Recent Progress of Earth Observation Satellites in China

Currently,China has 32 Earth observation satellites in orbit.The satellites can provide various data such as optical,multispectral,infrared,and radar.The spatial resolution of China Earth observation satellites ranges from low to medium to high.The satellites possess the capability to observe across multiple spectral bands,under all weather conditions,and at all times.The data of China Earth observation satellites has been widely used in fields such as natural resource detection,environmental monitoring and protection,disaster prevention and reduction,urban planning and mapping,agricultural and forestry surveys,land survey and geological prospecting,and ocean forecasting,achieving huge social benefits.This article introduces the recent progress of Earth observation satellites in China since 2022,especially the satellite operation,data archiving,data distribution and data coverage.

Networking Observation and Applications of Chinese Ocean Satellites

This paper presents the networking observation capabilities of Chinese ocean satellites and their diverse applications in ocean disaster prevention,ecological monitoring,and resource development.Since the inaugural launch in 2002,China has achieved substantial advancements in ocean satellite technology,forming an observation system composed of the HY-1,HY-2,and HY-3 series satellites.These satellites are integral to global ocean environmental monitoring due to their high resolution,extensive coverage,and frequent observations.Looking forward,China aims to further enhance and expand its ocean satellite capabilities through ongoing projects to support global environmental protection and sustainable development.

Influence of Solar Activity on Precise Orbit Prediction of LEO Satellites

The perturbations of low earth orbit(LEO)satellites operating in the orbit of 300~2000 km are complicated.In particular,the atmospheric drag force and solar radiation pressure force change rapidly over a short period of time due to solar activities.Using spaceborne global positioning system(GPS)data of the CHAMP,GRACE and SWARM satellites from 2002 to 2020,this paper studies in depth the influence of solar activity on LEO satellites’precise orbit prediction by performing a series of orbit prediction experiments.The quality of GPS data is more susceptible to being influenced by solar activity during years when this activity is high and the changes in dynamic parameters are consistent with those of solar activity.The effects of solar activity on LEO orbit prediction accuracy are analyzed by comparing the predicted orbits with the precise ones.During years of high solar activity,the average root-mean-squares prediction errors at 10,20,and 30 minutes are 0.15,0.20,and 0.26 m,respectively,which are larger than the corresponding values in low-solar-activity years by 59%,63%,and 68%,respectively.These results demonstrate that solar activity has a great influence on the orbit prediction accuracy,especially during high-solar-activity years.We should strengthen the real-time monitoring of solar activity and geomagnetic activity,and formulate corresponding orbit prediction strategies for the active solar period.

The First Verification Test of Space-Ground Collaborative Intelligence via Cloud-Native Satellites

Recent advancements in satellite technologies and the declining cost of access to space have led to the emergence of large satellite constellations in Low Earth Orbit(LEO).However,these constellations often rely on bent-pipe architecture,resulting in high communication costs.Existing onboard inference architectures suffer from limitations in terms of low accuracy and inflexibility in the deployment and management of in-orbit applications.To address these challenges,we propose a cloud-native-based satellite design specifically tailored for Earth Observation tasks,enabling diverse computing paradigms.In this work,we present a case study of a satellite-ground collaborative inference system deployed in the Tiansuan constellation,demonstrating a remarkable 50%accuracy improvement and a substantial 90%data reduction.Our work sheds light on in-orbit energy,where in-orbit computing accounts for 17%of the total onboard energy consumption.Our approach represents a significant advancement of cloud-native satellite,aiming to enhance the accuracy of in-orbit computing while simultaneously reducing communication cost.

Performance evaluation of HY-2 series satellites in marine gravity field recovery

China has successfully launched four Haiyang-2(HY-2)series altimetry satellites.HY-2A has attracted significant attention in gravity field recovery,but the performance of other HY-2 series satellites,including HY-2B/C/D,is seldom discussed.This study evaluated the performance of all the HY-2 series satellites in recovering marine gravity field.First,the crossover discrepancies in sea surface height of the four satellites,HY-2A,HY-2B,HY-2C,and HY-2D,were analyzed to assess their altimetry stability.It was found that HY-2B had the best altimetry quality,followed by HY-2D.Subsequently,different combina-tions of altimetry data were used to calculate vertical deflections and gravity anomalies in the South China Sea(112°E-119°E,12°N-20°N).The results showed that combining data from HY-2B,HY-2C,and HY-2D improved the inversion accuracy of gravity anomalies by 0.3 mGal compared to using HY-2A data alone.HY-2C and HY-2D contributed to enhancing the accuracy of the east component of vertical deflections.

