Doppler experiments with Cassini radio system

Abstract

The radio system of the Cassini orbiter will include a K-alpha band downlink channel, mainly intended for telemetry. A K-alpha uplink has also been proposed to allow for a highly accurate gravitational wave experiment. The fourfold increase in frequency will reduce the plasma noise by a factor of 12 and will allow a Doppler accuracy better than 10 exp -15 for time scales of 10 exp 3 - 10 exp 4 s. Extensive Doppler measurements of the gravitational field of Saturn and its satellites can be performed, exploiting the induced change in the velocity of the spacecraft. Possible sources of low-frequency gravitational waves and errors in the Doppler link are discussed.