Research on Autonomous Time Synchronization for Dual-one-way Ranging in Deep-space Mission

A key requirement for the dual-one-way ranging (DOWR) system is the measurement time synchronization. For DOWR application in deep-space, autonomous time synchronization method is more valuable than using global position system. This paper studies the relationship between ranging accuracy and measurement time-tag error, introduces a method based on two way time transfer (TWTT) for autonomous time synchronization, and presents a DOWR system integrated with an S-band TWTT system. Theoretical analyses of precision and experiment results show that the proposed method is a suitable autonomous time synchronization method for DOWR.