1.0 Introduction

The OL-AG, Phillips Laboratory's mission is to perform real-time tracking of space objects, to use various sensors to study the effects of physical phenomena on space vehicles, to develop and test new sensors and electrooptical devices, and to provide tracking support for Kennedy Space Center(KSC) and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) launches. This manual has been developed for current and future Department of Defense (DoD) users who have an interest in one or more of the activities that will be conducted at the Malabar facility. The OL-AG, Phillips Laboratory User Manual encompasses all activities conducted at the Malabar test facility and serves three purposes:

1. it provides a technically complete overview of the site and site capabilities for novice or first-time users;
2. it supplies the basic set of guidelines for visiting experimenters; and
3. it serves as an up-to-date reference source for instrumentation and projects currently supported at the Malabar facility.

To allow for wide distribution, this manual is published as an unclassified document. Additional sources of information are cited in the appendices and are available to authorized individuals or organizations. Requests for further information or for Malabar experimental support should be directed to:

Director
OL-AG, Phillips Laboratory
Malabar Test Facility
Florida 32925-6547

A form is supplied in the appendix to allow prospective users or experimenters to request additional information or experiment support. A written acknowledgement, with the name of an assigned point of contact who will aid in the mission planning procedures described in this manual, will be supplied upon receipt of this request.

Users who would like to receive periodic revisions of this manual may submit their name, title, affiliation, and address using the form supplied in section 10.2. Updates will reflect the addition of new equipment or facilities or changes in operational procedures.

New users are specifically directed to section 9.0 (Mission Planning J in this manual, where the Malabar User Authorization Procedures are presented.

1.1 Organizational Structure Primary organizational interfaces for both government and site contracts personnel are shown in Figures 1.1 and 1.2, respectively.

2.0 FACILITIES DESCRIPTION

The Malabar test facility was opened in the early 1960s to study lasers and laser effects. Subsequently, it was transferred to the Space and Missile Systems Organization (SAMSO) in 1978, Air Force Space Technology Center (AFSTC) in 1984, and Phillips Laboratory in 1990, where it now supports all DoD customers in the setup, evaluation, and performance of a wide range of electrooptical experiments. The primary resources of OL-AG, Phillips Laboratory include two optical trackers, two laser transmitters, a large computer system, and image and data processing capabilities to support such missions as launches from KSC and the Eastern Test Range, offshore operations, and on-orbit observations.

2.1 Site Location

The Malabar facility is located on the east coast of Florida, approximately 45 miles south-southwest of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Earth Mode: WGS-84
Latitude: 28.0246563333
Longitude: 279.3145495278
Height (R1): -3.19 m

TABLE 2.1 WGS Model Parameters

Mount Locations (from Eastern Space and Missile Center [ESMC] geodetic Coordinates Manual, January 1988)

Table 2.2 Malabar Mount Data

2.2 Observation and Support Facilities

Primary facilities, which are described in detail in the following sections, include
1. R1, a 1.2-m visible telescope with four focal points from f/2.5 to f/100;
2. R2, a 0.6-m mid-wave infrared(MWIR) with a coaxially mounted 0.25-meter f/5 long-wave infrared(LWIR). The optics of the 0.6-m are capable of visible and ultraviolet (UV)operations;
3. T1, a 0.6-m a focal beam director with 6x expansion capability; used for visible and MWIR operations;
4. T2, a 0.76-m a focal beam director with 10x beam expansion; used for LWIR;
5. T-3, a penta-mirror laser beam director currently under design with 0.2-m and 0.6-m apertures;
6. Building 00042, the main site operations area with offices for 34 people;
7. Building 0062, the location of the PBX, optics laboratory, and site computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) and engineering activities;
8. Building 00049

These and other major facilities located at the site are shown in Figure 2.1.

2.3 Operations Area

The five major areas of the operation center include the test conductor console, mount operations, data recording center, image processing area, and communications center.

The test conductor console has access to everything required to support various missions. The VT-220 can access any or all of the mount command/control functions. The master clear-coin and range communications adjoins the VT-220 for immediate access. The site safety officer is beside the test conductor and is in command of the laser safety control panel and the direct phone line to our air traffic control support center. The site safety officer and the safety officer in the safety tower have ultimate control of all laser shattering devices, which are located in strategic locations throughout the site.

The mount remote operations systems are along the west wall of the operations area and consist of a console control system, touch screens, ROB graphics displays, auxiliary input/output, and a MicroVAX III. The auxiliary input/output and the MicroVAX III are the only common elements to all four mounts. The auxiliary input/output provides the multiplexing/demultiplexing of information to and from the mounts. The MicroVAX III processes the information via the real time operating system, which was developed and is maintained at this site to provide on-orbit and launch support. The console control system and touch screen provide the operator with command-and-control functions to the mount and the MicroVAX III There are several display screens available to an operator for status, control, and commands. One of these, the ops display screen, also has the ability to switch functions in certain areas of the screen. Because of the special features built into the touch screen, operations are very efficient.

The data recording section is along the south wall. This section provides a variety of recording media, including the 8- and 12-in. video optical disks, 3/4-in. format tape, and VHS format tape required for mission support. Monitors, color video quad systems, video annotators, and video switching systems are available to ensure that data is displayed and recorded on the specified format. The image processing center is in the southeast section. A Recognition Concepts, Inc. (RCI) TRAPIX PLUS system is used for high-speed camera data. This system records digital data from various sensors in real time and is also used to digitize video for post-test analysis. For security reasons, the system has 6.2 gigabytes of real-time digital storage on removable hard disks. Once recorded, the data is stored on a 2 gigabyte digital optical disk through the MicroVAX. The communication center is in the northeast corner of the operations area. It provides all the classified hard-copy communications. This center is tied into the Cape Canaveral communications through a digital microwave link and includes teletype, high intensity data for radar tracking support and a T1 link for high-speed digital transfer.

Fiberoptic links facilitate all other communications between this closed area and any of the other areas on site. All outside communications that enter or leave this area are properly handled to ensure security.

2.4 Site Security

Site security is in compliance with DoD Regulation 5200.1-R and is issued under the authority of DoD Directive 5200.1, DoD Information Security Program, June 7,1982. This regulation became effective June 1,1986, except for subsection 80-104, which became effective on January 1,1987. DoD 5200. 1-R, August 1982, was canceled May 31,1986, except for its subsection 8-104, which remained in effect through December 31, 1986.

The provisions of the regulation apply to the Office of the Secretary of Defense along with their associated administrative activities, the military departments, the Organization of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the unified and specified commands, and the defense agencies, hereafter referred to collectively as DoD components.

This regulation is mandatory for use by all DoD components. Heads of DoD components may issue supplementary instructions when necessary to provide for internal administration of the regulation within their respective areas.

Users visiting the Malabar site will be required to have arranged for site authorization prior to the visit in order to gain access through the security checkpoint (Figure 2.2).

