Comparison of Michelson interferometer, intensity interferometer, and filled aperture telescope SNR for GEO satellites detection

The observation of satellites at geostationary earth orbits (GEO) from the ground presents some formidable technical and scientific challenges. In recent years, several approaches have been proposed and some have undergone field tests. The Naval Research Laboratory has pioneered the use of the Michelson-style sparse aperture interferometers for this problem by using the Naval Prototype Optical Interferometer (NPOI). Other groups have proposed the use of Intensity Interferometry to solve this problem. It is in this framework that we are addressing the issue of comparing Signal-to-Noise-Ratio (SNR) expressions and numerical simulations for various approaches in order to establish which is the most suitable technique for ground based observations. In this paper we present a comparison of SNR simulations for a Michelson Interferometer, an Intensity Interferometer and a filled aperture telescope. We present the basic background of the two interferometric techniques and the standard SNR expressions for the three approaches. We review the parameters of the simulations discussing the limitations and we will present the results.