Interferometric Imaging of Geostationary Satellites: Signal-to-Noise Considerations

Geostationary satellites are generally too small to image at high resolution with conventional single-dish tele- scopes. An alternative to a 100+ m diameter telescope is to use an optical/infrared interferometer consisting of multiple smaller telescopes in an array configuration. In this paper we focus on what is required to achieve the required signal-to-noise ratio to image. We will look at the signal-to-noise ratio required to track fringes on satellites on multiple baselines, a pre-requisite to imaging.We will also look at how to achieve the required signal- to-noise required for image reconstruction. We compare these performance specifications to the performance of existing interferometers as well as that of a new interferometer concept optimized for satellite imaging.