3.0 TELESCOPES & MOUNTS

3.1 Telescope Control System

The Real-Time Control Program (RTCP) is the center of the pedestal control system at Malabar. The program, written in FORTRAN, has been developed to provide fast and accurate pointing of the pedestals at various objects of interest. Basic functions of RTCP are shown schematically in figure 3.1. The RTCP is installed in a MicroVAX III in the operations area from which it directs the pointing of all four site pedestals. Data, which includes encoder data, servo drive type echo data, and analog-to-digital data, are collected from each pedestal at a 10-ms rate. Operator instructions entered at the touch screen or keyboard may include operator requests for specific drive types and related information. During real-time operations, the RTCP maintains the state vector by integrating the vector over 1-sec, 100-ms, and 10-ms intervals. The integrations over 1 sec intervals are performed by incorporating accelerations due to earth gravity, using a complete 4x4 set of un-normalized zonal and tesseral harmonic coefficients. The RTCP updates the state vector using these integrated values, pedestal position errors, and corrections for pedestal anomalies and atmospheric conditions. Pedestal pointing information and other data are sent back to the pedestals at a 10-ms rate, and pedestal status and RTCP status information are sent to the touch screens at a 100-ms rate. The current configuration with the real-time mount control computer is shown in Figure 3.2. Figure 3.3 shows the test conductor's console, where all real time operations are monitored.

The RTCP may currently be driven in any of 12 modes. These are the non-real-time/calibration modes of

1. cable unwrap,
2.polar (az, el, rg) slew,
3. tilt meter calibration,
4. target board,
5. specific position, and
6. Cartesian (EFG) slew,

and the real-time designate modes of

7. astro drive,
8. automatic star calibration,
9. launch (look angle) trajectory,
10. remote high-density data (HOD)EFG trajectory,
11. primary EFG vector, and
12. alternate EFG vector.

If the RTCP is in the dynamic modes of launch trajectory, remote HOD, primary or alternate vector, the state vector so generated is available to any pedestal in the system and may be used to drive any pedestal that requests it. Updating of the state vector continues whether or not any pedestal is using it as a designate until it is turned off by the operator. All other modes are pedestal-unique in that they are initiated only when requested for a specific pedestal and terminated when a new designate mode is requested for the pedestal. These modes operate independently for each pedestal, and each pedestal may be operating in a different mode without interfering with any other pedestal. The primary (or alternate) vector may be loaded in a number of ways. The sources include

1. SDC/NORAD element sets from the NORAD element set file or loaded by hand at the keyboard;
2. EFG vectors input from IRV files or from the keyboard;
3. XYZ vectors input from the keyboard, ADBARV vectors input from the keyboard, or
4. ITER vectors input from an ITER vector file.

The RTCP program updates NORAD element sets to the current time using a standard propagator. If the primary vector is from one of the other sources, the vector is passed to another program the - Long Term Integrator - for integration to the current time using a Gauss-Jackson numerical integrator and then a fast Runge-Kutta-Gill numerical integrator. The vector is then stored back into the GLOBALCOM common data area for real time use by the RTCP.

Position inputs to the RTCP may come in or be sent out in various coordinate systems. For example, position data from each pedestal comes in as pedestal azimuth and elevation (AER), and SDC/NORAD data comes in to the system as classical orbital elements. All incoming data is rotated and translated as necessary to the rotating, geocentric, Cartesian (earth-fixed [EFG]) coordinate system, and the state vector is maintained only in the EFG coordinate system. The predicted position vector is then translated and rotated back to the local AER system for each mount before being sent out as pointing data to the pedestals. The remote HOD used by the RTCP comes into Malabar over a 2400 BPS synchronous data link via Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

The remote HDD format is also EFG, per IRIG standard 161-85. The RTCP also has the capability of recording real-time history data. Selected data, including pedestal pointing and position data, is accumulated at a 10-ms or a 100-ms rate and may be written to a history file if history recording is requested.

Pedestal calibrations may be performed on mounts with digitized tilt meter output(R1) or using the star field. The star catalog currently in place at Malabar contains more than 9,000 entries taken from the Yale Bright Star catalog and is updated on a daily basis, usually automatically at midnight Greenwich Mean Time, by the Astronomical Catalog Update program. Using star position data and Kalman filter processing, the pedestals may be calibrated for azimuth or elevation bias, mislevel, droop, nonorthogonality, and skew.

Pre-mission:

To aid in mission planning, the PCADUMP program may be called to determine the point of closest approach for selected satellites as well as to format other mission planning data. The user may choose the editing parameters, including time frame, specific satellites, minimum elevations, illumination by the sun, and other criteria. This program may also be used as an ephemeris generator. The RTPCA program performs the same kind of task on a real-time basis, giving continuous updates during real-time operations.

Post-mission:

If history data has been recorded during real-time operations, the data may be examined by using the TAPEDUMP routine. This routine allows the user to select certain kinds of data for output as well as the time frame and the rate of output desired. The data are displayed on the VT220, and a hard copy may be requested.

The RTCP on the MicroVAX maintains the state vector centrally and handles positioning data for all mounts. Drive data is then sent to each mount. Each mount has its own Control Console Subsystem(CCS) and Remote Data Acquisition Subsystem (RDAS), which reside on two individual Motorola 68000 computers for each mount. These programs receive digital-to-analog (DAC) data and control data from the RTCP, and they perform the control of the mount hardware, control console hardware, and status displays. Positioning data in the form of correction voltages is computed and sent to the servo amplifiers. Encoder data, servo type data, and mount hardware data is gathered for transfer back to the RTCP. In addition, a set of diagnostics is available to allow for trouble shooting of the CCS/RDAS hardware. Details ofthe site software configuration and of the functions of the CCS and RDAS subsystems are shown in Figures 3.4,3.5, 3.6, and 3.7.

3.2 R1

R1 is the designation used for the 48-in. receiving telescope and its supporting facilities. The telescope is located on an elevated tower, which contains several instrument and operation areas, including two radio-frequency interference (RFI)shielded rooms. Figures 3.8 and 3.9 show the principal components of R1.

The lower-level operations room has two environmentally controlled chambers. In the video control room, the Sony DXC750 video is selected and sent to the fiberoptic lines. The second room houses the Atlantic Laser Ground Station (ALGS) laser communications system for operational checkout.

The mount is in the upper-level area where data is received. The 48-in. telescope has a f/2.5 Cervit primary mirror that is environmentally sealed and an eight-element Wynne corrector group that provides a 35-mm diameter, coma-free flat field at the f/2.5 prime focus (A-focus). This system has been operational since 1971. The telescope tube structure is a reinforced invar tube with a 2-in. thermal insulation. It is an elevation-over-azimuth mount that is driven byrotrans and DC torque motors. Each axis currently uses a 25-bit BEI absolute position encoder. Both the main and the boresight telescopes are used to calibrate the mount characteristics. The mount is computer driven in real time to keep the telescope pointed at a moving space target to within +1 arc sec. Maximum tracking velocity is 15°/sec and acceleration is 2°/sec/sec.

A variety of sensors are available for use at any of the four focus positions, which are listed in Table 3.1. In addition to the 48-in. system, there are also three external sensors, a daytime boresight, a nighttime boresight, and a wide-field-of view camera. The sensors are used for acquisition and star calibrations.

Table 3.1 Focal Positions for R1 (in meters)

Figure 3.10 summarizes data for the various instruments and sensors, which are available for use on R1.

The primary mirror mount, or bezel, is welded aluminum that supports the primary mirror and related positioning and positioning control equipment. The mount is divided into three sections, using air pressure and vacuum to control the position of the primary mirror. A pneumatic pressure ring inflates at low elevations, approximately 15°ree;, keeping the primary mirror against the positioning servos.

