• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.19-30
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• 2017

The optical wide-field patrol network (OWL-Net) is a Korean optical surveillance system that tracks and monitors domestic satellites. In this study, a batch least squares algorithm was developed for optical measurements and verified by Monte Carlo simulation and covariance analysis. Potential error sources of OWL-Net, such as noise, bias, and clock errors, were analyzed. There is a linear relation between the estimation accuracy and the noise level, and the accuracy significantly depends on the declination bias. In addition, the time-tagging error significantly degrades the observation accuracy, while the time-synchronization offset corresponds to the orbital motion. The Cartesian state vector and measurement bias were determined using the OWL-Net tracking data of the KOMPSAT-1 and Cryosat-2 satellites. The comparison with known orbital information based on two-line elements (TLE) and the consolidated prediction format (CPF) shows that the orbit determination accuracy is similar to that of TLE. Furthermore, the precision and accuracy of OWL-Net observation data were determined to be tens of arcsec and sub-degree level, respectively.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.75-88
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• 2009

The main purpose of the current research is to introduce the alternative algorithm of the non-recursive batch filter based on the unscented transformation in which the linearization process is unnecessary. The presented algorithm is applied to the orbit determination of a low earth orbiting satellite and compared its results with those of the well-known Bayesian batch least squares estimation and the iterative UKF smoother (IUKS). The system dynamic equations consist of the Earth's geo-potential, the atmospheric drag, solar radiation pressure and the lunar/solar gravitational perturbations. The range, azimuth and elevation angles of the satellite measured from ground stations are used for orbit determination. The characteristics of the non recursive unscented batch filter are analyzed for various aspects, including accuracy of the determined orbit, sensitivity to the initial uncertainty, measurement noise and stability performance in a realistic dynamic system and measurement model. As a result, under large non-linear conditions, the presented non-recursive batch filter yields more accurate results than the other batch filters about 5% for initial uncertainty test and 12% for measurement noise test. Moreover, the presented filter exhibits better convergence reliability than the Bayesian least squares. Hence, it is concluded that the non-recursive batch filter based on the unscented transformation is effectively applicable for highly nonlinear batch estimation problems.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.36 no.4
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• pp.249-264
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• 2019

In this study, the precise orbit determination (POD) software is developed for optical observation. To improve the performance of the estimation algorithm, a nonlinear batch filter, based on the unscented transform (UT) that overcomes the disadvantages of the least-squares (LS) batch filter, is utilized. The LS and UT batch filter algorithms are verified through numerical simulation analysis using artificial optical measurements. We use the real optical observation data of a low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite, Cryosat-2, observed from optical wide-field patrol network (OWL-Net), to verify the performance of the POD software developed. The effects of light travel time, annual aberration, and diurnal aberration are considered as error models to correct OWL-Net data. As a result of POD, measurement residual and estimated state vector of the LS batch filter converge to the local minimum when the initial orbit error is large or the initial covariance matrix is smaller than the initial error level. However, UT batch filter converges to the global minimum, irrespective of the initial orbit error and the initial covariance matrix.

• Journal of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.199-206
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• 2024

The GEO-KOMPSAT-2A (GK2A) satellite, which was launched in December 2018, carries weather observation payloads and uses the image navigation and registration system to calibrate the observation images. The calibration system requires accurate orbit prediction data and depends on the accuracy of the orbit determination accuracy. In order to find a possible way to improve the current orbit determination accuracy of the GK2A flight dynamic subsystem module, orbit determination software was developed to independently evaluate the orbit determination accuracy. A comprehensive satellite dynamic model is applied for a batch-type least squares filter. When determining the orbit, thrust firing during station-keeping maneuvers and wheel-off loading maneuvers is taken into account. One month of GK2A ranging data were processed to estimate the satellite position on a daily basis. The orbit determination error was evaluated by comparing estimates during overlapping estimation intervals.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Navigation and Port Research Conference
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• v.1
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• pp.141-144
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• 2006

The deviations in the injection orbital parameters, resulting from launcher dispersions, need to be estimated and used for autonomous satellite operations. For the proposed small satellite mission of the university there will be two GPS receivers onboard the satellite to provide the instantaneous orbital state to the onboard data handling system. In order to meet the power requirements, the satellite will be sun-tracking whenever there is no imaging operation. For imaging activities, the satellite will be maneuvered to nadir-pointing mode. Due to such different modes of orientation the geometry for the GPS receivers will not be favorable at all times and there will be instances of poor geometry resulting in no output from the GPS receivers. Onboard the satellite, the orbital information should be continuously available for autonomous switching on/off of various subsystems. The paper presents the strategies to make use of small arcs of data from GPS receivers to compute the mean orbital parameters and use the updated orbital parameters to calculate the position and velocity whenever the same is not available from GPS receiver. Thus the navigation message from the GPS receiver, namely the position vector in Earth-Centered-Earth-Fixed (ECEF) frame, is used as measurements. As for estimation, two techniques - (1) batch least squares method, and (2) Kalman Filter method are used for orbit estimation (in real time). The performance of the onboard orbit estimation has been assessed based on hardware based multi-channel GPS Signal simulator. The results indicate good converge even with short arcs of data as the GPS navigation data are generally very accurate and the data rate is also fast (typically 1Hz).