Method of lunar landing stations’ coordinates measurements using spacecraft optical television means

DOI: 10.34759/trd-2020-114-12

Аuthors

Vernigora L. V.^*, Kasmerchuk P. V.^**, Sysoev V. K.^***, Dmitriev A. O.^****

Lavochkin Research and Production Association, NPO Lavochkin, 24, Leningradskay str., Khimki, Moscow region, 141400, Russia

*e-mail: vlv@laspace.ru
**e-mail: pavel.kazmerchuk@gmail.com
***e-mail: SysoevVK@laspace.ru
****e-mail: dao@laspace.ru

Abstract

The paper describes use of optical laser beacons, with the help of which it is possible accurately and uniquely to determine the location of lunar landing stations when they are observed by optical television means of orbiting spacecraft. The optical beacon installed on the lunar landing station will be detected by the onboard television camera of the orbiter on the basis of a significant excess of light flux above the level of background noise.

Three coordinate systems are used to construct the method of lunar landing stations’ coordinates measuring: the International Celestial Reference System (ICRS), the Bound Coordinate System and the Instrument Coordinate System.

The presented technique is based on the quaternion algebra (Rodrigue-Hamilton’s parameters). Rodrigue-Hamilton’s parameters are widely used in analytical mechanics and they are closely related to Euler’s angles and an end-turn vector. They clearly determine the orientation of the solid body in space and do not degenerate by any parameters of rotation. Practice shows that calculation using Rodrigue-Hamilton’s parameters provides the lowest computational efforts compared to other methods, when the same accuracy characteristics are provided.

The accuracy of the optical laser beacon localization depends on the accuracy of determining of the orbiter’s orientation according to the measurements of the star sensor, the on-board TV camera resolution and the altitude of the orbiter’s orbit. The correlation between the spacecraft orbital parameters and the mutual position of the optical laser beacon is achieved by equalizing of a large array of observations. The equalization method takes into account all measurement errors: from errors in determining of the on-board TV camera orientation to satellite’s orbit deviations caused by irregularities of the lunar gravity field.

The presented technique will allow to locate the position of the lunar landing station with an optical laser beacon onboard with an accuracy of units of meters.

Thus, the integrated use of the orbiter on-board equipment and the binding of its measurements to the World Time Scale allows to determine the selenographic coordinates of lunar terrain points in the LRS system. This will allow to use it as a reference point for establishing of a high-precision grid of selenodetic coordinates, and to bring mapping of the lunar surface to the accuracy corresponding to the detail images of the lunar relief.

Keywords:

spacecraft, optical beacon, lunar landing station, navigation

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