Snapshot GNSS receivers for low-effort, high-gain space situational awareness

Abstract

This paper proposes a novel concept of using highly efficient Snapshot Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) receivers to provide precise position fixes of single or multiple satellites in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) to improve upper atmospheric modeling and thus contribute to superior space situational awareness (SSA). While tracking of LEO satellites and the use of onboard GNSS receivers for drag measurements and upper atmosphere modeling are well-established techniques, the expected advent of snapshot GNSS receivers for spaceborne scientific applications will allow massive improvements on the GNSS sensor’s Size, Weight, Power and Cost (SWaP-C). With chip-size dimensions of 4x4 mm2, a mass of less than 5 gr, an average power level below 0.1 mW, snapshot receiver technology is expected to provide position fixes in space with an accuracy of ∼19 m (3D r.m.s.), which will surpass the accuracy of Two-Line Elements (TLE) provided by the US Joint Space Operations Center (JSpOC) by at least two orders of magnitude. Equally important to their SWaP-C benefits, Snapshot GNSS receivers will allow mission and spacecraft designers to trade onboard-processing requirements versus payload downlink requirements, leading to either minimum onboard processing or a minimum amount of downlinked data. In this research, we establish the concept and architectural overview of using snapshot GNSS receivers for SSA, including the role of using them in a Distributed Space System (DSS), and detail their characterization and performance in terms of the required GNSS hardware and the impact of these payload on the power budget, the link budget and the OnBoard Data Handling (OBDH) budget of a satellite. It will be shown that these receivers lend themselves especially to their use on femto-, pico- and nano-satellites, although integrated snapshot modules may be flown as auxiliary payloads on micro- or mini-satellites as well. While this work focuses on the implications of the use of snapshot GNSS receivers on spacecraft design for the use of upper atmosphere modeling and SSA, their use may open up other science applications which avoid the need for expensive high-grade GNSS receivers.