Systematic sampling on the circle and on the sphere

Abstract

Useful approximations have been developed along the years to predict the precision of systematic sampling for measurable functions of a bounded support in R^d. Recently, the theory of systematic sampling on R has received a thrust. In geometric sampling, design based unbiased estimators exist, however, which imply systematic sampling on the circle (S¹) and the semicircle (H¹); the planimeter estimator of an area, or the Buffon-Steinhaus estimator of curve length in the plane constitute popular examples. Over the last two decades, many other estimators of geometric measures have been obtained which imply systematic sampling also on the sphere (S²). In this paper we adapt the theory available for non-periodic functions of bounded support on R to periodic functions, and thereby to S¹ and H¹, and we obtain new estimators of the corresponding variance approximations. Further we consider - we believe for the first time - the problem of predicting the precision of systematic sampling in S². The paper starts with a historical perspective, and ends with suggestions for further research.