Spectral Radiance Characterization of Starlink andOther Satellites for Terrestrial Optical Navigation

Spectral Radiance Characterization of Starlink andOther Satellites for Terrestrial Optical Navigation | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Spectral Radiance Characterization of Starlink andOther Satellites for Terrestrial Optical Navigation Jake Singh, Joshua Baumann, Matthew Gorban, Christopher Dinelli, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8809601/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Compared to extensive studies on apparent magnitude and bi-directional reflectance functions (BRDFs) for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites like Starlink, there has been a notable gap in the literature when it comes to spectral radiance characterization. Such characterization would be highly beneficial to the emerging Alternative Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (Alt-PNT) method of Terrestrial Optical Navigation (which involves collecting optical line-of-sight measurements to satellites in the presence of sky background, turbulence, and other atmospheric effects), as it could allow for careful design of optical filtering schemes to maximize signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the satellite measurements. To address the literature gap, the authors introduce a dataset resulting from a four-night observation campaign with the Magdalena Ridge Observatory’s 2.4-meter telescope. Spectra spanning 380–860 nm were collected for 50 satellites and orbital objects across LEO, Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), and Geostationary Orbit (GEO), with particular emphasis on all three generations of Starlink satellites. Analysis of the Starlink data reveals a local reflectance peak near 475 nm, a shape similar to the solar irradiance curve, and a distinct near-infrared spike for the v2 generation. Estimation of absolute spectral flux from relative flux density measurements is presented, as well as discussion on how near-infrared (NIR) or short wave infrared (SWIR) sensing could expand the operational envelope of terrestrial optical navigation. This dataset offers new insight into the feasibility of optical satellite tracking under challenging conditions, including daylight operations and onboard high-speed aerospace vehicles. Spectral Radiance Starlink Optical Navigation Satellite Characterization Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8809601","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":609475560,"identity":"d7006eca-3934-4361-ad3a-e42b48658e99","order_by":0,"name":"Jake 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Such characterization would be highly beneficial to the emerging Alternative Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (Alt-PNT) method of Terrestrial Optical Navigation (which involves collecting optical line-of-sight measurements to satellites in the presence of sky background, turbulence, and other atmospheric effects), as it could allow for careful design of optical filtering schemes to maximize signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the satellite measurements. To address the literature gap, the authors introduce a dataset resulting from a four-night observation campaign with the Magdalena Ridge Observatory\u0026rsquo;s 2.4-meter telescope. Spectra spanning 380\u0026ndash;860 nm were collected for 50 satellites and orbital objects across LEO, Medium Earth Orbit (MEO), and Geostationary Orbit (GEO), with particular emphasis on all three generations of Starlink satellites. 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