Precision orbit determination with SLR observations considering range bias estimation

The unexpected observation condition or insufficient measurement modeling can lead to uncertain measurement errors. The uncertain measurement error of orbit determination problem typically consists of noise, bias and drift. It must be removed by using a proper estimation process for better orbit accuracy. The estimation of noise and drift is not easy because of their random or unpredictable variation. On the other hand, bias is a constant difference between the mean of the measured values and the true value, so it can be simply removed. In this study, precision orbit determination with SLR observations considering range bias estimation is presented. The Yonsei Laser-ranging Precision Orbit Determination System (YLPODS) and SLR NP (Normal Point) observations of CHAMP satellite are used for this work. The SLR residual test is performed to estimate the range bias of each arc. The result shows that we can get better orbit accuracy through range bias estimation.