Ring retroreflector system consisting of cube-corner reflectors with special coating

The ring retroreflector system (RS) consisting of cubecorner reflectors (CCRs) with a special coating of reflecting surfaces, intended for uniaxially Earth-oriented navigation satellites, is considered. The error of distance measurement caused by both the laser pulse delay in the CCR and its spatial position (CCR configuration) is studied. It is shown that the ring RS, formed by the CCR with a double-spot radiation pattern, allows the distance measurement error to be essentially reduced.