Abstract
The depth of absorption bands in observed spectra of distant, bright sources
can be used to estimate range to the source. Experimental results are presented
based on observations of the O<sub>2</sub> X(v? = 0) ? b(v? = 0) absorption band
centered around 762 nm and the O<sub>2</sub> X(v? = 0) ? b(v? = 1) band around 689
nm. Range is estimated by comparing observed values of band-average absorption
against predicted curves derived from either historical data or model predictions.
Accuracy of better than 0.5% was verified in short-range (up to 3 km), static
experiments using a high-resolution (1 cm<sup>-1</sup>) spectroradiometer. This
method was also tested against the exhaust plume of a Falcon 9 rocket launched from
Cape Canaveral, Florida. The rocket was launched from an initial range of 13 km and
tracked for 90 s after ignition. Range error was below 2% for the first 30 s and
consistent with predicted error throughout the track.
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