Analysis of the Quality of SLR Station Coordinates Determined from Laser Ranging to the LARES Satellite
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International Laser Ranging Service (ILRS)
The International Laser Ranging Service (ILRS) http://ilrs.gsfc.nasa.gov/ Chairman of the Governing Board: G. Appleby (Great Britain) Director of the Central Bureau: M. Pearlman (USA) Secretary: C. Noll (USA) Analysis Coordinator: E. C. Pavlis (USA) Development ranging and ranging to the Lunar Orbiter, with plans to extend ranging to interplanetary missions with optical Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) was established in the mid- transponders. 1960s, with early ground system developments by NASA and CNES. Early US and French satellites provided laser Mission targets that were used mainly for inter-comparison with other tracking systems, refinement of orbit determination The ILRS collects, merges, analyzes, archives and techniques, and as input to the development of ground distributes Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) and Lunar Laser station fiducial networks and global gravity field models. Ranging (LLR) observation data sets of sufficient accuracy Early SLR brought the results of orbit determination and to satisfy the GGOS objectives of a wide range of station positions to the meter level of accuracy. The SLR scientific, engineering, and operational applications and network was expanded in the 1970s and 1980s as other experimentation. The basic observable is the precise time- groups built and deployed systems and technological of-flight of an ultra-short laser pulse to and from a improvements began the evolution toward the decimeter retroreflector-equipped satellite. These data sets are used and centimeter accuracy. Since 1976, the main geodetic by the ILRS to generate a number of fundamental added target has been LAGEOS (subsequently joined by value products, including but not limited to: LAGEOS-2 in 1992), providing the backbone of the SLR • Centimeter accuracy satellite ephemerides technique’s contribution to the realization of the • Earth orientation parameters (polar motion and length of day) International Terrestrial Reference Frame (ITRF). -
A Monte Carlo Analysis for Collision Risk Assessment on VEGA Launcher
ARTIFICIAL SATELLITES, Vol. 51, No. 1 – 2016 DOI: 10.1515/arsa-2016-0004 A MONTE CARLO ANALYSIS FOR COLLISION RISK ASSESSMENT A Monte Carlo analysis for collision risk assessment on VEGA ON VEGAlauncher LAUNCHER payloads PAYLOADS and LARES AND LARES satellite SATELLITE G. Sindoni Sapienza Universit`a di Roma, Scuola di Ingegneria Aerospaziale, Rome, Italy e-mail: [email protected] I. Ciufolini Universit`a del Salento, Dip. Ingegneria dell’Innovazione, Lecce, and Centro Fermi, Rome, Italy e-mail: [email protected] F. Battie ELV s.p.a. e-mail: [email protected] ABSTRACT. This work has been developed in the framework of the LARES mission of the Italian Space Agency (ASI). The LARES satellite has been built to test, with high accuracy, the frame–dragging effect predicted by the theory of General Relativity, specifically the Lense–Thirring drag of its node. LARES was the main payload in the qualification flight of the European Space Agency launcher VEGA. A concern arose about the possibility of an impact between the eight secondary payloads among themselves, with LARES and with the last stage of the launcher (AVUM). An impact would have caused failure on the payloads and the production of debris in violation of the space debris mitigation measures established internationally. As an additional contribution, this study allowed the effect of the payload release on the final manoeuvers of the AVUM to be understood. Keywords: LARES, VEGA, launchers, space debris, collisions. 1. INTRODUCTION On February 13, 2012, the European Space Agency’s VEGA qualification flight inserted into orbit the LARES (LAser RElativity Satellite) satellite (Ciufolini et al. -
Space Geodesy and Satellite Laser Ranging
Space Geodesy and Satellite Laser Ranging Michael Pearlman* Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Cambridge, MA USA *with a very extensive use of charts and inputs provided by many other people Causes for Crustal Motions and Variations in Earth Orientation Dynamics of crust and mantle Ocean Loading Volcanoes Post Glacial Rebound Plate Tectonics Atmospheric Loading Mantle Convection Core/Mantle Dynamics Mass transport phenomena in the upper layers of the Earth Temporal and spatial resolution of mass transport phenomena secular / decadal post -glacial glaciers polar ice post-glacial reboundrebound ocean mass flux interanaual atmosphere seasonal timetime scale scale sub --seasonal hydrology: surface and ground water, snow, ice diurnal semidiurnal coastal tides solid earth and ocean tides 1km 10km 100km 1000km 10000km resolution Temporal and spatial resolution of oceanographic features 10000J10000 y bathymetric global 1000J1000 y structures warming 100100J y basin scale variability 1010J y El Nino Rossby- 11J y waves seasonal cycle eddies timetime scale scale 11M m mesoscale and and shorter scale fronts physical- barotropic 11W w biological variability interaction Coastal upwelling 11T d surface tides internal waves internal tides and inertial motions 11h h 10m 100m 1km 10km 100km 1000km 10000km 100000km resolution Continental hydrology Ice mass balance and sea level Satellite gravity and altimeter mission products help determine mass transport and mass distribution in a multi-disciplinary environment Gravity field missions Oceanic -
