Description and experimental results of a 58-lb portable LEO satellite tracker

摘要

Abstract: A portable low earth orbit satellite (LEO) tracking mount is described which has dimensions of 21' $MUL 15' $MUL 10' and weighs 58 pounds. Using 22 bit encoders on 9.5' worm gears, an integral microcontroller is capable of adjustable slew rates to six degrees per second. With a CCD and tracking software LEO pointing is demonstrated on f/10 eight inch telescope to less than 8 urad for periods of 10 seconds, and 50 urad for entire orbit passes. A closed loop one Hz video tracker is also described with automatic tracking of mag 7/8 satellites using a 12' telescope. Requiring only one operator, this system can be transported by a small car and be operational in a few hours. Possible uses and other recent work is also explained. !6