Abstract
In view of the upcoming missions to obtain resources from the lunar surface, it is essential to have highly-accurate navigation systems to locate surface vehicles in shadowed regions. In response, we propose a dual-satellite lunar navigation system that is based on a multi-epoch double-differenced pseudorange observations (MDPO) algorithm. We used multi-epoch observations in a new way that reduces the number of navigation satellites required. In addition, the double-differenced pseudorange is used in order to eliminate the bias effects of the satellite and user clocks that conventional dual-satellite navigation algorithms did not fully take into account. Furthermore, a pre-known lunar digital elevation model is used to reduce the number of observations. The theoretical behavior of the MDPO algorithm was confirmed by simulation and the results indicate that user position accuracy can be several tens of meters with 95% probability (2drms) within a one-minute observation.
Highlights
The estimation of a rover vehicle’s position on the lunar surface is one of the key technologies for the successful operation of the rover, and it is important for mapping resources and making scientific observations on the lunar surface
Predicted theoretically by using the Total GDOP and receiver observation errors, with an expected exception that systematic errors induce additional user position error. It demonstrated that the rover position can be determined within several tens of meters with a probability of 95% (2drms) within a one-minute observation using two low lunar orbits and lunar digital elevation model (DEM) information
We propose a low-cost navigation system that is based on a multi-epoch double-differenced pseudorange observations (MDPO) algorithm
Summary
The estimation of a rover vehicle’s position on the lunar surface is one of the key technologies for the successful operation of the rover, and it is important for mapping resources and making scientific observations on the lunar surface. From resource mapping and scientific observation perspectives, the position of the rover must be known in order to assign observed objects to proper locations on the lunar map. Some studies have reported that positions on the lunar surface must be known within an accuracy of 100 m to support both purposes [1]. It is well-known that valuable resources, including water ice and volatile compounds are located in the permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) on the lunar surface. Because of the lack of illumination by sunlight in the PSRs, navigation methods that use visual images, such as visual simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM), will be constrained significantly if not completely invalidated
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