• Featured in Physics
  • Editors' Suggestion
  • Open Access

In-Orbit Performance of the GRACE Follow-on Laser Ranging Interferometer

Klaus Abich et al.
Phys. Rev. Lett. 123, 031101 – Published 19 July 2019
Physics logo See Focus story: Spacecraft Separation Measured to the Nanometer

Abstract

The Laser Ranging Interferometer (LRI) instrument on the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) Follow-On mission has provided the first laser interferometric range measurements between remote spacecraft, separated by approximately 220 km. Autonomous controls that lock the laser frequency to a cavity reference and establish the 5 degrees of freedom two-way laser link between remote spacecraft succeeded on the first attempt. Active beam pointing based on differential wave front sensing compensates spacecraft attitude fluctuations. The LRI has operated continuously without breaks in phase tracking for more than 50 days, and has shown biased range measurements similar to the primary ranging instrument based on microwaves, but with much less noise at a level of 1nm/Hz at Fourier frequencies above 100 mHz.

  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Figure
  • Received 15 April 2019
  • Revised 1 June 2019

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.123.031101

Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.

Published by the American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

  1. Techniques
General Physics

Focus

Key Image

Spacecraft Separation Measured to the Nanometer

Published 19 July 2019

A pair of satellites 200 km apart has demonstrated a record-high precision in distance determination, which will be useful for mapping out Earth’s gravitational field.

See more in Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Click to Expand

Article Text

Click to Expand

References

Click to Expand
Issue

Vol. 123, Iss. 3 — 19 July 2019

Reuse & Permissions
Author publication services for translation and copyediting assistance advertisement

Authorization Required


×
×

Images

×

Sign up to receive regular email alerts from Physical Review Letters

Reuse & Permissions

It is not necessary to obtain permission to reuse this article or its components as it is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI are maintained. Please note that some figures may have been included with permission from other third parties. It is your responsibility to obtain the proper permission from the rights holder directly for these figures.

×

Log In

Cancel
×

Search


Article Lookup

Paste a citation or DOI

Enter a citation
×