The Lageos System
NASA TECHNICAL NASA TM X-73072 MEMORANDUM (NASA-TB-X-73072) liif LAGECS SYSTEM (NASA) E76-13179 68 p BC $4.5~ CSCI 22E Thls Informal documentation medium is used to provide accelerated or speclal release of technical information to selected users. The contents may not meet NASA formal editing and publication standards, my be re- vised, or may be incorporated in another publication. THE LAGEOS SYSTEM Joseph W< Siry NASA Headquarters Washington, D. C. 20546 NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMlNlSTRATlCN WASHINGTON, 0. C. DECEMBER 1975 1. i~~1Yp HASA TW X-73072 4. Titrd~rt. 5.RlpDltDM December 1975 m UG~SSYSEM 6.-0-cad8 . 7. A#umrtsI ahr(onninlOlyceoa -* Joseph w. Siry . to. work Uld IYa n--w- WnraCdAdbar I(ASA Headquarters Office of Applications . 11. Caoa oc <irr* 16. i+ashingtcat, D. C. 20546 12TmdRlponrrd~~ 12!3mnm&@~nsnendAddrs Technical Memorandum 1Sati-1 Aeronautics and Space Adninistxation Washington, D. C. 20546 14. sponprip ~gmcvu 15. WDPa 18. The LAGEOS system is defined and its rationale is daveloped. This report was prepared in February 1974 and served as the basis for the LAGMS Satellite Program development. Key features of the baseline system specified then included a circular orbit at 5900 km altitude and an inclination of lloO, and a satellite 60 cm in diameter weighing same 385 kg and mounting 440 retro- reflectors, each having a diameter of 3.8 cm, leaving 30% of the spherical surface available for reflecting sunlight diffusely to facilitate tracking by Baker-Nunn cameras, The satellite weight was increased to 411 kg in the actual design thr~aghthe addition of a 4th-stage apogee-kick motor. -
Lageos Orbit Decay Due to Infrared Radiation from Earth
https://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=19870006232 2020-03-20T12:07:45+00:00Z View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by NASA Technical Reports Server Lageos Orbit Decay Due to Infrared Radiation From Earth David Parry Rubincam JANUARY 1987 NASA Technical Memorandum 87804 Lageos Orbit Decay Due to Infrared Radiation From Earth David Parry Rubincam Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland National Aeronautics and Space Administration Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland 20771 1987 1 LAGEOS ORBIT DECAY r DUE TO INFRARED RADIATION FROM EARTH by David Parry Rubincam Geodynamics Branch, Code 621 NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland 20771 i INTRODUCTION The Lageos satellite is in a high-altitude (5900 km), almost circular orbit about the earth. The orbit is retrograde: the orbital plane is tipped by about 110 degrees to the earth’s equatorial plane. The satellite itself consists of two aluminum hemispheres bolted to a cylindrical beryllium copper core. Its outer surface is studded with laser retroreflectors. For more information about Lageos and its orbit see Smith and Dunn (1980), Johnson et al. (1976), and the Lageos special issue (Journal of Geophysical Research, 90, B 11, September 30, 1985). For a photograph see Rubincam and Weiss (1986) and a structural drawing see Cohen and Smith (1985). Note that the core is beryllium copper (Johnson et ai., 1976), and not brass as stated by Cohen and Smith (1985) and Rubincam (1982). See Table 1 of this paper for other parameters relevant to Lageos and the study presented here. -
The Annual Compendium of Commercial Space Transportation: 2012
Federal Aviation Administration The Annual Compendium of Commercial Space Transportation: 2012 February 2013 About FAA About the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation The Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation (FAA AST) licenses and regulates U.S. commercial space launch and reentry activity, as well as the operation of non-federal launch and reentry sites, as authorized by Executive Order 12465 and Title 51 United States Code, Subtitle V, Chapter 509 (formerly the Commercial Space Launch Act). FAA AST’s mission is to ensure public health and safety and the safety of property while protecting the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States during commercial launch and reentry operations. In addition, FAA AST is directed to encourage, facilitate, and promote commercial space launches and reentries. Additional information concerning commercial space transportation can be found on FAA AST’s website: http://www.faa.gov/go/ast Cover art: Phil Smith, The Tauri Group (2013) NOTICE Use of trade names or names of manufacturers in this document does not constitute an official endorsement of such products or manufacturers, either expressed or implied, by the Federal Aviation Administration. • i • Federal Aviation Administration’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation Dear Colleague, 2012 was a very active year for the entire commercial space industry. In addition to all of the dramatic space transportation events, including the first-ever commercial mission flown to and from the International Space Station, the year was also a very busy one from the government’s perspective. It is clear that the level and pace of activity is beginning to increase significantly. -
The Evolution of Earth Gravitational Models Used in Astrodynamics
