MICROSCOPE: systematic errors
Manuel Rodrigues, Pierre Touboul, Gilles Métris, Alain Robert, Océane Dhuicque, Joël Bergé, Yves André, Damien Boulanger, Ratana Chhun, Bruno Christophe, Valerio Cipolla, Pascale Danto, Bernard Foulon, Pierre-Yves Guidotti, Émilie Hardy, Phuong-Anh Huynh, Vincent Lebat, Françoise Liorzou, Benjamin Pouilloux, Pascal Prieur, Serge Reynaud, Patrizia Torresi
Abstract
Abstract The MICROSCOPE mission aims to test the weak equivalence principle (WEP) in orbit with an unprecedented precision of 10 −15 on the Eötvös parameter thanks to electrostatic accelerometers on board a drag-free micro-satellite. The precision of the test is determined by statistical errors, due to the environment and instrument noises, and by systematic errors to which this paper is devoted. Systematic error sources can be divided into three categories: external perturbations, such as the residual atmospheric drag or the gravity gradient at the satellite altitude, perturbations linked to the satellite design, such as thermal or magnetic perturbations, and perturbations from the instrument internal sources. Each systematic error is evaluated or bounded in order to set a reliable upper bound on the WEP parameter estimation uncertainty.