DUAL QUATERNION CURVE INTERPOLATION ALGORITHM FOR FORMATION SATELLITES

The traditional algorithms for formation flying satellites treat the satellite position and attitude sepa- rately. A novel algorithm combining satellite attitude with position is proposed. The principal satellite trajectory is obtained by dual quaternion interpolation, then the relative position and attitude of the deputy satellite are ob- tained by dual quaternion modeling on the principal satellite. Through above process, relative position and atti- tude are unified. Compared with the orbital parameter and the quaternion methods, the simulation result proves that the algorithm can unify position and attitude, and satisfy the precision requirement of formation flying satel- lites.

GYRO BIAS ON-ORBIT CALIBRATION FOR MICRO SATELLITES

According to gyro application in micro-satellites, a new gyro bias real-time on-orbit calibration technology is presented and it is independent of any other sensors. The approach relies on gyro on-orbit measurements restricted by satellite attitude dynamics and estimates the gyro bias generated when the gyro is electrified. Observability of the calibration model is analyzed and applicable conditions of the technology are derived. Simulation results indicate that the calibration algorithm is accurate and robust at gyro sampling rate, and its convergence speed is fast. Within the given attitude dynamics model error, the convergence time is less than 100 s and the convergence accuracy is about 1.0 （°）/h. Calibration performance can meet requirements of spacecraft operations.

Evaluation of the Long-term Performance of Microwave Radiation Imager Onboard Chinese Fengyun Satellites

Accurate brightness temperature(BT)is a top priority for retrievals of atmospheric and surface parameters.Microwave Radiation Imagers(MWRIs)on Chinese Fengyun-3(FY-3)serial polar-orbiting satellites have been providing abundant BT data since 2008.Much work has been done to evaluate short-term MWRI observations,but the long-term performance of MWRIs remains unclear.In this study,operational MWRI BTs from 2012–19 were carefully examined by using simultaneous Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer 2(AMSR2)BTs as the reference.The BT difference between MWRI/FY3B and AMSR2 during 2012–19 increased gradually over time.As compared with MWRI/FY3B BTs over land,those of MWRI/FY3D were much closer to those of AMSR2.The ascending and descending orbit difference for MWRI/FY3D is also much smaller than that for MWRI/FY3B.These results suggested the improvement of MWRI/FY3D over MWRI/FY3B.A substantial BT difference between AMSR2 and MWRI was found over water,especially at the vertical polarization channels.A similar BT difference was found over polar water based on the simultaneous conical overpassing(SCO)method.Radiative transfer model simulations suggested that the substantial BT differences at the vertical polarization channels of MWRI and AMSR2 over water were partly contributed by their difference in the incident angle;however,the underestimation of the operational MWRI BT over water remained a very important issue.Preliminary assessment of the operational and recalibrated MWRI BT demonstrated that MWRI BTs were substantially improved after the recalibration,including the obvious underestimation of the operational MWRI BT at the vertical polarization channels over water was corrected,and the time-dependent biases were reduced.

Ocean Observation from Haiyang Satellites: 2012–2014

During 2012 and 2014, China has two Haiyang(which means ocean in Chinese, referred to as HY) satellites operating normally in space which are HY-1B and HY-2A. HY-1B is an ocean color environment satellite which was launched in April 2007 to observe global ocean color and sea surface temperature, and HY-2A is an ocean dynamic environment satellite which was launched in August 2011 to obtain global marine dynamic environment parameters including sea surface height,significant wave height, ocean wind vectors, etc. Ocean observation data provided by HY-1B and HY-2A have been widely used by both domestic and international users in extensive areas such as ocean environment protection, ocean disaster prevention and reduction, marine environment forecast,ocean resource development and management, ocean investigations and scientific researches, etc.

FY-3 Meteorological Satellites and the Applications

FY-3 is the second generation polar-orbiting meteorological satellite of China. The first satellite named FY-3A of this series was launched on 27 May 2008. The first operational satellite named FY-3C of this series was launched on 23 September, 2013. The new generation satellites are to provide three-dimensional, quantitative, multi-spectral global remote sensing data under all weather conditions, which will greatly help the operational numerical weather prediction, global climate change research, climate diagnostics and prediction, and natural disaster monitoring. They will also provide help for many other fields such as agriculture, forestry, oceanography and hydrology. With the above-mentioned capability, the FY-3 satellites can make valuable contributions to improving weather forecasts, global natural-disaster and environmental monitoring.