JEROME R. VETTER THE EVOLUTION OF EARTH GRAVITATIONAL MODELS USED IN ASTRODYNAMICS Earth gravitational models derived from the earliest ground-based tracking systems used for Sputnik and the Transit Navy Navigation Satellite System have evolved to models that use data from the Joint United States-French Ocean Topography Experiment Satellite (Topex/Poseidon) and the Global Positioning System of satellites. This article summarizes the history of the tracking and instrumentation systems used, discusses the limitations and constraints of these systems, and reviews past and current techniques for estimating gravity and processing large batches of diverse data types. Current models continue to be improved; the latest model improvements and plans for future systems are discussed. Contemporary gravitational models used within the astrodynamics community are described, and their performance is compared numerically. The use of these models for solid Earth geophysics, space geophysics, oceanography, geology, and related Earth science disciplines becomes particularly attractive as the statistical confidence of the models improves and as the models are validated over certain spatial resolutions of the geodetic spectrum. INTRODUCTION Before the development of satellite technology, the Earth orbit. Of these, five were still orbiting the Earth techniques used to observe the Earth's gravitational field when the satellites of the Transit Navy Navigational Sat were restricted to terrestrial gravimetry. Measurements of ellite System (NNSS) were launched starting in 1960. The gravity were adequate only over sparse areas of the Sputniks were all launched into near-critical orbit incli world. Moreover, because gravity profiles over the nations of about 65°. (The critical inclination is defined oceans were inadequate, the gravity field could not be as that inclination, 1= 63 °26', where gravitational pertur meaningfully estimated. -
Systematic Errors Between SLR and GNSS Due to the Omission of Atmospheric Pressure Loading
Geophysical Research Abstracts Vol. 20, EGU2018-208-1, 2018 EGU General Assembly 2018 © Author(s) 2017. CC Attribution 4.0 license. Systematic errors between SLR and GNSS due to the omission of atmospheric pressure loading Grzegorz Bury and Krzysztof Sosnica´ Wroclaw University of Environmental and Life Sciences, Institute of Geodesy and Geoinformatics, The Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Geodesy, Wrocław, Poland ([email protected]) Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR) is a precise space geodetic technique that contributes to Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS) by providing e.g., the origin and the scale of the International Terrestrial Reference Frame, station coordinates, Earth rotation parameters, standard gravitational parameter – GM, and low-degree spherical harmonics of the Earth’s gravity field. Currently, all new active navigation satellites are equipped with laser retroreflectors for range measurements. Due to that fact, one can determine SLR-derived parameters based on the range measurements to multi-GNSS constellations: Galileo, GLONASS, BeiDou and QZSS. However, a full consistency between both SLR and GNSS techniques is required to obtain reliable global geodetic parameters. The current requirement imposed by GGOS demands a precise reference frame that is stable-in-time and accurate at the level of 1 mm. Atmospheric pressure loading (APL) plays an important role in precise space geodesy, due to the fact that it causes displacements of the geodetic stations of magnitude at the level of 1 cm both in vertical and horizontal directions. As a result, APL corrections should be considered if one would like to fulfill requirements imposed by GGOS. SLR is especially affected by APL due to the fact that range measurements can be performed only during cloudless conditions, which coincide with the high atmospheric pressure that deforms the Earth’s crust. -
Draft American National Standard Astrodynamics
BSR/AIAA S-131-200X Draft American National Standard Astrodynamics – Propagation Specifications, Test Cases, and Recommended Practices Warning This document is not an approved AIAA Standard. It is distributed for review and comment. It is subject to change without notice. Recipients of this draft are invited to submit, with their comments, notification of any relevant patent rights of which they are aware and to provide supporting documentation. Sponsored by American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Approved XX Month 200X American National Standards Institute Abstract This document provides the broad astrodynamics and space operations community with technical standards and lays out recommended approaches to ensure compatibility between organizations. Applicable existing standards and accepted documents are leveraged to make a complete—yet coherent—document. These standards are intended to be used as guidance and recommended practices for astrodynamics applications in Earth orbit where interoperability and consistency of results is a priority. For those users who are purely engaged in research activities, these standards can provide an accepted baseline for innovation. BSR/AIAA S-131-200X LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING DATA WILL BE ADDED HERE BY AIAA STAFF Published by American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics 1801 Alexander Bell Drive, Reston, VA 20191 Copyright © 200X American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form, in an electronic retrieval -
