Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond Lasers
Debris laser ranging (DLR) is receiving considerable attention as an accurate and effective method of determining and predicting the orbits of space debris. This paper reports some technologies of DLR, such as the high pulse repetition frequency (PRF) laser pulse, large-aperture telescope, telescope...
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MDPI AG
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Applied Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/21/10080 |
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| author | Haifeng Zhang Mingliang Long Huarong Deng Shaoyu Cheng Zhibo Wu Zhongping Zhang Ali Zhang Jiantao Sun |
| author_facet | Haifeng Zhang Mingliang Long Huarong Deng Shaoyu Cheng Zhibo Wu Zhongping Zhang Ali Zhang Jiantao Sun |
| author_sort | Haifeng Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Debris laser ranging (DLR) is receiving considerable attention as an accurate and effective method of determining and predicting the orbits of space debris. This paper reports some technologies of DLR, such as the high pulse repetition frequency (PRF) laser pulse, large-aperture telescope, telescope array, multi-static stations receiving signals. DLR with a picosecond laser at the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory is also presented. A few hundred laps of space debris laser-ranging measurements have been made. A double-pulse picosecond laser with an average power of 4.2 W, a PRF of 1 kHz, and a wavelength of 532 nm has been implemented successfully in DLR, it’s the first time that DLR technology has reached a ranging precision at the sub-decimeter level. In addition, the characteristics of the picosecond-pulse-width laser transmission with the advantages of transmission in laser ranging were analyzed. With a mode of the pulse-burst picosecond laser having high average power, the DLR system has tracked small debris with a radar cross-section (RCS) of 0.91 m<sup>2</sup> at a ranging distance up to 1726.8 km, corresponding to an RCS of 0.1 m<sup>2</sup> at a distance of 1000 km. These works are expected to provide new technologies to further improve the performance of DLR. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:06:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-bc35e4ac40724e46a0ed9eaf9d9c4767 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3417 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T06:06:51Z |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Applied Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-bc35e4ac40724e46a0ed9eaf9d9c47672023-11-22T20:27:30ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172021-10-0111211008010.3390/app112110080Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond LasersHaifeng Zhang0Mingliang Long1Huarong Deng2Shaoyu Cheng3Zhibo Wu4Zhongping Zhang5Ali Zhang6Jiantao Sun7Shanghai Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200030, ChinaShanghai Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200030, ChinaShanghai Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200030, ChinaShanghai Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200030, ChinaShanghai Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200030, ChinaShanghai Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200030, ChinaXinjiang Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumchi 830011, ChinaXinjiang Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumchi 830011, ChinaDebris laser ranging (DLR) is receiving considerable attention as an accurate and effective method of determining and predicting the orbits of space debris. This paper reports some technologies of DLR, such as the high pulse repetition frequency (PRF) laser pulse, large-aperture telescope, telescope array, multi-static stations receiving signals. DLR with a picosecond laser at the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory is also presented. A few hundred laps of space debris laser-ranging measurements have been made. A double-pulse picosecond laser with an average power of 4.2 W, a PRF of 1 kHz, and a wavelength of 532 nm has been implemented successfully in DLR, it’s the first time that DLR technology has reached a ranging precision at the sub-decimeter level. In addition, the characteristics of the picosecond-pulse-width laser transmission with the advantages of transmission in laser ranging were analyzed. With a mode of the pulse-burst picosecond laser having high average power, the DLR system has tracked small debris with a radar cross-section (RCS) of 0.91 m<sup>2</sup> at a ranging distance up to 1726.8 km, corresponding to an RCS of 0.1 m<sup>2</sup> at a distance of 1000 km. These works are expected to provide new technologies to further improve the performance of DLR.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/21/10080space debris laser rangingsingle-photon detectionpicosecond laserpulse-bursts |
| spellingShingle | Haifeng Zhang Mingliang Long Huarong Deng Shaoyu Cheng Zhibo Wu Zhongping Zhang Ali Zhang Jiantao Sun Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond Lasers Applied Sciences space debris laser ranging single-photon detection picosecond laser pulse-bursts |
| title | Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond Lasers |
| title_full | Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond Lasers |
| title_fullStr | Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond Lasers |
| title_full_unstemmed | Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond Lasers |
| title_short | Developments of Space Debris Laser Ranging Technology Including the Applications of Picosecond Lasers |
| title_sort | developments of space debris laser ranging technology including the applications of picosecond lasers |
| topic | space debris laser ranging single-photon detection picosecond laser pulse-bursts |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/21/10080 |
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