Russian VLBI network “Quasar”: Current status and outlook

Abstract

This paper presents the past, present and future status of the Russian VLBI network “Quasar”. This network has been developed for at least 20 years by the Institute of Applied Astronomy of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IAA RAS). The equipment installed currently at each “Quasar” station and the facilities for processing observational data are described briefly. The latest results are presented, including the Earth orientation parameters (EOP) determined from the “Quasar” VLBI data and comparison with those from other processing centers. Our future plans to extend the “Quasar” VLBI network to the east and to the west will be carried out by establishing the Ussurijsk station in the Far East and the Russian-Cuban station in the west. They are considered in the context of the Russian section activity in the GGOS project. The expected improvement of the EOP determination accuracy can be obtained within the future configuration of the “Quasar” network, which is proved by simulation. Keywords: Russian VLBI network “Quasar”, VLBI co-location station, Space geodesy technique, Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS)