Design of laser retro-reflectors and experiment of laser ranging for PN1B satellite

PN1Bexperimental satellite is an initiative project of China aiming at thermosphere density detection, which has been successfully launched into outer space from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in September, 2015. In order to satisfy the inspection standard and high precision measurement application requirements for the satellite GPS orbit determination data, and according to fact that the satellite could not provide the required installation area for the array structure of laser reflectors, PN1B satellite is equipped with multiple small (10 mm) cube prisms for satellite laser ranging. After sending the satellite into orbit, the TROS1000 mobile satellite laser ranging system was used for the tracking and laser ranging experiments. The measurement results show that the laser echo data are enough, the average number of photons per second laser echo is as high as 173, marking such small laser reflectors as the cube prisms will play an important role in the application of precise orbit determination.