Dynamic Connectivity in Cislunar Communication Networking Based on Geosynchronous Orbit Relay Satellites

The architecture of cislunar multi-hop communication networks, which focuses on the requirements of lunar full-coverage and continuous cislunar communications, is presented on the basis of Geosynchronous Orbit (GEO) satellite network relays. According to the geographical distribution of the forthcoming Chinese Deep Space Measuring and Controlling Network (DSMCN), two networking schemes are proposed and two elevation angle optimization models are established for locating GEO relay satellites. To analyze the dynamic connectivity, a dynamic network model is constructed with respect to the time-varying characteristics of cislunar trunk links. The advantages of the two proposed schemes, in terms of the Connectivity Rate (CR), Interruption Frequency (IF), and Average Length of Connecting Duration (ALCD), are corroborated by several simulations. In the case of the lunar polar orbit constellation case, the gains in the performance of scheme I are observed to be 134.55%, 117.03%, and 217.47% compared with DSMCN for three evaluation indicators, and the gains in the performance of scheme II are observed to be 238. 22%, 240.40%, and 572.71%. The results validate that the connectivity of GEO satellites outperforms that of earth facilities significantly and schemes based on GEO satellite relays are promising options for cislunar multi-hop communication networking.

Energetic electron detection packages on board Chinese navigation satellites in MEO

Energetic electron measurements and spacecraft charging are of great significance for theoretical research in space physics and space weather applications.In this paper,the energetic electron detection package(EEDP)deployed on three Chinese navigation satellites in medium Earth orbit(MEO)is reviewed.The instrument was developed by the space science payload team led by Peking University.The EEDP includes a pinhole medium-energy electron spectrometer(MES),a high-energy electron detector(HED)based onΔE-E telescope technology,and a deep dielectric charging monitor(DDCM).The MES measures the energy spectra of 50−600 keV electrons from nine directions with a 180°×30°field of view(FOV).The HED measures the energy spectrum of 0.5−3.0 MeV electrons from one direction with a 30°cone-angle FOV.The ground test and calibration results indicate that these three sensors exhibit excellent performance.Preliminary observations show that the electron spectra measured by the MES and HED are in good agreement with the results from the magnetic electron-ion spectrometer(MagEIS)of the Van Allen Probes spacecraft,with an average relative deviation of 27.3%for the energy spectra.The charging currents and voltages measured by the DDCM during storms are consistent with the highenergy electron observations of the HED,demonstrating the effectiveness of the DDCM.The observations of the EEDP on board the three MEO satellites can provide important support for theoretical research on the radiation belts and the applications related to space weather.

A three-dimensional positioning method based on three satellites

A three-dimensional positioning method for global positioning system(GPS)receivers based on three satellites was proposed.In the method,the measurement equation used for positioning calculation was expanded by means of two measures.In this case,the measurement equation could be solved,and the function of positioning calculation could be performed.The detailed steps of the method and how to evaluate the positioning precision of the method were given,respectively.The positioning performance of the method was demonstrated through some experiments.It is shown that the method can provide the three-dimensional positioning information under the condition that there are only three useful satellites.

Initial orbit determination of BDS-3 satellites based on new code signals

For the two newly launched satellites(PRN number 27 and 28) of the future global BeiDou navigation satellite system(BDS-3), there is no available broadcast ephemeris data and other initial orbit information, but the initial orbit is the fundamental of the comprehensive analysis of the satellites and their signals. Precise orbit determination(POD) also requires determination of a priori initial value with a certain precision in order to avoid problems such as filter divergence during POD. Compared with the Newton iteration method, which relies on the initial value, this study utilizes the Bancroft algorithm to directly solve the nonlinear equations with the advantage of numerical stability. The initial orbits of these two satellites are calculated based on new code signals, and their results are analyzed and discussed. The experimental results show that, with the exception of very few epochs, when the new code signal is utilized, the median and robust variance factor of the observed residuals computed using pseudo-range observations and the solved initial orbits are less than 4 and 2 m, respectively. It also shows that this solution can be used for rapid initial orbit recovery after maneuvers of the new BeiDou satellites.

Chinese GF-1 and GF-3 satellites observed the giant iceberg calving off the Larsen C Ice Shelf

A massive iceberg, named A-68 by National Ice Center （NIC） officially, calved away from the Larsen C Ice Shelf in Antarctica on luly 12, 2017. The iceberg A-68 is about 5 800 km2, weighs more than a trillion tons and it is one of the biggest ever recorded icebergs. Chinese satellites Gaofen-1 （GF-1） and Gaofen-3 （GF-3） data was used to monitoring the propagation of the rift and the iceberg by National Satellite Ocean Application Service （NSOAS）.