A Review of the Lunar Laser Ranging Technique and Contribution of Timing
Review Article Timing systems for lunar laser ranging Page 1 of 9 A review of the lunar laser ranging technique and AUTHORS: contribution of timing systems Cilence Munghemezulu1,2 Ludwig Combrinck1,2 Joel O. Botai3 The lunar laser ranging (LLR) technique is based on the two-way time-of-flight of laser pulses from an earth station to the retroreflectors that are located on the surface of the moon. We discuss the ranging technique AFFILIATIONS: and contribution of the timing systems and its significance in light of the new LLR station currently under 1Centre for Geoinformation Science, Department of development by the Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory (HartRAO). Firstly, developing the LLR Geography, Geoinformatics station at HartRAO is an initiative that will improve the current geometrical network of the LLR stations and Meteorology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa which are presently concentrated in the northern hemisphere. Secondly, data products derived from the 2Space Geodesy Programme, LLR experiments – such as accurate lunar orbit, tests of the general relativity theory, earth–moon dynamics, Hartebeesthoek Radio interior structure of the moon, reference frames, and station position and velocities – are important in better Astronomy Observatory, understanding the earth–moon system. We highlight factors affecting the measured range such as the effect Krugersdorp, South Africa 3South African Weather Service, of earth tides on station position and delays induced by timing systems, as these must be taken into account Pretoria, South Africa during the development of the LLR analysis software. HartRAO is collocated with other fundamental space geodetic techniques which makes it a true fiducial geodetic site in the southern hemisphere and a central point CORRESPONDENCE TO: Cilence Munghemezulu for further development of space-based techniques in Africa. -
→ Space for Europe European Space Agency
number 149 | February 2012 bulletin → space for europe European Space Agency The European Space Agency was formed out of, and took over the rights and The ESA headquarters are in Paris. obligations of, the two earlier European space organisations – the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO) and the European Launcher Development The major establishments of ESA are: Organisation (ELDO). The Member States are Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the ESTEC, Noordwijk, Netherlands. Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Canada is a Cooperating State. ESOC, Darmstadt, Germany. In the words of its Convention: the purpose of the Agency shall be to provide for ESRIN, Frascati, Italy. and to promote, for exclusively peaceful purposes, cooperation among European States in space research and technology and their space applications, with a view ESAC, Madrid, Spain. to their being used for scientific purposes and for operational space applications systems: Chairman of the Council: D. Williams → by elaborating and implementing a long-term European space policy, by Director General: J.-J. Dordain recommending space objectives to the Member States, and by concerting the policies of the Member States with respect to other national and international organisations and institutions; → by elaborating and implementing activities and programmes in the space field; → by coordinating the European space programme and national programmes, and by integrating the latter progressively and as completely as possible into the European space programme, in particular as regards the development of applications satellites; → by elaborating and implementing the industrial policy appropriate to its programme and by recommending a coherent industrial policy to the Member States. -
Lunar Laser Ranging: the Millimeter Challenge
REVIEW ARTICLE Lunar Laser Ranging: The Millimeter Challenge T. W. Murphy, Jr. Center for Astrophysics and Space Sciences, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0424, USA E-mail: [email protected] Abstract. Lunar laser ranging has provided many of the best tests of gravitation since the first Apollo astronauts landed on the Moon. The march to higher precision continues to this day, now entering the millimeter regime, and promising continued improvement in scientific results. This review introduces key aspects of the technique, details the motivations, observables, and results for a variety of science objectives, summarizes the current state of the art, highlights new developments in the field, describes the modeling challenges, and looks to the future of the enterprise. PACS numbers: 95.30.Sf, 04.80.-y, 04.80.Cc, 91.4g.Bg arXiv:1309.6294v1 [gr-qc] 24 Sep 2013 CONTENTS 2 Contents 1 The LLR concept 3 1.1 Current Science Results . 4 1.2 A Quantitative Introduction . 5 1.3 Reflectors and Divergence-Imposed Requirements . 5 1.4 Fundamental Measurement and World Lines . 10 2 Science from LLR 12 2.1 Relativity and Gravity . 12 2.1.1 Equivalence Principle . 13 2.1.2 Time-rate-of-change of G ....................... 14 2.1.3 Gravitomagnetism, Geodetic Precession, and other PPN Tests . 14 2.1.4 Inverse Square Law, Extra Dimensions, and other Frontiers . 16 2.2 Lunar and Earth Physics . 16 2.2.1 The Lunar Interior . 16 2.2.2 Earth Orientation, Precession, and Coordinate Frames . 18 3 LLR Capability across Time 20 3.1 Brief LLR History .