This study focuses on utilizing the increasing availability of satellite; trajectory data from global navigation satellite system-enabled; low-Earth orbiting satellites and their precision orbit determination; (POD) solutions to expand and refine thermospheric model validation; capabilities. The research introduces an updated interface for the; GEODYN-II POD software, leveraging high-precision space geodetic POD to; investigate satellite drag and assess density models. This work presents; a case study to examine five models (NRLMSIS2.0, DTM2020, JB2008,; TIEGCM, and CTIPe) using precise science orbit (PSO) solutions of the; Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2). The PSO is used; as tracking measurements to construct orbit fits, enabling an evaluation; according to each model’s ability to redetermine the orbit. Relative; in-track deviations, quantified by in-track residuals and; root-mean-square errors (RMSe), are treated as proxies for model; densities that differ from an unknown true density. The study; investigates assumptions related to the treatment of the drag; coefficient and leverages them to eliminate bias and effectively scale; model density. Assessment results and interpretations are dictated by; the timescale at which the scaling occurs. JB2008 requires the least; scaling (~-23%) to achieve orbit fits closely matching; the PSO within an in-track RMSe of 9 m when scaled over two weeks and 4; m when scaled daily. The remaining models require substantial scaling of; the mean density offset (~30-75%) to construct orbit; fits that meet the aforementioned RMSe criteria. All models exhibit; slight over or under sensitivity to geomagnetic activity according to; trends in their 24-hour scaling factors.
