Ranging Consistency Based on Ranging-Compensated Temperature-Sensing Sensor for Inter-Satellite Link of Navigation...

Area of Science:

• Satellite Navigation Systems
• Spacecraft Instrumentation
• Precision Measurement

Background:

• Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) performance is enhanced by inter-satellite links (ISLs).
• Accurate ISL distance measurements are crucial for improving position, velocity, and time (PVT) accuracy and enabling autonomous satellite functions.
• Ranging consistency among navigation satellites is a key challenge for high-performance ISLs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To address the urgent problem of ranging consistency in ISLs.
• To investigate the impact of ambient space temperature on ISL payload equipment and ranging delay.
• To propose a novel solution for temperature-induced ranging variations.

Main Methods:

• Development of a simple, low-power temperature-sensing ranging compensation sensor.
• Integration of the sensor with ISL payload equipment for onboard use.
• Experimental validation of the compensation sensor's effectiveness.

Main Results:

• The proposed sensor effectively compensates for temperature-induced ranging delays in ISL payload equipment.
• Ranging consistency was improved to less than 0.2 ns after compensation.
• This improvement was achieved across a significant temperature variation of 90 °C.

Conclusions:

• The developed temperature-sensing ranging compensation sensor is suitable for onboard GNSS equipment.
• The solution significantly enhances ISL ranging consistency, a critical factor for high-performance navigation constellations.
• This advancement contributes to improved accuracy and reliability in satellite navigation systems.