基于相控阵雷达波束篱笆的空间碎片数量与分布估计方法

随着载人航天与空间站等航天活动的增多,不能有效防护、也无法定期跟踪和编目的小尺寸(尤其是1～10 cm)碎片的危害越来越受到关注,这些碎片信息的获取依赖于统计采样技术.针对简化的相控阵雷达波束篱笆空间碎片探测模式,提出了一种采用统计技术估计空间碎片总数量以及高度和倾角分布的方法.将碎片穿越波束篱笆的过程用Poisson分布来建模,根据观测时段内穿越波束篱笆目标的平均到达率及测量的轨道高度和倾角数据来估计给定轨道高度范围或倾角范围内碎片的数量,进而得到碎片的总数量以及碎片数量随轨道高度或倾角的分布.在获取雷达散射截面信息时,该方法还可用于估计碎片数量随尺寸的分布.通过仿真实验验证了该方法的有效性.      

非相干散射雷达的空间碎片参数统计分析

采用匹配滤波方法处理了非相干散射雷达的原始采样数据(时长约7h), 共检测到394个空间碎片, 估算了其轨道高度、径向速度、散射截面、等效直径及径向加速度等参数, 统计分析了这些参数的变化特征, 得到穿过雷达 波束的空间碎片流量约为60h-1, 信噪比为10～1000, 空间碎片主要分布在600～1100km和1400～1600km两个高度区间, 散射截面 10-5～10-2m2, 等效直径3～10cm, 径向速度-1.5～1.5km·s-1, 径向加速度20～90m·s-2, 这对于中国的空间碎片探测与研究具有重要参考意义.      

大面质比空间碎片在太阳光压和引力作用下的轨道演化

分析了较高轨道(a > 10000km)大面质比空间碎片的轨道动力学演化问题. 重点讨论了位于地球同步轨道的空间碎片轨道演化问题, 并给出轨道偏心率 随时间演化的表达式. 通过进一步分析得出, 倾角大于63°26'的GTO轨 道空间碎片, 仅在J₂和第三体摄动影响下, 会出现轨道偏心率升高; 而对 于大面质比空间碎片, 在J₂项和太阳光压同时作用下, 当近地点指向的角 变率与太阳平黄经变化率接近时, 会出现长期共振现象, 导致轨道偏心率升 高, 近地点降低. 分析还得出, 轨道演化过程中, 偏心率的最大值与初始轨 道近地点的指向有关.      

空间惯性定向姿态卫星数传链路设计

对于采用空间惯性定向姿态的卫星,其在数传设备工作期间不能保证固定安装在星体上的发射天线波束准确指向地面站,这给有效载荷高速数传提出更高技术要求. 研究了这类卫星在轨运行时其姿态相对地面站的变化规律,利用STK软件提供的卫星轨道仿真分析结果,寻找数传天线波束中心轴的较好指向,得到不同天线波束宽度能够实现的卫星对地数传时间. 通过研制140°波束范围内0dBi增益天线,在链路设计上保证了传输速率85Mbit·s-1时有足够的余量. 在星载设备小型化约束（质量10kg、功耗80W）条件下,采用小型化宽波束天线以及固态功放解决了空间惯性定向姿态卫星的有效载荷数据传输问题,设计方案满足相关任务要求.      

太空新航线

美欲砍掉空间碎片研究计划 美国航宇局官员称,尽管承认轨道碎片对航天飞机、国际空间站和低地轨道卫星构成严重威胁,但预算超支正促使该局考虑在今年10月1日砍掉其已成立了23年的轨道碎片计划办公室。对于那些尺寸足够大、可被地面光学和雷达望远镜跟踪到的碎片,美国航宇局以及商业和科学卫星经营者仍然依赖美国航天司令部的跟踪数据。该军事部门目前每天都跟踪着约10000个直径大于10厘米的物体,使卫星经     

多碎片移除过程中的路径优化

采用蚁群优化算法对多碎片移除过程中的路径优化问题进行研究，然后采用改进的最速下降法对移除每块碎片的时间进行合理优化，进一步降低总的速度增量需求.对比轨道高度、轨道倾角或者升交点赤经的顺序后发现，采用蚁群算法优化之后的顺序移除碎片可以大大节省轨道转移所需要的速度增量.选取中国空间活动产生的三组碎片进行优化计算，结果显示在相同的任务时间内，优化后的顺序可能不同于轨道高度、倾角和赤经的顺序，并且优化顺序可以节省更多的速度增量.另外，任务时间也会对碎片的最佳移除顺序产生影响.      

