Abstract
In the course of satellite observations using satellite laser ranging (SLR), a key task is pointing the telescope with high precision. Positioning the steering system’s mechanical parts with zero error is impossible. Accordingly, we must analyze and account for pointing errors by incorporating the telescope mounting errors themselves into the modeling error. Such models are far from trivial owing to the factors such as satellite azimuth, altitude, perhaps distance, or meteorological data.
In this article, we explain how the data for the telescope pointing inaccuracy model (TIM) was collected and how a neural network was used to build a very precise TIM for the Golisiiv 1824 SLR station in Kyiv.
We have focused our efforts on the suggested approach’s positive aspects based on our experience of using it to find practical solutions. Our practical recommendations may also be interesting for anyone working with hardware, especially in analyzing their errors. The key proof of the effectiveness of the approach is the serious increase in the number of satellites successfully tracked, especially for “blind” paths, when the satellite is not visible to the observer through the telescope guide.