Regenerative Pseudonoise Ranging

In a proposed improved technique for pseudonoise turnaround ranging of a radio transponder, the pseudonoise modulating signal would be regenerated in the transponder. The net result of the regeneration would be an increase in the effective return ranging power. This increase would provide some margin for decreasing ranging time, decreasing the power of the return ranging signal transmitted by the transponder, or increasing the power of another (e.g., telemetric) signal transmitted from the vehicle that carries the transponder. The technique was conceived for use in measuring the distance between a master station on Earth and a spacecraft that carries a transponder; with modifications, it may also prove useful in other applications that involve ranging and/or communications in both outer-space and terrestrial settings.