基于多项式近似的空间碎片群体轨道预报算法

快速准确地分析空间碎片群轨道演化行为对于其他在轨航天器碰撞规避至关重要。在各摄动力的作用下,空间碎片群演化运动呈现出复杂的非线性特征。空间碎片群体个体数量巨大,如果通过对空间碎片群中每个空间碎片进行轨道积分来分析群体预报的方法会导致计算量过大。针对该问题,提出一种基于多项式近似的轨道快速预报分析方法。该方法将空间碎片群分为少量的标称碎片和其他大量关联碎片。针对标称碎片的轨道预报采用数值积分求解保证预报精度;而针对其他大量的关联碎片轨道预报问题,采用多项式泰勒展开半解析方法求解,从而在保证预报精度的前提下有效减少空间碎片群轨道预报的计算量。为了验证方法的有效性,对不同空间碎片群进行了轨道预报仿真。仿真结果表明,当轨道预报精度设定在1m范围内时,多项式近似算法的计算量较蒙特卡洛方法计算效率提高了2.2~17.2倍,验证了所提出方法的有效性。     

气动辅助异面变轨在多碎片清除中的应用分析

碎片清除飞行器异面变轨需要消耗大量燃料.从气动辅助异面变轨优化设计及被清除碎片轨道高度差值、倾角差值等参数对变轨性能的影响出发,比较分析了优化气动辅助异面变轨与双脉冲霍曼轨道转移的燃料节约量,研究了不同轨道高度差对于实施气动辅助变轨燃料节约量的影响.当地球静止轨道（GEO）与低地轨道（LEO）间气动辅助变轨优化速度增量约为1.55km·s-1、质量面积比172kg·m-2、比冲310s、轨道倾角变化16°时,燃料节约率约为45%.对比研究了不同轨道高度差LEO轨道间实施气动辅助变轨的燃料节约情况.结果表明:随着轨道高度的增加,气动辅助优化效率逐渐降低;在相同高度轨道间实施异面变轨,随着轨道倾角的增加,气动辅助变轨燃料节约率先增大后减小,倾角改变量约为20°时,燃料节约率最大;当轨道倾角为5°时,采用气动辅助变轨和双脉冲变轨的燃料消耗量相同.      

解体速度增量计算方法研究

解体速度增量是解体事件强度的重要指征, 它决定了解体产生碎片的轨道分布. 通过分析解体速度增量可以推断解体强度, 确定解体形式. 解体速度增量有两种计算方法, 即轨道位置演化法和轨道面相交法. 轨道位置演化法是根据解体前后轨道速度的变化直接得到解体速度增量; 而轨道面相交法是利用母体以及解体碎片的球面三角几何关系, 根据解体碎片的倾角和升交点赤经变化, 以及母体轨道的倾角和近地点辐角, 计算解体时刻母体轨道的真近点角, 从而得到解体的时间和速度增量. 相比来说, 轨道位置演化法适用于数据精度高, 解体高度高情况下的解体事件分析, 而轨道面相交法适用于解体高度低, 碎片数据公布时间较为滞后的解体事件分析. 根据解体速度增量的计算方法及其原理, 对两种方法的适用性进行了比较和讨论, 并选取已经发生的三次解体事件, 利用美国公布的TLE数据, 针对具体情况选择计算方法, 给出了三次解体事件发生的时间和解体碎片在空间三个方向上的速度增量.      

低轨导航增强卫星星座设计

针对目前全球低轨卫星快速发展的现状,对低轨导航增强卫星星座设计方法进行了详细的研究。首先推导了轨道高度与可视球冠的关系,结合太空垃圾分布,从覆盖范围、经济性及碰撞风险几方面联合确定了轨道高度。然后推导了用户仰角与轨道倾角的关系,分析了实现南北极点覆盖的轨道倾角。接着结合铱星星座,推导出单一星座构型无法实现全球范围内均匀的可见星和精度衰减因子（Dilution of Precision,DOP）值分布。最后提出了一种组合低轨卫星星座设计方法。结果表明,该方法设计的组合星座在实现全球覆盖的同时,能够实现可见星数量与DOP值在全球范围内的均匀分布。     

Debris flux comparisons from the Goldstone Radar,Haystack Radar,and Hax Radar prior,during, and after the last solar maximum