A relay-lens system allows incoming light to focus at an equivalent f/10 plane. A remotely controlled reflex mirror can be rotated to direct the optical axis through the periscope-relay lens system to a cube assembly on top of the telescope. The cube assembly above the relay system directs the optical axis along two possible paths (Figure3.1 1). The C focus is generally used for collecting color TV imaging on launches and landings. The path of this lens system passes directly through the cube assembly onto a front surface mirror and then to are lay lens system configured at f/15. In D focus, the optical path is turned 90°ree; by the cube assembly. The path travels through another relay lens system, where an f-number (presently from 10 to 100) for the particular mission is selected. The third section of the cube assembly allows the optical paths to split equally between C focus and D focus to permit two different sensor configurations for multiple data collection on the same target.

To maintain accurate focus, a movables led, which is mounted on top of the telescope, can be positioned at various points along the f/10 optical axis. The focus sled is currently controlled by a remote switch interface by the mount operator.

This system has four operating modes, including manual operator control, autocomputer control, coast servo-aided operator control, and auxiliary special function control. The system is protected by a 36-ft dome that has an 8-ft-wide door opening. The dome has a slip ring package that accommodates a fu11 360°ree; rotation.

3.3 R2

R2 is a receiving telescope that has a 24-in. collecting aperture with a 96-in. prime focal length. A relay lens can be used to transmit the image to a 160 x224 PtSi focal plane array or a 128 x 128 InSb focal plane sensor. The PtSi sensor operates in the 3.4-5.0 Am region, and a closed-cycle cooler results in 80° K operation. The telescope is shown in its normal operational configuration in Figure 3.12. The principal system elements discussed below are identified in Figure 3.13, and the optical configuration is illustrated in Figure 3.14.

The upper section contains the tracking telescope and sensor platforms. Ultraviolet, mid-infrared, and far-infrared sensor packages are located on the mount. The LWIR uses a 10-in. telescope and an Si:As sensor with a 20 x64 focal plane array filtered for operation in the 9.5-11.51µm band. The sensor has a two-stage cooler with liquid helium and nitrogen to provide a 10° K operating temperature. The sensor uses a scanner to provide an effective 128 x 128 pixel image.

The ultraviolet sensor shares the 24-in. telescope with the mid-infrared sensor by use of a beam splitter, as shown in Figure 3.15. The ultraviolet response is 0.30-0.36 µm. A filter wheel is used to select different spectral band pass regions. A 40-mm-dia microchannel plate image intensifier is coupled through a lens to provide an image to a solid-state CCD camera. All video data is routed through fiberoptics to the control center for recording.

Two additional sensors - a 3° field-of-view CCD camera and a 600 arc sec field-of-view CCD camera are mounted on the telescope. Both are used for acquisition and boresighting purposes.

A summary of the characteristics of the primary sensors used in conjunction with R2 is given in Figure 3.16. R2 can also serve as an experimental test bed to mount additional observational equipment. Interested users should contact the site contractor for additional details.

3.4 T1

Laser Transmitters

Transmitter 1, or T1, is a multi-wavelength laser beam director that consists of several laser systems and an elevation-over-azimuth mount. The mount is equipped with 25-bit encoders and is computer driven during missions. A Talyvel leveling aid and a Brunsen Autocollimator are used to calibrate the transmitter prior to missions. The lasers associated with T1 are included in Table 5.1, along with other site laser assets. Laser RoomThe Alexandrite laser, which has a 755nm wavelength, is in the southeast corner. A 1000-watt Nd:YAG laser occupies the same bench. The ALGS communications laser system, which is used as an operational checkout system, is in the south section of this room. The southwest section is currently used for required equipment setup and use, while a visiting experiment (a data-gathering test) is being conducted in the northwest section. On a northeast bench is a doubled Nd:YAG laser with a 10-30 pps range at a pulse width of 7 ns. These locations are shown schematically in Figure 3.17.

Operations Area

In the center of the room is the common bench, which has two beam-steering mirrors that allow the user beam to be boresighted with our beam director. Our own sensor for performing star calibrations through the T1 mirror system is also on this end of the bench. Two levels of safety include a wall shutter that completely blocks the beam and a cavity shutter to contain the beam at the source. Behind the south wall is the power distribution system for all the electrical requirements in T1, the chiller system for laser cooling, the video and clear-coin fiberoptic links, and a small area for the remote operation of equipment.

Dome Area

The dome area contains the mount control system and the beam director, which is pictured in Figure 3.18. In the northwest corner of the dome is a rack that contains the high-current amplifiers for the dc-torque motors, the status/control multiplexer for mount state-of health signals, and the RDAS with a DSP board for digital servo implementations. This system performs closed-loop dynamic tracking using 25 bit absolute position encoders, the high current amplifiers, and the computers to read and process the encoder information. The rate, acceleration, and mount dynamics compensation are all performed in the DSP. There are no synchros or other analog compensations needed in this configuration.

The beam director, an elevation-over-azimuth mount, is on the top level. One mirror, M1, is a turning flat located directly below the center of the mount and is capable of relaying up to a 12-in. dia beam. Two additional mirrors in the mount, M2 in the azimuth plane and M3 in the elevation plane, provide beam pointing. Currently there is a 6" x 24" dia removable beam expander attached to the mount. There are three sensors on the elevation axis that provide a 600 arc sec field-of-view daytime boresight, a 600 arc see field-of-view intensified CCD nighttime boresight, and a 3° wide-field of-view COD Foresight. The dome also has its own 10-bit position encoder and is controlled by the RDAS. Dimensions and the placement of the various optical components, with and without the removable beam expander, are given in Figures 3.19 and 3.20 respectively.

3.5 T2

The T2 system is a CO2 laser transmitter consisting of the laser, a 0.76-m (30-in.) telescope mounted in an elevation-over-azimuth beam director. The laser is a modified AVCO HPL-300 designed to operate in a pulse mode. It is all reflective with a parabolic primary and secondary mirror. Figure 3.21 shows the optical configuration of this system. The operating characteristics of the basic laser system are shown in Table 3.2.

Table 3.2 CO₂ Laser parameters of Interest

The functional relationship of the laser subsystem is illustrated in Figure 3.22, and the expanded optical cavity chamber, along with the optics and discharge region, is shown in Figure 3.23. The system uses agas transverse flow, which is perpendicular to the laser beam and the discharge direction. The flow of the gas mixture is injected into the channel inlet and exits the channel outlet. The laser gas is a mixture of He, Ne, and CO2, with a volumetric ratio of three parts He, two parts Ne, and one part CO2. As the gas mixture is driven past the laser cavity, an ionizer injects a uniformly accelerated beam of high energy electrons into the flowing gas. The ionized gas provides a stable, sustained discharge between the cathode and the anode electrodes. The excitation of the gas mixture results in the laser-emitting radiation at the desired P20 line. To restrict the laser operation from mode jumping and frequency shifting, a temperature, cavity-stabilized, 30-watt Laakman injection laser is used. The high-energy laser beam exits the main chamber through a 4-in. ZnS window and is re-directed to a set of beam-shaping optics. These optics are used to provide a beam, which is one, two, or three times the diffraction limit and to provide the proper optical alignment input to the first mirror of the beam director assembly. The beam entering the external beam director is directed through a Coude path optical train to a 7.5x afocal telescope with a 4in. convex paraboloid secondary and a 30-in. parabolic primary. The output beam divergence out of the telescope is 42 µrad but can be continuously varied up to 125 µrad by using the beam shaping diverger optics.

