time dependent effects of the Celestial Intermediate Pole (CIP) position with respect to the GCRF will not be available, reducing the precision.

²: The transformation between GCRF and MJ2000 is a constant rotation matrix called bias. Hence, the date does not modify it. However, this signature was kept to avoid complications in the API.

³: In this case, the terms that corrects the nutation in obliquity and in longitude due to the free core nutation will not be available, reducing the precision.

julia> r_eci_to_eci(DCM, GCRF(), J2000(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
  1.0          -4.71332e-12   1.53474e-9
  4.71332e-12   1.0          -3.53979e-9
 -1.53474e-9    3.53979e-9    1.0
julia> r_eci_to_eci(Quaternion, TEME(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 0.999999 + 1.83013e-5⋅i + 0.000665304⋅j - 0.00151324⋅k
julia> r_eci_to_eci(
           TOD(),
           date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0),
           TOD(),
           date_to_jd(1987, 5, 19 , 3, 0, 0),
           eop_iau1980
       )DCM{Float64}:
 1.0          -0.000224088  -9.73787e-5
 0.000224087   1.0          -5.80065e-6
 9.738e-5      5.77883e-6    1.0
julia> r_eci_to_eci(Quaternion, TOD(), 2451545.0, MOD(), 2451545.0, eop_iau1980)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 1.0 - 1.40025e-5⋅i + 1.34736e-5⋅j - 3.10785e-5⋅k
julia> r_eci_to_eci(J2000(), TEME(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0))DCM{Float64}:
  0.999995    0.0030265    0.00133055
 -0.00302645  0.999995    -3.86125e-5
 -0.00133066  3.45854e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_eci(CIRS(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)DCM{Float64}:
 0.999999     3.88389e-8  -0.00133066
 7.18837e-9   1.0          3.45897e-5
 0.00133066  -3.45897e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_eci(Quaternion, CIRS(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 1.0 + 1.72949e-5⋅i + 0.000665332⋅j + 7.91263e-9⋅k
julia> r_eci_to_eci(DCM, GCRF(), J2000(), date_to_jd(1986, 6, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
  1.0          -4.71332e-12   1.53474e-9
  4.71332e-12   1.0          -3.53979e-9
 -1.53474e-9    3.53979e-9    1.0

ECEF to ECI

One ECEF frame can be convert to one ECI frame using the following function:

r_ecef_to_eci([T, ]ECEF, ECI, jd_utc::Number[, eop]) -> T

where it will compute the rotation from the ECEF frame to the ECI frame at the Julian Day [UTC] jd_utc. The rotation description that will be used is given by T, which can be DCM or Quaternion. If it is omitted, then it defaults to DCM. The EOP data eop_data, as described in section Earth Orientation Parameters (EOP), is required in some conversions, as described in the following table.

¹: In this case, UTC will be assumed equal to UT1 to compute the Greenwich Mean Sidereal Time. This is an approximation, but should be sufficiently accurate for some applications. Notice that, if EOP Data is provided, UT1 will be accurately computed.

²: In this case, the terms that account for the free core nutation and time dependent effects of the Celestial Intermediate Pole (CIP) position with respect to the GCRF will not be available, reducing the precision.

³: In this case, the terms that corrects the nutation in obliquity and in longitude due to the free core nutation will not be available, reducing the precision.

julia> r_ecef_to_eci(DCM, ITRF(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267      0.78518     -0.00132979
 -0.78518      -0.619267     3.33509e-5
 -0.000797312   0.00106478   0.999999
julia> r_ecef_to_eci(ITRF(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267      0.78518     -0.00132979
 -0.78518      -0.619267     3.33509e-5
 -0.000797312   0.00106478   0.999999
julia> r_ecef_to_eci(PEF(), J2000(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0))DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619271      0.785176    -0.00133066
 -0.785177     -0.619272     3.45854e-5
 -0.000796885   0.00106622   0.999999
julia> r_ecef_to_eci(PEF(), J2000(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267      0.78518     -0.00133066
 -0.78518      -0.619267     3.45854e-5
 -0.000796879   0.00106623   0.999999
julia> r_ecef_to_eci(Quaternion, ITRF(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 0.43631 - 0.000590997⋅i + 0.000305106⋅j + 0.899796⋅k
julia> r_ecef_to_eci(ITRF(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267      0.78518     -0.00132979
 -0.78518      -0.619267     3.33516e-5
 -0.000797311   0.00106478   0.999999
julia> r_ecef_to_eci(TIRS(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0))DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619271      0.785176    -0.00133066
 -0.785177     -0.619272     3.45884e-5
 -0.000796885   0.00106623   0.999999
julia> r_ecef_to_eci(Quaternion, ITRF(), GCRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 0.43631 - 0.000590997⋅i + 0.000305106⋅j + 0.899796⋅k

ECI to ECEF

One ECI frame can be converted to one ECEF frame using the following function:

r_eci_to_ecef([T, ]ECI, ECEF, jd_utc::Number[, eop]) -> T

which has the same characteristics of the function r_ecef_to_eci described in Section ECEF to ECI, but with the inputs ECI and ECEF swapped.

julia> r_eci_to_ecef(DCM, GCRF(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267    -0.78518     -0.000797312
  0.78518     -0.619267     0.00106478
 -0.00132979   3.33509e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_ecef(GCRF(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267    -0.78518     -0.000797312
  0.78518     -0.619267     0.00106478
 -0.00132979   3.33509e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_ecef(J2000(), PEF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0))DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619271    -0.785177    -0.000796885
  0.785176    -0.619272     0.00106622
 -0.00133066   3.45854e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_ecef(J2000(), PEF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267    -0.78518     -0.000796879
  0.78518     -0.619267     0.00106623
 -0.00133066   3.45854e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_ecef(Quaternion, GCRF(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau1980)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 0.43631 + 0.000590997⋅i - 0.000305106⋅j - 0.899796⋅k
julia> r_eci_to_ecef(GCRF(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619267    -0.78518     -0.000797311
  0.78518     -0.619267     0.00106478
 -0.00132979   3.33516e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_ecef(GCRF(), TIRS(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0))DCM{Float64}:
 -0.619271    -0.785177    -0.000796885
  0.785176    -0.619272     0.00106623
 -0.00133066   3.45884e-5   0.999999
julia> r_eci_to_ecef(Quaternion, GCRF(), ITRF(), date_to_jd(1986, 06, 19, 21, 35, 0), eop_iau2000a)Quaternion{Float64}:
  + 0.43631 + 0.000590997⋅i - 0.000305106⋅j - 0.899796⋅k