Parameters of optical signals registered with the AZT-33IK telescope in active Radar–Progress space experiment

Abstract

Images of Progress cargo spacecraft (PCS) and areas around them were captured by the AZT-33IK optical telescope (Sayan Observatory of ISTP SB RAS) during sessions of the active Radar–Progress space experiment. We took images of exhaust and fuel jets when propulsion systems worked and after they were cut off, during fuel system purging. In different sessions of the experiment, PCS had different orientations relative to the telescope, thus enabling us to find some parameters of the observed phenomena. These parameters allow us to determine instants of engine ignitions, to estimate velocities of the jets, and, if necessary, to control geometry of the space experiment. The paper reports common features of optical signals from jets measured in these experiments.