A test bench arrangement is used between the laser and the external beam director. A small portion of the beam is sampled and refocused into a pyroelectric camera using an 18-m focal length-spherical mirror. This allows for field diagnostics measurements such as beam divergence, far-field beam shape, and output energy.

4.0 SENSORS

A variety of ultraviolet, visible, and infrared sensors are available for routine use on R1 or R2. The sensor suite currently includes the sensors listed in Table 4.1.

Table 4.1 Current (User) Site Sensors

- Quantex 40 mm ISIT

- Sony DXC-750 three-chip color COD

- Multiple Sony DXC-101 single-chip color COD

- Xybion ISG-304 and ISG-250 ICIDs

- MWIR PtSi Schotiky barrier camera

- 160 x 244 pixel RCA chip

- 80 x 40 micron pixels

- RS-170 and 12-bit digital

- LWIR PATHS Si:As camera

- 64 x 20 element IBC array used in scanned mode to provide

- 128 x 128 frames at 30 Hz rates

- Filtered for 9.5-11.5 mm

- RS-170 and 12-bit digital

4.1 ISIT

The TC1040/H model Quantex 40-mm ISEC camera in A focus at f/2.5 and in D focus at f/50 through f/100 is used for night imaging. The SIT tube, with a fiberoptic faceplate design and image intensification, is highly resistant to image burn-in and has excellent discharge capabilities.

ISIT Camera, Model TC1040/H
Specifications
Camera tube: RCA low-bloom, intensified silicon-intensifier target (ISIT) type; 1 -in. vidicon format

Resolution: 500 TV lines (TVL) typical

Amplitude response: 50% at 240 TVL

Sensitivity

	Usable Picture	Full Video
Scene Illuminations	2.7x10-5	5.4x10-5
Scene Brightness, fc	2.0x10-5	4.0x10-5
Faceplate, fc	2.0x10-5	4.0x10-5
f/1.4 lens, 75% highlight reflectance

Signal-to-noise: Better than 43 dB (FET low-noise amplifier)

Automatic light range: 4x10⁹: 1 with f/1.4 auto iris lens (includes 10:1 variable gain/bandwidth video amplifier and 800:1 target gain)

Bandwidth: 8 MHz; automatically adjusts to as low as 2 MHz to optimize signal-to-noise at low light levels

Grey scale: at least 10 steps

Gamma correction: internally variable from 1.0 to0.7 to enhance gray-scale rendition

White clipper: keeps highlights within preset level to avoid monitor or VTR overdrive

Black clamp: auto-black and keyed clamp

Geometric distortion: 2% maximum of picture height within a center circle with diameter equal to picture height

Figure 4.1 displays representative ISIT characterization data taken 27 January 1990 for stars of 6-12 magnitude.

4.2 Sony DXC-750

The Sony DXC-750 color camera is mounted on the 48-in. system at C focus and is used at f/15 through f/30. This camera is primarily used in tracking launches and landings from KSC and from the Eastern Test Range. In the case of shuttle launches and landings, the video generated has been uplinked to KSC for use by television networks. Various performance characteristics for this sensor are summarized in Figure 4.2.

Sony Color CCD (3-chip color)
Specifications

Image device: interline-transfer CCD, 3-chip

Picture elements: 768x498 (h/v)

Sensing area: 8.8 mm x 6.6 mm (equivalent to a 2.3-in. pickup tube)

Scanning frequency: horizontal - 15.734 kHz; vertical - 59.94 Hz

Horizontal resolution: 700 lines (center)

Sensitivity: 2,000 lux with f/i.4, +18 dB

Minimum illumination: 20 lux with f/1.4, +18 dB

Signal-to-noise ratio: 60 dB

Shutter speed: 1/125, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000, and 1/10,000 sec

Video output: O dB, 9 dB, 19 dB

4.3 UV CCD

This camera, developed by Princeton Research, operates in the 0.32-0.36 micron spectral band with a detector of 300 x 225 pixels. Each pixel is 66 x 66 microns and is also part of the four sensor package to be mounted on the 24-in. optical system. The effective focal length is 539 in., and the field of view is 1.45 x 1.09 mrad.

4.4 MWIR Cameras

Both video and 1 2-bit digital output are available for either a MWIR PtSi camerawith a 160 x 244 pixel RCA chip or a MWIR InSb camera with a 128 x 128 pixel Amber Engineering chip.

4.5 Xybion ICID ISG-304

Scan rates:
(Progressive Scan)	Vertical	Horizontal
532 lines	29.6 Hz	15.748 kHz

Scan rates:

Light control range: >1 billion to 1

Displayed resolution: horizontal - 512 pixels; vertica - 512 pixels

Active elements: (532) lines, 514 (H), 512 (V)

Lines per frame:(532) = 512 (Blanking 20 lines)

Video format:
Analog: Progressive Scan (non-interlaced)

Polarity: White positive

Black level: +50 mv average (automatic black clamp)

White level: Min 650 mv above black level

Sync level: -300 mv (composite output selected)

Sync nature: Progressive, non-serrated vertical

Grey scale rendition: 10 shades of gray, minimum (EIA gray scale chart)

Sensitivity: better than 1 x10-6 FC faceplate illumination

Spectral response: 500 nm-950 nm

Electronic gating: <100ns-16.67ms, adjustable in five ranges

Gating rate:
Continuous = 100 ns exposures at 200kHz (50 µs) intervals

Burst = 25 100-ns exposures at 2 µs intervals within a 16.67 ms period = 50 100-ns exposures spaced at 500-ns intervals within a 16.67 me period (direct control)

4.6 Xybion ICID ISG-250

Scan rates:	Vertical	Horizontal
RS-170	60 Hz	15.750 kHz

CCD imager resolution (pixels)

RS-170 CCIR

768h x 493v 756h x 581v (ISG-250)

Grey scale rendition: 10 shades of grey, minimum (EIA grey scale chart)

Sensitivity: better than 1 x10-7 FC faceplateillumination

Spectral response: 380 nm-920 nm

Electronic gating: less than 25 ns-20 ms, adjustable in seven ranges plus automatic and direct control; < 5 ns with option -X

Gating rate: Continuous = 100 ns exposures at 20 kHz (50 µs) intervals

Burst = 25 100-ns exposures at 2 me intervals within a 20 µs period
= 50 100-ns exposures spaced at 500 ns intervals within a 16.67 m period (ISG direct control)

4.7 Sony Color CCD

Model: DXC-101

Pickup device: interline-transfer CCD, 1-chip

Picture elements:
DXC-101 510x492 (horizontal/vertical)
DXC-101 P 500x582 (horizontal/vertical)

Sensing area: 8.8 mm x 6.6 mm (equivalent to 2.3-in. pickup tube)

Scanning system: DXC-101 Horizontal - 15.734 kHz Vertical - 59.94 Hz

Minimum illumination: 30 lux (f/1.4 at +12 dB gain setup)

Sensitivity: 2,000 lux (f/4.0 at 3200 °ree;K)

Gain selection: Auto, 0 dB, 6 dB, or 12 dB

Video output: 1.0 V (p-p), sync negative, 75 ohms, unbalanced

4.8 Xybion ICID ISG-650

Scan rates:	Vertical	Horizontal
RS-170	60 Hz	15.750 kHz

Image Resolution	Pixels
RS-170	768 H x 493 V

Resolution: horizontal - greater than 470 TV lines; vertical - 485 TV lines

Camera image plane: 28 mm x 21 mm

Imager type: 2/3-in. interline transfer COD

Grey scale rendition: 10 shades of gray, minimum (EIA gray scale chart)

