The simulator of the photon counting planetary altimeter

The design and results of the photon counting laser altimeter simulator are presented. The simulator is designed to be a theoretical and numerical complement for a Laser Altimeter Technology Demonstrator of the space borne laser altimeter for planetary studies built on our university. The motivation of this research is the European Space Agency nomination the photon counting altimeter as one of the attractive devices for planetary research. The proposed device should provide altimetry in the range 400 to 1400 km with one meter range resolution under rough conditions - Sun illumination, radiation, etc. The general altimeter concept expects the photon counting principle laser radar. According to this concept, the simulator is based on photon counting radar simulation, which has been enhanced to handle planetary surface roughness, vertical terrain profile and its reflectivity. The simulator is useful complement for any photon counting altimeter both for altimeter design and for measured data analysis. Our simulator enables to demonstrate the operation of single photon counting detector on altimeter.