Development of Advanced Pointing and Tracking Concepts

This effort will develop tracking algorithms and design tracking system compensations to operate under atmospheric scintillation. In September of 1997 a series of evaluation tests for three basic algorithms were conducted at Lincoln Laboratory over a range atmospherically scaled to the Airborne Laser scenario. The data showed that two major problems existed with the tracking algorithms, these were (1)scintillation was making calculation of tilt very difficult, and (2) the false tilt due to scintillation was being coupled back into system via the track loop control of the steering mirror. The test series at Lincoln Laboratories provide a large library of imaging data taken under scaled conditions of turbulence and scintillation. This project will use that data and develop new tracking algorithms and track loop designs to work under scintillated conditions. Several algorithms will be developed and completed, these are (1) spatial and temporal averaging routines, (2) a Kalman filter tracking algorithm, and (3) correlation algorithms. The best performing of the algorithms will be evaluated using a wave optics simulation.