Intensifier type: 40-mm Gen II single microchannel place

Spectral response: 380 nm-920 nm

Sensitivity (ungated): better than 1 x 10^-7 FC faceplate illumination

Electronic Dating: less than 200 ns-32 ms, adjustable in 7 ranges, plus automatic and direct control

Gating rate:
Continuous = 200 ns exposures at 20 kHz (20 µs)intervals

Burst = 25 200-ns exposures at 2 ms intervals within a 20 µs period
= 50 100-ns exposures spaced at 500 ns intervals within a 16.67 ms period (direct control mode)

4.9 Near UV/V is Sensor

- K-Ca Bi-alkali photocathode

- 570 (H) x 485 (V) pixels

- 11 µm (h) x 13 µm (V) pixel size

- 40 mm ITT intensifier

- 0.30-0.33 µm and 0.33-0.36 µm spectral bands

- Currently mounted at F-2 (f/22) for evaluation

- Sensitivity m(B) ~ +5

4.10 Infrared Sensors - LWIR

-Photon Research Associates-built camera system with modified FGE electronics and PATHS chip

- 64x20 chip scanned to provide 128 x 128 element frames

- 100 µm x 100 µm pixel size

- 0.25-m Newtonian co-mounted at R2

-14 mrad FOV

- 98 µrad IFOV

- 9.5-11.5 µm filter

- NER ~ 2⁴ W/cm2-sr

The purpose of this camera is to obtain thermal IR plume and hard-body imagery.

4.11 Visible Photometer

Malabar Advanced Photometric Systems (MAPS)

- 16-in., U16 Cassegrain telescope provided by Florida Institute of Technology (F.l.T.)

- Dual Thorn-EMI-Gencom Starlight-1 pulse counting photometers

- One GFE and one provided as a loaner by F.l.T. - both modified

- 1 Hz-3 kHz data capture

- 80286 system control

-UBVRI operations

- Real-time sky subtraction and color modes

- Remote aperture/filter control

The visible photometer serves as a space object signature measurement and site characterization device.

4.12 KM2 High-Resolution Visible Camera

- 1024 x 1024 photodiode array

- 9 µm x 9 µm pixels

- Full video rate (30 fps)

- Dynamic range: 60 dB

- Antiblooming protection

- Detector cooled to 11°C

- Lenticular lens array for < 65% fill factor

- Microprocessor control

- RS-422 control bus

- Electronic shutter, < 1 msec - 8 sec

- Automatic exposure control

- Built-in diagnostics

- Serial data transmission

- 400 Mbit/sec

- 10 bit/pixel

- Encoded clocks

A block diagram for the KM-2 camera is shown in Figure 4.3.

5.0 LASER SYSTEMS

The site maintains an extensive number of lasers that have a wide range of operational wave lengths. The OL-AG laser inventory is shown in Table 5.1; the table indicates which systems are set up in T1 for general use and which systems may be configured for specific needs. Additional details for continuous-wave systems are supplied in Table 5.2, while data for pulsed systems are shown in Table 5.3. Figures 5.1 -5.5 show some of the current laser assets associated with either T1 or T2.

6.0 SUPPORT SYSTEMS

The Malabar test facility possesses a large and diverse number of support capabilities available to visiting experimenters, as well as fully-developed operations and maintenance in engineering and optics. These functions are briefly summarized in the following sections. Experimenters who require special optical or engineering support are encouraged to directly contact the individuals listed in the appendix.

6.1 Optics Laboratory

The Malabar test facility is in the process of developing an optical laboratory to support user activities, optical equipment calibration, and site capabilities. The lab is being installed in a dedicated 28' x 44' building (inside dimensions) whose floor plan is illustrated in Figure 6.1. As indicated, the lab has areas designated for large optical system testing, equipment calibration, and clean-room component inspection and assembly.

The large optics bay can accommodate any of the large optical systems on site. A 34' x 10' seismic isolation pad and 50-in. dia reference flat is in place to allow interferometric testing of these systems. Furthermore, a 5-ton overhead crane with a travel that runs the full length of the isolation pad is installed to allow easy manipulation of any large optical component or system.

A 12' x 14' room with a 4' x 8' NRC optics table is configured as a calibration lab. The area allows for the
1. interferometric inspection of on-site optical components,
2. measurement of component optical parameters,
3. radiometric calibration of sensors,
4. development of optical system bread boards to determine feasibility and operational characteristics of proposed upgrades, and
5. validation of test procedures for testing non-standard components or systems. This lab is currently supported by the equipment listed in Table 6.1.

Table 6.1 Current Optics Lab Support Equipment

Zygo Mark I Interferometer
Autocollimator
Photometer - 2 Channel
Beam Expanders
12" Star Collimator
IR Blackbody Source
Calibrated UV Source
Calibrated Visible SourceA Variety of HeNe Lasers
NRC Optical Bench Accessories
Coherent Lab Master
IR Pyroelectric Imaging Cameras (2)IR/UV/VIS Filters
- ND/Narrow Band/Wide Band
Software
- Fringe Reduction Code
- Optical Ray Trace Design Code(GENII)

The proposed clean area will allow inspection, disassembly, and assembly of sensors and optical components in a work space free of particulate contamination. The clean area will be accomplished by installing an Nuclear Regulatory Commission Clean Table Air (CTA) System over an optics table. The CTA is a portable, cost-effective alternative to controlled-environment clean rooms. Designed specifically for use with optical tables, the unit will quietly produce a laminar flow of Class-100 air to maintain a clean and dust-free work space.

6.2 Site Engineering

The Malabar test facility offers a full range of engineering services, both in support of routine operations and maintenance activities and for visiting experimenters with special mechanical or electronic interfaces. Major engineering services include
1. CAD/CAM,
2. machine shop services,
3. optical system design and construction,
4. printed circuit board design (seeFigure 6.2 for an example of the capability that is available),
5. mechanical design and component integration services,
6. video design and servicing,
7. software engineering, and
8. electronic system design and servicing.

Site engineering services are closely interfaced to all scheduled site activities, achieving a high degree of coordination through the regularly scheduled (daily) engineering and management meetings. Experimenters with special requirements are urged to contact the appropriate engineering personnel cited in the appendix for further information.

6.3 Clocks and Rime Keeping

The components that make up the timingsystem at the Malabar test facility include

1. WWV receiver,
2. disciplined frequency standard,
3. LORAN receiver,
4. GPS receiver,
5. cesium frequency standard,
6. time code generator,
7. frequency/pulse counter, and
8. timing buffer/distribution unit.

7.0 DATA ACQUISITION AND PROCESSING

The Malabar test facility currently possesses a full range of analog and digital data acquisition systems. These systems may be easily combined in a variety of configurations to offer visiting experimenters a wide range of data capture media. Services and the locally available data processing capabilities are summarized in the following sections.

7.1 Analog Data Capture

The Quantex DS20, in conjunction with the ISIT and ISEC cameras, is used to digitize video images and to enhance data collection in real time. The DS20 camera controls gains and can integrate the image on the front of the camera tube before reading the data.

Finally, several video cassette recorders, including four 3/4-in. Unimax-type NTSC format recorders and a VHS format recorder are used in the acquisition and processing of data. Visiting experiments with specific analog data capture requirements are encouraged to contact engineering for more complete information.

