Using Spacecraft Data to Investigate Navigating Cis-Lunar Space

Faith Cornish, Kirsten Strandjord

Abstract:	The objective of this proposed research is to develop methods that aid navigation through cis-lunar space that do not rely on the limited availability of the DSN. Such methods would utilize the weak signals from the antenna sidelobes of the well-established GNSS constellation and the signals that would originate from the current set of proposed LNSS orbits being considered, shown in Figure 1. Prior work in utilizing weak GNSS signals in a highly elliptical orbit (HEO) with Direct Positioning Estimation (DPE) methods has informed the research within this paper which investigates positioning at even further altitudes beyond the GPS constellation. Artemis I ephemerides and GPS antenna patterns are used to simulate the link budget expected from the satellite geometry for one day of the Artemis mission for the portion beyond the altitude of the GPS constellation and into the cis-lunar space. From this simulation, two portions of the Artemis I mission are determined to be ideal locations for further simulation in order to perform DPE methods in future work.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 36th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS+ 2023) September 11 - 15, 2023 Hyatt Regency Denver Denver, Colorado
Pages:	3631 - 3646
Cite this article:	Cornish, Faith, Strandjord, Kirsten, "Using Spacecraft Data to Investigate Navigating Cis-Lunar Space," Proceedings of the 36th International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS+ 2023), Denver, Colorado, September 2023, pp. 3631-3646. https://doi.org/10.33012/2023.19281
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