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Baseline monitoring using aircraft laser rangingThe use of aircraft laser ranging for the determination of baselines between ground based retroreflectors was investigated via simulations and with tests at Wallops Flight Center using the Airborne Oceanographic Lidar (AOL) on the Wallops C-54 aircraft ranging to a reflector array deployed around one of the Wallops runways. The aircraft altitude and reflector spacing were chosen on the basis of scaled down modeling of spacecraft tracking from 1000 km of reflectors separated by some 52 km, or of high altitude (10 km) aircraft tracking of reflectors separated by some 500 m. Aircraft altitudes flown for different passes across the runway reflector array varied from 800 m to 1350 m, with 32 reflectors deployed over an approximtely 300 m x 500 m ground pattern. The AOL transmitted 400 pulses/sec with a scan rate of 5/sec in a near circular pattern, so that the majority of the pulses were reflected by the runway surface or its environs rather than by retroreflectors. The return pulse characteristics clearly showed the high reflectivity of portions of the runway, with several returns indistinguishable in amplitude from reflector returns. For each pass across the reflector field, typically six to ten reflector hits were identified, consistent with that predicted by simulations and the observed transmitted elliptical pulse size.
Document ID
19820020814
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Technical Memorandum (TM)
Authors
Krabill, W. B.
(NASA Wallops Flight Center Wallops Island, VA, United States)
Hoge, F. E.
(NASA Wallops Flight Center Wallops Island, VA, United States)
Martin, C. F.
(NASA Wallops Flight Center Wallops Island, VA, United States)
Date Acquired
September 4, 2013
Publication Date
June 1, 1982
Subject Category
Geosciences (General)
Report/Patent Number
NASA-TM-73298
NAS 1.15:73298
Accession Number
82N28690
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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