7.2 Digital Data Capture

The Malabar site operates a TRAPIX Plus image acquisition, processing, and display system. This gives the user the capability of collecting image data in either visible light or long- or medium-wave-length infrared and storing it in digital form. This data is stored onto a VISISTORE data storage system in real time and can then be archived in post-real time to archive disks according to test, source, and time. The images can then be moved to foreign tape for off-site analysis. In-house analysis capabilities also exist within the locally developed SGA program, which allows image analysis to be performed using various techniques including reduction, expansion, Fast Fourier Transforms, image smoothing, edge enhancement, and histogram manipulations. Images produced using these methods can also be saved and archived. The TRAPIX Plus image processor andMalabar-developed Sensor Graphics andAnalysis software provides the Malabarfacility with the capabilities for rapid realtime acquisition of images, post-realtime image replay or archiving, and image processing using a number of different algorithms. The TRAPIX Plus uses a MicroVAX III with VMS host operating system and is connected via a VisiNET network with a VISISTORE data storage system, which consists of eight 700- megabyte disks for real-time data acquisition.

The TRAPIX Plus Virtual Image Processing (VIP) software package supplies routines that allow users to make full use of all system capabilities. VIP software, which is accessible from a VIP menu, contains routines for the following:

DISPLAY image display functions

IMAGE image access functions

VISINET visinet transfer functions

VISISTORE visistore functions

UTILITY utility and initialization functions

PROCESS image processing functions

ACQUIRE image acquisition functions

These routines may be accessed directly from the VIP menu. Some routines make use of hardware that is not installed in the Malabar system and cannot be used here. Selected VIP routines have also been incorporated into programs written to accommodate specific Malabar needs. In addition to the VIP software, the system provides TRAPIX Plus diagnostic routines and VISISTORE utility and diagnostic routines.

Image Acquisition
Images can be acquired from analog or digital sources. High-speed digital acquisition capability is provided by two digital port interfaces (KDPI). The Malabar TRAPIX Plus is configured as a two-user system with a common connection: the two KDPIs are connected in parallel, and each onewrites 16 bits of data to two channels of TRAPIX Plus memory. A look-up table (LUT) is provided for transformations on the way into memory.

An 8-bit digitizer, the KAD8, is available for acquisition of video signals. Gain and offset are programmable. The digitizer output is written into memory via the KDPIs.

The Malabar TRAPIX Plus is currently setup to acquire 30 frames of data per second. VIP initialization, acquisition, and storage routines have been used to create an acquisition program tailored to Malabar needs. The program alternates acquisition into TRAPIX Plus memory with storage into the VISISTORE real-time disk. While one KDPI fills two channels of memory, the data acquired in the two channels of the other KDPI is being written to the VISISTORE real-time disk. Images are displayed on the TRAPIX screen as they are obtained and temporarily stored in the KDPI memory channels.

The VISISTORE disk unit consists of eight removable disks, which are addressed as a single storage unit. The VISISTORE is segmented by logical blocks and subblocks into a total of 5,440 segments, each of which are 512 rows by 1024 columns. The first four segments are reserved, leaving 5,436 segments for data storage. The VISISTORE is capable of holding approximately 24 min of data (256 x 256 x 16 bit) or 12 min of data (512 x 512 x 8 bit).

The image acquisition routine can be accessed from the SGA RCI/TRAPIX+OPERATOR'S MENU. The user may modify the KAD8 digitizer setup parameters or the KDPI setup parameters before initiating acquisition.

Image Replay and Archiving
The TRAPIX PLUS can display 1024 x 1024 images with 12 bits per pixel on the video monitor. The display section of the TRAPIX PLUS consists of the memory boards; a digital-to-video converter for the pseudo-color system, which contains three digital-to-analog converters and three LUTs for blue, green, and red; four image display controllers; and an alphanumeric generator, cursor generator, and trackball/joystick interface.

Image replay on the TRAPIX monitor of data stored on the real-time disk can be performed by requesting the SGA_REPLAY option in the SGA RCI/TRAPIX+OPERATOR'S MENU. The user may select a start segment and the number of segments to display by specifying a time duration in seconds. To archive to the VAX disk, as well as show the display on the screen, the user can select the SHOW_STORE option. Eight segments at a time will be read from the VISISTORE, displayed on the video monitor, and saved to the VAX disk if necessary. If only archiving is desired, the SGA_ARCHIVE option will archive a number of segments, along with user-supplied identification, to the specified destination disk.

Sensor Graphics Analysis (SGA) Software
To complement the VIP software, an image processing database and a set of processing routines have been developed at Malabar. Images to be analyzed must first be moved into the SGA database, which is in the [SGA.IMAGES.DBASE] directory. This directory is divided into sub-directoriesby test identification:

[SGA.IMAGES.DBASE.test_id].
When the image is imported into the database (using the Import Menu), an additional history header file is created and stored with the image. In addition, if the image is not all red, all green, or all blue, an LUT file is created and stored. Filenames must be in the format Imagename.Extension, each of which is defined below:

Imagename (maximum of 16 characters)can be
- time, i.e., YYYYDDDHHMMSSSSS;
- vehicle sequence, i.e., name_#####; or
- any other sequence of up to 16 characters.
Extension (maximum of 9 characters) contains three characters of
- id: img (= image file);
- nml (= history header file);
- lut (= look-up table file);
- an underscore (_);
- and five characters of type:
mono, red, blue, green, and quasi

EXAMPLE: delta_3564.img_mono

The image pressing program is set up to process images stored in the SGA database. When processing an image, it must first be imported if it were a foreign image and then loaded into the database. This can be done from the SGA_MENU, which is accessible from the SGA RCI/TRAPIX+ OPERATOR'S MENU. The user may load from one to four image arrays into temporary slots for processing. Another option in the SGA_MENU then allows the user to display one or all the images in any of the four quadrants on the TRAPIX monitor.

When the images are loaded, the PROCESS IMAGE option in the SGA_MENU can be selected. This gives the user access tothe image processing routines in the SGA system. The processes currently available are listed below.

1. Extract 8 bits from 12-bits function.
Extract bits 0-7
Extract bits 1-8
Extract bits 2-9
Extract bits 3-10
Extract bits 4-11

2. Reduction, Expansion:
Reduce 1K x 1K to 512x512
Expand 512 x 512 to 1K x 1K

3. Fast Fourier Transform:
Compute forward
Compute inverse
Compute forward product
Compute inverse product

4. Arithmetic and Logical Operations:
Add two images
Subtract two images
Average two images
Multiply tow images
Divide two images

[A OR B]	[A OR NOT B]
[NOT A OR B]	[NOT A OR NOT B]
[A AND B]	[A AND NOT B]
[AX OR B]	[AX OR NOT B]
[NOT AX OR B]	[NOT AX OR NOT B]
[B. GT. A]	[B. LT.A]

5. Quasi, Threshold, Convolution Operations:
Quasi
Mono to Quasi
Quasi to Mono
Binary
Binarize
Region of Interest (ROI)
Binarize
- Threshold ROI -
Threshold
+ Threshold ROI +
Threshold
Mask Convolution
Foreground Variance
ROI Variance
Laplacian operator ROI
Laplacian operator
Sobel Gx operator ROI
Sobel Gx operator
Sobel Gx operator ROI
Sobel Gx operator
High-pass filter ROI
High-pass filter
Low-pass filter
ROI Low-pass filter
Background removal

6. Image Histogram
Equalize intensity LUT
ROI histogram equalize

7. Image Smoothing
Neighborhood averaging
Neighborhood median
Adaptive contrast stretch

8. Edge Detection
Emphasize edges
Set edges to grey level
Emphasize edges, set background
Set background to grey level

9. Flip Image
Top to bottom and left to right
Top to bottom
Left to right 10. Intensity Functions
Log - ROI Log
Add - ROI Add
Exp - ROI Exp
Subtract - ROI Subtract
ArcTan - ROI ArcTan
Scale - ROI Scale
Gaussian - ROI Gaussian
Sin - ROI Sin
Inverse - ROI Inverse

The user may choose one or more of several output destinations for the resultant image. The image may be displayed on the TRAPIX monitor or the VT340, copied to a disk, or stored in one of the four temporary image slots for image processing. If this last option is chosen, another process can be performed on the newly processed image, thereby allowing several processes to be performed on the same image.