Eclipses and Occultations of Galilean Satellites Observed at Yunnan Observatory in 2003

We describe and analyze observations of mutual events of Galilean satellites made at the Yunnan Observatory in February 2003 from CCD imaging for the first time in China. Astrometric positions were deduced from these photometric observations by modelling the relative motion and the photometry of the involved satellites during each event.

A two-dimensional lithospheric magnetic anomaly field model of Egypt using the measurements from Swarm satellites

We use magnetic field data observed by the Swarm mission from 2014 to 2020 to construct,for the first time,a two-dimensional(2 D)lithospheric magnetic anomaly model of Egypt and its surrounding area.Nighttime data during quiet geomagnetic conditions has been expanded in terms of the Legendre polynomial in harmonic terms N=6-50.The damped least square method has been used to estimate the model coefficients based on the lithospheric magnetic data.Modeled data at two different altitudes(438-448 km and 503-511 km)were compared with the CHAOS model.Results exhibit that the 2 D model is superior to the CHAOS model in the capability of extracting more information about small-scale crustal anomaly field.At low altitudes(438-448 km),the strength of the anomaly field increases,but the noise of the external fields has greatly reduced at high altitudes(503-511 km).Besides,the magnetic anomaly field at low altitudes has illuminated short-scale anomalies that didn’t appear at high altitudes.Both the total and vertical magnetic anomaly vectors showed their ability to reveal tectonic structures compared with Moho depth map and the geological maps.

A Large-Scale Scheduling Method for Multiple Agile Optical Satellites

This study investigates the scheduling problem ofmultiple agile optical satelliteswith large-scale tasks.This problem is difficult to solve owing to the time-dependent characteristic of agile optical satellites,complex constraints,and considerable solution space.To solve the problem,we propose a scheduling method based on an improved sine and cosine algorithm and a task merging approach.We first establish a scheduling model with task merging constraints and observation action constraints to describe the problem.Then,an improved sine and cosine algorithm is proposed to search for the optimal solution with the maximum profit ratio.An adaptive cosine factor and an adaptive greedy factor are adopted to improve the algorithm.Besides,a taskmerging method with a task reallocation mechanism is developed to improve the scheduling efficiency.Experimental results demonstrate the superiority of the proposed algorithm over the comparison algorithms.

The influence from high-n dielectronic satellites to Kα resonance line in helium-like aluminium

Based on the multi-configuration Dirac-Fock method, this paper has made theoretical calculations for the dielectronic recombination cross-sections and the high-n dielectronic satellites to Kα resonance line in helium-like aluminium ions. It is found that high-n dielectronic satellites are seriously mixed with resonance line, which leads to a significant increase in both the apparent width and the intensity of Kα resonance line. They also induce a positional shift of Kα resonance line.

Spacecraft potential variations of the Swarm satellites at low Earth orbital altitudes

In this study, we provide the first detailed analysis of variations in the spacecraft potential (Vs) of the three Swarm satellites, which are flying at about 400-500 km. Unlike previous studies that have investigated extreme charging events, usually with spacecraft potentials as negative as −100 V, this study is focused on variations of Swarm Vs readings, which fall within a few negative volts. The Swarm observations show that spacecraft at low Earth orbital (LEO) altitudes are charged only slightly negatively, varying between −7 V and 0 V, with the majority of recorded potentials at these altitudes clustering close to −2 V. However, a second peak of Vs data is found at −5.5 V, though the event numbers for these more-negative observations are less, by an order of magnitude, than for incidents near the −2 V peak. These two distinct Vs peaks suggest two different causes. We have thus divided the Swarm spacecraft Vs data into two categories: less-negatively charged (−5 < Vs < 0 V) and more-negatively-charged (−6.5 < Vs < −5 V). These two Vs categories exhibit different spatial and temporal distributions. The Vs observations in the first category remain relatively closer to 0 V above the magnetic equator, but become much more negative at low and middle latitudes on the day side;at high latitudes, these first-category Vs readings are relatively more-negative during local summer. Second-category Vs events cluster into two bands at the middle latitudes (between ±20°-50° magnetic latitude), but with slightly more negative readings at the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) region;at high latitudes, these rarer but more-negative second-category Vs events exhibit relatively more-negative values during local winter, which is opposite to the seasonal pattern seen in the first category. By comparing Vs data to the distributions of background plasma density at Swarm altitudes, we find for the first category that more-negative Vs readings are recorded at regions with higher background plasma density, while for the second category the more-negative Vs data are observed at regions with lower background plasma density. This can be explained as follows: the electron and ion fluxes incident on Swarm surface, whose differences determine the potential of Swarm, are dominated by the background “cold” plasma (due to ionization) and “hot” plasma (due to precipitated particles from magnetosphere) for the two Vs categories, respectively.