Pulsar Signal Processing for Spacecraft PNT Applications

The Microcosm team will develop the detailed X-ray source signal processing, timing algorithms and analytical tools that will form the basis for development of an X-ray pulsar based timing and navigation (XTIM) system. This capability will support planning, development and data analysis for the planned DARPA XTIM flight demonstration, and will ultimately support development of the next generation time reference and time distribution solutions for DoD systems and platforms. This capability will complement existing timing solutions and promises to enhance survivability, reliability and performance potentially enabling powerful new or enhanced capabilities to support DoD missions. Timing and time transfer and distribution are critical to numerous DoD and civil/commercial applications, including: Communication networks Secure communications Navigation systems (GPS and others) Geolocation of signals Phased antenna arrays: communications and radar systems Very long baseline interferometry (VLBI): radio astronomy and deep-space navigation Pulsar-based time bases have been synthesized using RF (radio frequency) observations from ground based radio telescopes, and analysis of data from RXTE (Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer) and other missions has shown that space based pulsar observations in the X-ray band can also be used to synthesize a pulsar-based time scale. This project will extend and begin to operationalize the capability.