Development of artificial Earth satellite simulation software for future radio telescopes in Indonesia

Abstract

"In the near future, four radio telescopes will be installed in Indonesia. Besides the astronomical purposes, these telescopes are expected to support the ground station for tracking the Artificial Earth Satellites (AES). In this study, we focus on the development of AES simulation software, named AESSIMS, that can be used to aid Indonesian radio telescope engineers in tracking the AES. This software is interactive and web-based. It can track the AES position in real time as well as predict the position for the near future. This software provides information about when a satellite signal can be acquired and lost, which can be beneficial for radio telescopes to establish communication with the satellite. We visualize the use of this software by conducting a simulation of satellite tracking by Indonesian future radio telescopes. Three Indonesian satellites named LAPAN-A1/TUBSAT, LAPAN-A2/ORARI, and LAPAN-A3/IPB are considered in the simulation. This study demonstrates that AESSIMS simulation results for Indonesian satellites and radio telescopes are consistent with the results obtained from already existing satellite tracking simulation software."