Results of the Deep Space Atomic Clock Deep Space Navigation Analog Experiment

Abstract

The timing and frequency stability provided by the Deep Space Atomic Clock (DSAC) is nearly commensurate to the Deep Space Network’s ground clocks and enables one-way radiometric measurements with accuracy equivalent to current two-way tracking data. A demonstration unit of the clock was launched into low Earth orbit on June 25, 2019, for the purpose of validating DSAC’s performance in the space environment. Global Positioning System (GPS) data collected throughout the two-year mission was utilized not only for precise clock estimation but also as a proxy for deep space tracking data to conduct the Deep Space Navigation Analog Experiment. Through careful selection and processing of GPS Doppler data and limited modeling fidelity representative of deep space navigation capabilities, the analog orbit solutions are compared to higher-fidelity solutions, demonstrating DSAC’s viability as a navigation instrument in conditions typical for a low-altitude Mars orbiter. Onboard telemetry quantifying the ultrastable oscillator (USO) frequency correction is processed to demonstrate the orbit determination performance degradation when utilizing USO-based one-way radiometric tracking data.