Initial Determination of Low Earth Orbits Using Commercial Telescopes

Within the last decade, many new technologies have significantly changed the face of private astronomy. Developments such asinexpensive but high-quality sensors, rapid personal computing, and easy networking inspire a reexamination of an old problem: how practical is it to develop initial orbit estimates for Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellites using optical tracking? This paperdocuments the design and implementation of a commercial telescope system used to answer precisely that question. This analysisdetermined there are some challenging barriers to successful single-site orbit determination, but it is possible given the rightconditions. Considering the low cost and small support footprint of such systems, they could provide excellent support to SpaceSituational Awareness (SSA) missions or satellite tracking operations in general.

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