Images may be exported from the database either in RCI TRAPIX Plus format or in Tag Image File Format (TIFF). The TIFF format is compatible with Macintosh PCs and IBM-compatible PCs for incorporation into word-processing packages. The TIFF file format is easily converted to other formats, including Word Perfect on IBM-compatible PCs, using commercially available software packages such as HIJACK. The Aldus PageMaker word processing software available on Macintosh PCs will accept TIFF files without conversion. Images may also be printed on DEC LNO3 printers.

7.3 Real-Time Data Processing

In addition to the real-time pedestal control program described in Section 3.1, a variety of data processing capabilities are available to visiting experimenters or for supporting routine operational requirements. The services summarized below serve to indicate the breadth of capability presently available. Other experiment or user-specific services may be obtained upon request.

Software Analysis
In addition to the substantial amount of software required for telescope operationand data capture, other functions of the site software systems include engineering design, orbital analysis and planning, image processing, budget accounting, and other administrative tasks.

This site is capable of both maintenance of NORAD mean element ephemeris catalogs and the in-house generation of special perturbations orbital solutions based on the highly accurate metric observations from the 48-in. optical system. The latter application is used primarily for synchronous and semisynchronous earth satellites, with predictions usable both in-house and for designation of remote sensors.

Optical Imagery Enhancement In addition to the TRAPIX Plus Image Processor, a locally developed image processing system is available for image enhancement and restoration.

Computer Aided Design (CAD): The CAD system permits two- and three-dimensional drafting and modeling. In support of hardware design, the CAD system permits schematic capture, logic simulation, and PCB physical layout design.

8.0 SITE AND SYSTEM PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS

The site contractor has recently initiated a major activity to develop both a real-time atmospheric characterization capability and an archived atmospheric characterization data library, which includes R_O monitoring, atmospheric extinction coefficients computation, and site meteorological information. At the present time, we are performing a variety of trade studies, which will be closely followed by selection, procurement, and installation of the necessary equipment.

8.1 Atmospheric Characterization

Previous experimenters have measured R_O over an extended period from January 1990 through April 1991, including Dr. Don Walters, Navy Post Graduate School, who took measurements during November 1990 and April 1991. Values of R_O varied from 5 to 20 cm during this time period. It is anticipated that regular R_O monitoring data will become available to visiting experimenters beginning 1 July 1991.

8.2 Meteorological Information

Table 8.1 contains archived data for east Central Florida's cloud cover to aid visiting experimenters in mission planning. As can be seen, the winter months (December-April) are preferred for long-term or synoptic programs and offer more favorable conditions on average than other periods.

8.3 Meteorological Services

Meteorological support is required for the optical facility located on the mainland. Long-range forecasts are used to schedule programmed maintenance during periods of inclement weather. Short-range forecasts are for operational use.

Cloud cover is of primary importance to determine if there are any blue holes in the clouds through which one can see into space. Other data are needed because high winds can vibrate the telescope dome; precipitation on-site causes the dome to be kept closed; and wind shears, turbulence, inversions, and aerosols interfere with the optical path and cause distortions. On-site measurements, which are available on request, include data from a digital weather station and/or balloon measurements.

8.4 Forecasts

The site receives continuous weather updates via video link from Cape Weather at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The updates include satellite photos of moving weather systems, weather data collected from various ground stations along Florida's east coast, and radiosonde data. Forecasts from Cape meteorologists are transmitted as well. In all cases, the video maybe displayed in the site's operations area so that real-time decisions relative to the weather can be made by the test conductor.

By operational directive, Cape Weather will provide, upon request from the site manager (494-2862) or his/her designee, a forecast the day before a launch by 1000 local time. This forecast includes the synoptic situation (location of highs, lows, frontal systems, jet streams, and thunderstorms), cloud categories ($)(cloud categories - cloud amount(s) in tenths, cloud base(s), and cloud type(s)), visibility and restrictions, precipitation, and surface wind direction and speed for the Malabar optical site. An update of the forecast may be requested, as initiated by the site manager. In addition, the site manager coordinates with the CCAF duty forecaster to coordinate the data package required. Both verbal or printed weather information may be obtained.

The site is currently developing the capability to collect ground-level weather data at the Malabar location. This data will flow directly into the site's computer(s) and will be recorded as part of the history of any mount operation.

9.0 MISSION PLANNING

A central feature of an active and professionally operated field site is mission planning. This is particularly true when the support for numerous (transient) high technology experimental activities is required. Without effective mission planning, it is not possible to achieve high levels of facility utilization and experimental investigation support or to develop a consistent and logical site developments upgrade plan. The main area of concern is the coordination of numerous experiments within a given time period at the Malabar site. Any single experiment may or may not use portions of or all of the same experimental apparatus required to support another experiment. Therefore, these experiments will be scheduled to minimize instrument changes and the associated risk to the equipment and to maximize observational factors, all in accord with temporal or spatial mission-specific constraints.

Elements of mission planning at Malabar include

-analysis of mission-specific experimental objectives for each experiment or proposed activity for compatibility with site capabilities;
- development of specific calibration and collimation procedures for various mount/sensor combinations. We will inform investigators how adherence to these procedures is required to avoid impacting the precision of the experiment;
coordination and scheduling of site activities to minimize facility down time, including unnecessary instrument changes, instrument risk, and cryogenic cooling schedules;
pre- and post-visit coordination with each investigator, furnishing the investigator with appropriate manuals, procedures, and post-experiment evaluations for future planning purposes;
- and assessment of the utility and overall completeness of the programs to the national defense community.

While our primary objective lies in developing effective mission planning and optimal use of the equipment at Malabar, we envision that this will naturally lead to a broadening of the types of experimental activities that are possible.

A related area includes the coordination of multiple mounts/telescopes/sensors at one site for a single (or multiple) simultaneous activities, as well as the coordination of multiple observational sites. An obvious example of the latter type of coordination will occur for an experimental investigation that requires detailed photometric, imaging, and spectroscopic data for at-launch,boost, and on-orbit phases of a mission. Coordinated efforts at multiple sites presuppose effective mission planning at each participating site; otherwise, the associated risks and managerial effort required encumber the activity to such a high degree that an experiment should only be attempted fora very high payoff.

9.1 Malabar User Authorization Procedures

The following steps are required for a visiting experimenter to conduct an experiment at the Malabar test facility:

1. Initial contact to Director, OL-AG Phillips Lab, Malabar Test Facility, Florida 32925-6547.

2. A meeting of the support contractor, operational, engineering, and safety personnel with the visiting experimenter. At this meeting, Phillips Laboratory, OL-AG personnel, and support personnel will review the visiting experimenter's plans regarding the type of tests that will be performed, the level of support required from site personnel, and the site facilities.

