M.M. Denisov

When ranging the spacecraft retroreflector mounted on it, the retroreflector moves with respect to the laser station. Therefore, it reflects the light pulse under some angle to the direction of arrival to the spacecraft. As a result of this effect the center reflected from the spacecraft light pulse does not fall into the receiving telescope laser station. In the paper the calculation of a component of a vector of linear displacement of the spot centre, formed on a surface of the Earth by the light pulse reflected from a spacecraft, concerning a transferring telescope of laser station, is carried out. The numerical analysis has shown that at a laser ranging low orbital spacecrafts the size of this displacement makes some tens metres while for high orbital spacecrafts it can reach six kilometres. The law of control of a reception telescope at which it will follow the centres of spots of the reflected light pulses is offered.