GPS-based onboard real-time orbit determination for leo satellites using consider Kalman filter

The use of Global Positioning System (GPS) observables provides the primary and advantageous technique for satellite orbit determination in low earth orbit (LEO), in particular when onboard autonomy is required. A wide range of LEO spacecraft equipped with GPS receivers have been launched into space for different applications. Aiming at determining the position and velocity of the satellite in real-time, a consider Kalman filter (CKF)-based reduced-dynamic orbit determination (RDOD) is introduced in this paper. In the CKF, orbit dynamic model is simplified to meet the space-borne computational limitations. The atmospheric drag and solar radiation pressure coefficients are considered rather than estimated in the conventional RDOD strategy. Only a lower order and degree of an earth gravity model is used in the orbit model. However, the propagation of the covariance of the consider parameters is able to absorb the unmodeled and dismodeled perturbations. Therefore, the filter could become convergent with desirable orbit determination performance. The CKF-RDOD method is implemented with a set of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment flight data. The solutions indicate that this proposed method could achieve satisfactory precision orbit determination with approximately 1.5 m level of three-dimensional root-mean-square error using GPS broadcast messages in real-time scenarios.

[1]  Felipe G. Nievinski,et al.  Gravity Error Compensation Using Second-Order Gauss-Markov Processes , 2013 .

[2]  Oliver Montenbruck,et al.  Reduced dynamic orbit determination using GPS code and carrier measurements , 2005 .

[3]  Christian Rocken,et al.  COSMIC System Description , 2000 .

[4]  Byron D. Tapley,et al.  Dynamical Model Compensation for Near-Earth Satellite Orbit Determination , 1975 .

[5]  Renato Zanetti,et al.  Recursive Implementations of the Consider Filter , 2012 .

[6]  A. Jazwinski.  Stochastic Processes and Filtering Theory , 1970 .

[7]  Oliver Montenbruck,et al.  GPS Based Relative Navigation , 2013 .

[8]  Oliver Montenbruck,et al.  Satellite Orbits: Models, Methods and Applications , 2000 .

[9]  Kyle J. DeMars,et al.  Joseph Formulation of Unscented and Quadrature Filters with Application to Consider States , 2013 .

[10]  Philip Ferguson,et al.  Decentralized Estimation Algorithms for Formation Flying Spacecraft , 2003 .

[11]  B. Tapley,et al.  Statistical Orbit Determination , 2004 .

[12]  Oliver Montenbruck,et al.  Precision real-time navigation of LEO satellites using global positioning system measurements , 2008 .

[13]  Thomas K. Meehan,et al.  The Instrument on NASA's GRACE Mission: Augmentation of GPS to Achieve Unprecedented Gravity Field Measurements , 2002 .

[14]  M. Drinkwater,et al.  GOCE: ESA’s First Earth Explorer Core Mission , 2003 .

[15]  J. Junkins,et al.  On the Consider Kalman Filter , 2010 .

[16]  S. F. Schmidt,et al.  Application of State-Space Methods to Navigation Problems , 1966 .

[17]  G. Hulot,et al.  Swarm: A constellation to study the Earth’s magnetic field , 2006 .

[18]  Steffen Schön,et al.  Improved GRACE kinematic orbit determination using GPS receiver clock modeling , 2012, GPS Solutions.

[19]  Oliver Montenbruck,et al.  Rapid orbit determination of LEO satellites using IGS clock and ephemeris products , 2005 .

[20]  Pedro Ramos Bosch.  Improvements in autonomous GPS navigation of Low Earth Orbit satellites , 2008 .

[21]  J. Klobuchar.  Ionospheric Effects on GPS , 2009 .

[22]  Jim R. Ray,et al.  IGS Earth Rotation Parameters , 1999, GPS Solutions.

[23]  U. Hugentobler,et al.  Pseudo-Stochastic Orbit Modeling Techniques for Low-Earth Orbiters , 2006 .

[24]  M. Watkins,et al.  The gravity recovery and climate experiment: Mission overview and early results , 2004 .

[25]  H. Bock,et al.  High-rate GPS clock corrections from CODE: support of 1 Hz applications , 2009 .

[26]  Xiaokui Yue,et al.  Enhancing the kinematic precise orbit determination of low earth orbiters using GPS receiver clock modelling , 2014 .

[27]  F. LeMoine,et al.  The 1-Centimeter Orbit: Jason-1 Precision Orbit Determination Using GPS, SLR, DORIS, and Altimeter Data Special Issue: Jason-1 Calibration/Validation , 2003 .

[28]  Robert Grover Brown,et al.  Introduction to random signals and applied Kalman filtering : with MATLAB exercises and solutions , 1996 .

[29]  G. Bierman.  Factorization methods for discrete sequential estimation , 1977 .

[30]  Sunil Bisnath,et al.  GPS-based precise orbit determination of Low Earth Orbiters with limited resources , 2013, GPS Solutions.

[31]  Thomas P. Yunck,et al.  Reduced-dynamic technique for precise orbit determination of low earth satellites , 1991 .

[32]  M. K. Cheng,et al.  The GGM03 Mean Earth Gravity Model from GRACE , 2007 .

[33]  Rolf König,et al.  Atmosphere sounding by GPS radio occultation: First results from CHAMP , 2001 .