Analysis of pulse to pulse amplitude and phase variations for different LEO objects using S3TSR Radar measurements

Space objects in LEO regime present high velocities and accelerations due to the low altitude. This article analyses several passes of different objects across the field of regard of a surveillance radar, the S3TSR. The S3TSR (Spanish Space Surveillance and Tracking - Surveillance Radar) is a surveillance radar system developed by Indra within a project funded by CDTI and technically managed by ESA. This radar contributes to the EUSST consortium. It is being successfully maintained and operated 24/7 by the COVE (Centro de Operaciones de Vigilancia Espacial / Space Surveillance Ops Center) from the Spanish Air Force.
This study is beneficial to having a deeper knowledge on correlation between estimated variation of RCS and complexity of the object. The analysis consists of three phases. First one, the acquisition of amplitude and phase measurements in consecutive pulses, bounced in LEO objects with different shape complexity. Second, the removal of the contribution of variables already known and third, the comparison of these refined data with the theoretical model.