The continual monitoring of the low Earth orbit (LEO) debris environment using highly sensitive radars is essential for an accurate characterization of these dynamic populations. Debris populations are continually evolving since there are new debris sources, previously unrecognized debris sources, and debris loss mechanisms that are dependent on the dynamic space environment. Such radar data are used to supplement, update, and validate existing orbital debris models. NASA has been utilizing radar observations of the debris environment for over a decade from three complementary radars: the NASA JPL Goldstone radar, the MIT Lincoln Laboratory (MIT/LL) Long Range Imaging Radar (known as the Haystack radar), and the MIT/LL Haystack Auxiliary radar (HAX). All of these systems are highly sensitive radars that operate in a fixed staring mode to statistically sample orbital debris in the LEO environment. Each of these radars is ideally suited to measure debris within a specific size region. The Goldstone radar generally observes objects with sizes from 2 mm to 1 cm. The Haystack radar generally measures from 5 mm to several meters. The HAX radar generally measures from 2 cm to several meters. These overlapping size regions allow a continuous measurement of cumulative debris flux versus diameter from 2 mm to several meters for a given altitude window. This is demonstrated for all three radars by comparing the debris flux versus diameter over 200 km altitude windows for 3 nonconsecutive years from 1998 to 2003. These years correspond to periods before, during, and after the peak of the last solar cycle. Comparing the year to year flux from Haystack for each of these altitude regions indicate statistically significant changes in subsets of the debris populations. Potential causes of these changes are discussed. These analysis results include error bars that represent statistical sampling errors.     

Identification of a debris cloud from the nuclear powered SNAPSHOT satellite with haystack radar measurements

Data from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory Long Range Imaging Radar (known as the Haystack radar) have been used in the past to examine families of objects from individual satellite breakups or families of orbiting objects that can be isolated in altitude and inclination. This is possible because, for some time after a breakup, the debris cloud of particles can remain grouped together in similar orbit planes. This cloud will be visible to the radar, in fixed staring mode, for a short time twice each day, as the orbit plane moves through the field of view. There should be a unique three-dimensional pattern in observation time, range, and range rate which can identify the cloud. Eventually, through slightly differing precession rates of the right ascension of ascending node of the debris cloud, the observation time becomes distributed so that event identification becomes much more difficult.     

Accurate orbit predictions for debris orbit manoeuvre using ground-based lasers

Orbit manoeuvre of low Earth orbiting (LEO) debris using ground-based lasers has been proposed as a cost-effective means to avoid debris collisions. This requires the orbit of the debris object to be determined and predicted accurately so that the laser beam can be locked on the debris without the loss of valuable laser operation time. This paper presents the method and results of a short-term accurate LEO (<900 km in altitude) debris orbit prediction study using sparse laser ranging data collected by the EOS Space Debris Tracking System (SDTS). A main development is the estimation of the ballistic coefficients of the LEO objects from their archived long-term two line elements (TLE). When an object is laser tracked for two passes over about 24 h, orbit prediction (OP) accuracy of 10–20 arc seconds for the next 24–48 h can be achieved – the accuracy required for laser debris manoeuvre. The improvements in debris OP accuracy are significant in other applications such as debris conjunction analyses and the realisation of daytime debris laser tracking.     

航天GPS接收机信号搜索捕获策略

航天GPS接收机的无辅助冷启动时间是一项重要指标,研究近地轨道应用的12通道C/A码导航型接收机减小冷启动时间的方法.分析GPS信号的多普勒频率和伪码相位搜索方法、捕获检测器及其参数选择、多普勒频率搜索步长和伪码搜索速率, 得到多普勒频率搜索步长为500?Hz,伪码搜索速率为475码元/s.研究轨道倾角、轨道高度、GPS天线仰角和轨道偏心率等因素对多普勒频率搜索范围的影响.阐述根据GPS卫星间夹角的统计信息选择合理的卫星分配方法.分析和仿真结果表明,根据GPS卫星间夹角的统计信息选择合理的卫星分配方法,可将冷启动时间减少25%~30%,影响多普勒频率搜索范围的因素按程度依次为:轨道倾角、轨道高度、GPS天线仰角和轨道偏心率,再考虑这些因素时可将冷启动时间减少25%~40%.     

Feasibility of performing space surveillance tasks with a proposed space-based optical architecture

