GPS PERFORMANCE IN YUKON'S ARCTIC COAST

This study analyses GPS performance in Yukon's Arctic coast to inform future research that uses this technology in the region. To test this, Telonics GPS collars were placed on stakes during the summers of 2009 and 2010 throughout the region for varying lengths of time. The fix records produced by these collars were then collected and cleaned, leaving 30 samples. Using these records combined with a digital elevation model, eight variables were extracted and analysed in an attempt to find relationships, such that a fix rate could be predicted throughout the landscape. The results indicated that very few strong relationships existed. Densiometer values proved to be the only relationship between an environmental variable and fix rate. Available sky and aspect data produced results that were contrary to those expected. Overall, Telonics Generation 3 collars had extremely high fix rates, high accuracy, and low positional dilution of precision. Moreover, there was little variation in these results. This means that future GPS studies in the region would likely require minimal correction for fix rate bias. However, if corrections were to be made, more data would have to be gathered to ensure the results were statistically sound. The analysis suffered from the limitations of small sample size and low sample variance, among several others. Therefore, future studies should increase the number and diversity of sites tested.