Shared Operation of a Barrage Jammer and Reference Signal Sources for Determining Ground-Based Radio Transmitters Operating via Geostationary Relay Satellites

Introduction.  There  are  incidences  of  jamming  the  users  of  satellite  communication  systems,  who  apply  e.g. geostationary relay satellites, and the illegal use of such satellite resources. These actions can be both intentional and unintentional, and, among other things, be caused by non-compliance with electromagnetic compatibility standards on part of other users of satellite communication systems. For a prompt and high -quality response of radio monitoring services and satellite operators to these illegal  actions, it seems urgent to develop methods for accurate determination of the geolocation of radio emission sources.

Aim.  To develop a method for improving the accuracy of determining the coordinates of ground-based radio emission sources operating via geostationary relay satellites based on shared operation of a barrage jammer and reference signal sources.

Materials and methods.  The research was conducted using the statistical theory of radio engineering systems, the theory of digital signal processing and the method of simulation.

Results.  A  method  was  developed  for  improving  the  geolocation  accuracy  of  ground-based  radio  emission sources operating via geostationary relay satellites based on shared operation of a barrage jammer and reference signal sources. A method for resolving ambiguity regarding the true correlation peak of a reference source signal using a signal from a barrage jammer was described. An expression was obtained for the probability of a correct  solution  when  resolving  such  ambiguity.  As  a  result,  the  estimates  of  geolocation  accuracy  obtained using the developed method were compared with those obtained by a conventional method relying on the usage of 3 different reference stations.

Conclusions. The method proposed in this paper makes it possible to achieve a relatively high accuracy when determining the geolocation of ground-based radio emission sources in the Earth’s regions of interest, at the same time as involving no organizational and financial costs for the installation of a large number of reference stations.

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