MITIGATION OF STRAY LIGHT IN CATADIOPTRIC OPTICAL SYSTEMS

Abstract

This article presents the results of a study on the modeling, calculation, and mitigation of stray radiation in catadioptric optical systems used in satellite-based Earth remote sensing applications. The object of investigation is a compact optical system, BDLI, based on the Maksutov optical design. The objective of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of design solutions aimed at reducing stray radiation and to assess their feasibility under the strict volume and mass constraints of spacecraft.

To analyze the propagation of scattered light, a reverse ray tracing method was employed using the Zemax OpticStudio software. This enabled the identification of primary stray light paths and the development of effective suppression measures. Various geometric configurations of baffles were examined, along with the influence of light-absorbing and dielectric coatings. Simulation results demonstrated that stray radiation can be reduced to 1.9% at the edge of the field of view and to 0.15% along the optical axis. A comparison with a more complex optical system confirmed the substantial impact of spatial component arrangement on shielding efficiency. The obtained findings may be applied in the development of compact, high-precision optical instruments for satellite-based Earth observation systems.