Orbiter-to-orbiter tomography: a potential approach for small planetary objects

TL;DR

This paper develops a new mathematical and computational approach for orbiter-to-orbiter radio tomography of small planetary objects, combining full waveform modeling with total variation inversion, demonstrated through 2D numerical results.

Contribution

It introduces an integrated full waveform forward model with total variation inversion for small planetary object imaging, advancing existing tomography techniques.

Findings

Effective 2D numerical reconstructions demonstrated

Coupled modeling and inversion improve imaging accuracy

Potential for application in planetary exploration

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to advance mathematical and computational methodology for orbiter-to-orbiter radio tomography of small planetary objects. In this study, an advanced full waveform forward model is coupled with a total variation based inversion technique. We use a satellite formation model in which a single unit receives a signal that is transmitted by one or more transponder satellites. Numerical results for a 2D domain are presented.