The level of facility and personnel support required for visiting experimenters varies depending on the mission profile. One experiment may only require a platform upon which to place instrumentation, where another experiment may require engineering design work, fabrication, use of site instrumentation, and operations support.

Prior to attempting experiment assistance, contractor support personnel will determine the following:

a. What site facilities and instrumentation will be used?

b. What accommodations/alterations must be made to the facilities to incorporate the experiment?

c. What are the integration points between the visitors instrumentation and the site instrumentation?

e.What level of operations support is needed to perform the experiments?

f. What is the visitor's schedule requirement?

The answers to the questions above will provide the information needed to plan the mission. For instance, in the case of an active test against a space object nearing the end of its useful life, a new set of optics for an existing beam director might be desirable to reduce energy losses. However, time-critical events may negate this possibility, and a new set of optics may take longer to obtain than can be afforded due to various operational time constraints. The experimenter may be required to use the best available at the time.

Support contractor familiarity with the site, facilities, and instrumentation is a valuable asset in mission planning. The capabilities of the site at any time are known and recorded by support personnel, thus time is not wasted in determining whether or not a test can be accommodated. In the past, site personnel have often been contacted to perform a new kind of mission or test with very little warning or preparation time. Each of these occasions has served as a preparedness test such that our ability to support nearly any test is streamlined and well coordinated.

9.2 Tasking Malabar

OL-AG, Phillips Laboratory deals with two types of field experiments: 1) passive - those that receive data only, and 2) active - those that use lasers or other means to illuminate or stimulate a target in space. The passive field experiments typically use one or more of the receiver telescopes on site (R1 and R2). The active field experiments usually use one of the transmitters (T1 most often) and very frequently use one of the receivers as well. There are exceptions, and active experiments have been conducted with receiver mounts and passive experiments with one of the transmitter facilities. Active experiments, which have comprised the largest part of our work in the past few years, are generally more support intensive because there is usually more instrumentation and integration required, and there is typically more testing done prior to performing the experiments. Also, whenever an active test is performed, radiation safety must be considered; for each test there must be predictive avoidance to protect other satellites, RAPCON, or other radar support to prevent the accidental illumination of aircraft, and site safety supervision to prevent radiation accidents with site personnel and low-flying aircraft that may not be observed on radar. Figure 9.1 shows the flow path for both active orpassive test definitions.

9.3 Field Experiments

Following the initial planning stage of the visiting experiment, contractor personnel support the integration, performance verification, test/evaluation, and operations stages of the experiment, as illustrated schematically in Figure 9.2.

Stage 1: Integration

The integration stage of an experiment is divided into several substages. The first stage in integrating a visiting experiment is to prepare the experiment environment, which includes such tasks as preparing a sensor platform on a receiver telescope, installing an optical bench in a building, or permanently modifying a structure, such as incorporating a protective screen room or increasing the utility power to a building.

Before preparing an experiment environment, we carefully consider the customer's instrumentation dimensions, power and cooling requirements, optical requirements (especially in the case of lasers, whether or not the laser wavelength is compatible with the optical coatings on available beam directors), additional cable or fiberoptic lines installation, and special requirements, such as electromagnetic interference screening and laminar air flow.

Although not physically part of area preparation, integration is the phase in which site engineers determine what equipment mustbe designed or altered to support the experiment. Our engineers examine the visiting experimenter's requirements and then determine the best method of integrating the equipment into the site's systems. This may require electrical, mechanical, and/or software modifications. After reviewing cost and time impacts, we present several solutions for integrating the experimenters equipment. The experimenters and support personnel decide on the best solution and set up the equipment appropriately. When the visitor's instrumentation/equipment arrives on site, support personnel handle the receiving and off-loading process. If the instrumentation is crated, the crates are counted and inspected for damage. The visitor is then contacted to verify the count and condition of the crates. The support contractor also assists unpacking the instruments. Once the equipment is uncrated, site personnel provide installation, including mounting, wiring, coolant hook-up, and optics installation. Although the expertise is available to provide complete set up support for visiting experiments, the level of support provided is based on the needs of and the priority of the visitor's experiment/operation.

Once the visitor's equipment has been setup, it is integrated into the site facilities at the appropriate integration points. Typically, this includes incorporating the intercavity laser safety shutter of the visitor's system to the site's safety systemor linking a closed-loop tracking device to our tracking mount control systems.

Stage 2: Performance Verification

The second stage of the experiment, involves the layout of instrumentation beginning with the planning stage. Visitors are required to have a design for the set-up of their experiment. We review the design with the visitors so that any problem areas can be addressed and solved. Mechanical, optical, electronic, and software designs are scrutinized, as errors discovered at this stage can still be addressed in a cost effective and timely manner.

Although initial ring-out occurs during one ofthe integration stages, another performance verification occurs after the instrumentation is in place. The second phase identifies any errors in design tha tmay not have been initially apparent.

Stage 3: Test/Evaluation

This stage occurs after the basic set-up iscomplete. Site support personnel will assist the visitor in the verification of the proper operation of the visitor's equipment with the site's equipment. If problems are encountered, the site contractor works closely with the visitor to resolve these problems. Any electrical or software modifications required will be implemented promptly.

After the experiment is set up and fully integrated with site instrumentation and facilities, site support personnel will work closely with the visitor to test the integrity of the experiment. At this point, the operations and engineering crews become an integral part of the experiment. A test and evaluation time line is determined, and the operations crew is assigned appropriate duty stations for mount control, camera control, laser operation, video tracking, recording,and any other duties germane to the experiment.

Stage 4: The Experiment

Most experiments, even those whose ultimate goal is to use active devices (lasers), begin with passive tests. A typical initial test is to observe stars and sun-illuminated satellites with the visitor's instrumentation. Data are collected and recorded, the integrity of the data path is evaluated, and calibration data are obtained. Figure 9.3 shows an example of a typical mission calibration procedure. If the visitor's experimental setup is complex, testing might begin on only the most basic portion.

In the case of experiments whose goal is active testing, the next step is to perform a dry run. This is scheduled and positions assigned as if it were an actual test.

A satellite listing is computer-generated, showing a list of approved-for-active-test satellites for a specific day. The visitor selects the objects to be targeted.

9.4 Mission Planning Software

The PCADUMP program is used to display satellite positions for scheduling purposes. The basic technique used is to find the point of closest approach (PCA) for each revolution of the satellite relative to a selected earth station location and then compare the pass to certain editing criteria. If the pass meets the selected conditions, information about the pass is printed. The searches can be conducted simultaneously with a large number of satellites (currently 1,000), and the results are merged and sorted by horizon break time. A description of the exception follows.

In order to accommodate synchronous satellites, the program also supports an ephemeris generation mode. Satellites that meet the appropriate criteria are displayed, interspersed with the regular pass data but at fixed intervals. By forcing a satellite into ephemeris mode, the program can be used as a satellite ephemeris generator.

The program executes in three distinct phases, the control option, object selection, and listing generation phases. In the control option phase, the editing criteria, output type selections, and formats are chosen first. Data files of saved parameters can be used and created. After the selected data are determined to be correct, proceed to the next phase.

The object selection phase allows the selection of the satellites that are to be used. Again, data files of saved object numbers can be used and created. In the third phase the output is generated, and the printed output and the destination printer can be selected.