Reduction of Satellite Signature Effect in High-Accuracy Satellite Laser Ranging to Etalon

Etalon is considered to be one of the most promising satellites for studying crustal motions, Earth rotation, and other scientific applications. Unfortunately, its outsized shape and signature result in a measurement range bias of several millimeters. On the basis of simulations of the echo signals, we analyze the center of mass corrections (CoM) for Etalon due to variations in satellite signature effect at different incidence angles. To minimize range bias caused by satellite signature effects, a center of mass corrections filter has been proposed for the processing of standard SLR data. According to the relationship between RMS of CoM and the upper limits of the rejection criteria, the measurements with the lowest variability of CoM are selected for normal points. Statistics indicate that the center of mass corrections filter can improve the stability of the collected data by 79%, and reduce the mean RMS of normal points from 163.7 × 41.8 ps to 118.2 × 8.94 ps. Additionally, the new algorithm is applicable to Etalon-2. In particular, this paper enriches and provides a useful reference for minimizing the effects of satellite signatures on the production of SLR data by providing a theoretical model that incorporates systematic errors in SLR.