Synchronization experiment between the IEN (Italy) and the Shaanxi Observatory (China) time scales via SIRIO 1 satellite

A time comparison via SIRIO-1 satellite between IEN (Italy) and CSAO (China) was carried out from May 25 to June 7, 1984. Two Telespazio receiving and transmitting stations located at Lario in Italy and at the Ministry of Astronautics in Beijing were used. A two-way synchronization method operating in a half duplex mode was chosen. During the time comparisons via satellite, the IEN performed a portable clock comparison between the time scales of the IEN, the Observatoire de Paris, and that of the CSAO in Beijing. In the same period, the time scales of the Chinese Observatories of Beijing, Shanghai, and Wuhan were compared with different synchronization techniques with the CSAO time scale. The precision of the time comparisons via satellite was 30 ns (1 sigma). The results of all the time comparisons performed during the experiment are discussed.