Accurate pulse-radar altimeter for meteorological balloons
Pulse radar altimeter for measuring meteorological balloon altitude, using superregenerative RF stage
SEARCH · Search NASA
Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Pulse radar altimeter for measuring meteorological balloon altitude, using superregenerative RF stage
Pulse radar altimeter design for balloon sounding, discussing flight tests, superregenerative stage, etc
Pulse compression for geodesy satellite radar altimeter, considering tradeoff based on system accuracy, power and life
Miniaturizing balloon borne radio altimeter and meteorological applications of ATS data
GEOS-3 altimeter bias recovery simulation using range and angle tracking data
Error sources in GEOS-C satellite short arc orbit determination method as determined by altimeter experiment
Error correction for GEOS-C altimeter system from range and angle observations
Design criteria for radar altimeter for GEOS-C geodetic satellite
Numerical analysis of radar echo pulse response to compute expected return pulse amplitude and shape for planetary radar altimeters
The concept, constraints, and capabilities of a radar altimeter type contour mapper for a Venus orbiter mission are presented. The system was developed for the proposed planetary explorer universal bus concept. A system with a height precision of 30meters over a surface area of 7200 square kilometers is achieved. Using this system and the orbit proposed in the orbiting bus concept, the northern hemisphere of Venus is mapped in one Venus day. The radar receiver system, is used in a radiometer mode to obtain a map of the diurnal and logitudinal variations of the Venus surface temperature with a resolution of 3.0 degrees Kelvin.
A light weight radar altimeter-driftmeter applicable to landing planetary probes is described. The system utilizes a small light weight phased array antenna to generate three independent radio frequency beams. The range and Doppler along each of these beams is measured. The six measured quantitites are then combined with a resulting range (altitude) accuracy of 75 meters and a horizontal drift velocity accuracy of 6 cm/sec. The entire system weighs less than 3.7 kilograms and requires less than 9 watts of dc power.
The laser altimeter, consisting of a Q switched ruby laser, transmitting optics, counting timer, receiving optics, and a photomultiplier is described. Harmonic analysis of the mission data is also presented.
The characteristics of the geoid surface are quantitatively described. A procedure for calculating the satellite altitude is developed. Error sources are described quantitatively, mathematically modeled, and evaluated in computer simulation. Procedures for maximum likelihood processing of altimeter data for recovery of orbit and geopotential information are presented for several geopotential models.
This study investigated the accuracies of orbit determinations in the radial coordinate utilizing currently available tracking systems. The results pinpoint certain areas which are critical for the efficient utilization of altimeter measurements.
A summary of the significant hardware characteristics of the S-193 altimeter experiment portion of the 1973 Skylab Mission is presented. A detailed discussion of the altimetry, oceanographic, and instrumentation technology objectives are presented along with a discussion of the major experiments associated with these objectives.
The purpose of the GEOS-C mission and the operating characteristics of its special K-band altimeter are outlined. Special attention was given to the possible use of height measurements and other supporting GEOS-C data to evaluate the feasibility and value of altimetry on a global basis.
An attempt was made to determine if future satellite altimeters, operating at K-band, should use a single transmitter or an array of pulsed amplifiers. The two systems were compared as a function of reliability, power, service life, system requirements, and weight. Preliminary results indicate the modular system to be superior in service life and reliability although it requires more power and is substantially heavier than the single system. No concrete conclusions were reached as to which system should be used.