Timing X-ray Pulsars with Application to Spacecraft Navigation
Abstract
Usually, positions of spacecraft on interplanetary or deep space missions are determined by radar tracking from ground stations, a method by which uncertainty increases with distance from Earth. As an alternative, a spacecraft equipped with e.g. an X-ray telescope could determine its position autonomoulsy via onboard analysis of X-ray pulsar signals. In order to find out which pulsars are best suited for this approach and what accuracy can be achieved, we build up a database containing the temporal emission characteristics of the ~ 60 X-ray pulsars for which a pulsed radiation has been detected by mid 2010.
Cite
@article{arxiv.1011.5095,
title = {Timing X-ray Pulsars with Application to Spacecraft Navigation},
author = {Mike Georg Bernhardt and Tobias Prinz and Werner Becker and Ulrich Walter},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1011.5095},
year = {2011}
}
Comments
5 pages, 2 figures, to be published in the proceedings of High Time Resolution Astrophysics IV - The Era of Extremely Large Telescopes, held on May 5-7, 2010, Agios Nikolaos, Crete, Greece