One of the challenges on the characterization of geosynchronous satellites is the estimation of the attitude, rotation rate, and shape of geosynchronous satellites from the solar illumination reflected off the solar panels and bus towards the observer from non-resolved photometric signatures of object. It has been observed from measured light curves, that a specific pattern in the light curve may give an indication of the evolution of the orientation of the largest components on a satellite, i.e. the solar panels, during the time of the acquisition of measurements. This paper presents results on the simulation of DirecTV-10 satellite from 04:30 to 8:00 (UTC), which was observed during the glint season from 04:00 to 8:00 (UTC) on 23 February 2021 with U.S. Air Force Academy’s USAFA-16 and CMU-Falcon’s telescopes. We use a physics-based simulator; Digital Imaging and Remote Sensing Image Generator (DIRSIG™) to help us understand the temporal and spectral variability of the light curves in terms of the orientation of the solar panels. To accomplish this optical parameters, lat/lon of the telescopes, the characteristics of the photometric filters, the two-line element of the satellite, and a standard atmospheric condition model, are all input into the simulator to carry out the simulations. We use a high-fidelity CAD model of the satellite, materials, and BRDF measurements provided by the Air Force Research Laboratory Satellite Assesment Center (AFRL- SatAC). We describe a generate-and-test method we use to simulate the angular position (E-W) of the solar panels, such that the L2 norm error between measured and simulated line curves is minimized. The results presented in this paper show that DIRSIG™ is able to accurately match, up to some accuracy, specific patterns observed on calibrated magnitude measurements of the USAFA-16 and CMU-Falcon telescopes. This study will help us develop and understanding of the behavior of unresolved space objects (RSOs) and guide the design, development, and testing of exploitation algorithms.


    Access

    Check access

    Check availability in my library

    Order at Subito €


    Export, share and cite



    Title :

    Simulation of a Geosynchronous Satellite with DIRSIG™ and Observations from Two Falcon Telescopes


    Additional title:

    J Astronaut Sci




    Publication date :

    2023-12-13




    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English




    Simulation of a Geosynchronous Satellite with DIRSIG™ and Observations from Two Falcon Telescopes

    Erives-Contreras, Hector / Velez-Reyes, Miguel / Chun, Francis K. et al. | Springer Verlag | 2023


    Near-Simultaneous Observations of a Geosynchronous Satellite Using Two Telescopes and Multiple Optical Filters

    Albrecht, Ethan M. / Jensen, Audra M. / Jensen, Erik G. et al. | Springer Verlag | 2022


    Observations of a Geosynchronous Satellite with Optical Interferometry

    Restaino, S. | British Library Conference Proceedings | 2009


    Observations of a Geosynchronous Satellite with Optical Interferometry

    Restaino, S. / Benson, J.A. / Hutter, D.J. et al. | British Library Conference Proceedings | 2008


    Geosynchronous meteorological satellite

    Suomi, V. E. / Vonder Haar, T. H. | NTRS | 1970