Under ESA contract an industrial consortium including Aboa Space Research Oy (ASRO), the Astronomical Institute of the University of Bern (AIUB), and the Dutch National Aerospace Laboratory (NLR), proposed the observation concept, developed a suitable sensor architecture, and assessed the performance of a space-based optical (SBO) telescope in 2005. The goal of the SBO study was to analyse how the existing knowledge gap in the space debris population in the millimetre and centimetre regime may be closed by means of a passive optical instrument. The SBO instrument was requested to provide statistical information on the space debris population in terms of number of objects and size distribution. The SBO instrument was considered to be a cost-efficient with 20 cm aperture and 6° field-of-view and having flexible integration requirements. It should be possible to integrate the SBO instrument easily as a secondary payload on satellites launched into low-Earth orbits (LEO), or into geostationary orbit (GEO). Thus the selected mission concept only allowed for fix-mounted telescopes, and the pointing direction could be requested freely. Since 2007 ESA focuses space surveillance and tracking activities in the Space Situational Awareness (SSA) preparatory program. Ground-based radars and optical telescopes are studied for the build-up and maintenance of a catalogue of objects. In this paper we analyse how the proposed SBO architecture could contribute to the space surveillance tasks survey and tracking. We assume that the SBO instrumentation is placed into a circular sun-synchronous orbit at 800 km altitude. We discuss the observation conditions of objects at higher altitude, and select an orbit close to the terminator plane. A pointing of the sensor orthogonal to the orbital plane with optimal elevation slightly in positive direction (0° and +5°) is found optimal for accessing the entire GEO regime within one day, implying a very good coverage of controlled objects in GEO, too. Simulations using ESA’s Program for Radar and Optical Observation Forecasting (PROOF) in the version 2005 and a GEO reference population extracted from DISCOS revealed that the proposed pointing scenario provides low phase angles together with low angular velocities of the objects crossing the field-of-view. Radiometric simulations show that the optimal exposure time is 1–2 s, and that spherical objects in GEO with a diameter of below 1 m can be detected. The GEO population can be covered under proper illumination nearly completely, but seasonal drops of the coverage are possible. Subsequent observations of objects are on average at least every 1.5 days, not exceeding 3 days at maximum. A single observation arc spans 3° to 5° on average. Using a simulation environment that connects PROOF to AIUB’s program system CelMech we verify the consistency of the initial orbit determination for five selected test objects on subsequent days as a function of realistic astrometric noise levels. The initial orbit determination is possible. We define requirements for a correlator process essential for catalogue build-up and maintenance. Each single observation should provide an astrometric accuracy of at least 1”–1.5” so that the initially determined orbits are consistent within a few hundred kilometres for the semi-major axis, 0.01 for the eccentricity, and 0.1° for the inclination.     

Space Debris Mitigation in France,Germany, Italy and United Kingdom

The Space systems today provide growing benefits to enhance the quality of humankind. However, as a by-product, the orbiting objects inevitably leaves some debris which after 50 years of space activities represent a concern for all space agencies and manufacturers and operators. Since last year no international agreement was in place to mitigate the growing population of space debris objects. The successful result obtained at UN-COPUOS in 2007 and available in the OOSA web site, now gives to the public, a set of voluntary international guidelines that could, if adopted by each space fairing Country, help in maintaining the present space environment. More further steps are necessary in the future to define a legal and normative framework. The paper will present the seven established UN Space Debris guidelines as well as examples of the minimum steps to be carried out at national level to enable the UN-COPUOS to start the discussion of the legal aspect associated with the space debris issue.     

Spot 1 end of life disposition manoeuvres

The Earth observation satellites of the SPOT family are on a Sun-synchronous orbit at 822 km altitude. The on-orbit lifetime of objects at this altitude is about two centuries, which represents an important risk to the other satellites.The space debris issue has caused the main Agencies to adopt mitigation guidelines with the objective to reduce the population of objects orbiting the Earth. In 1999, CNES published its own standard presenting the management, design and operation rules. This document is fully compliant with the Inter Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee (IADC) mitigation guidelines approved in 2002 by 11 Space Agencies and submitted to United Nations – Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space in February 2003.The space debris mitigation requirements expressed in the CNES standard and in the IADC mitigation guidelines limit the orbital lifetime in LEO to less than 25 years. Although not applicable to Spot 1, launched earlier in 1986, this rule was voluntarily applied and the decision to deorbit Spot 1 was taken.The corresponding operations, performed in November 2003, were complex due to a large number of constraints such as the unusual flight domain, the on-board sensors, the short ground station visibilities or the uncertainties in the estimation of the remaining fuel in the tanks. In the preliminary phase, the orbit was lowered 15 km below the operational orbit to avoid any collision risk with the other Spot satellites. Then, in a second phase, a series of eight apogee boosts lowered progressively the perigee altitude to 619 km. Finally, a large last manoeuvre was performed to empty the tanks and to reduce the perigee altitude the maximum amount. A succession of four ground stations visibilities allowed a real time monitoring of this manoeuvre. In particular the effect of gas bubbles in the propulsion system was observed through telemetry confirming the fuel depletion. The batteries were then disconnected and the telemetry emitter was switched off. According to the obtained perigee altitude, the on-orbit lifetime of Spot 1 should be about 18 years, which meets the space debris mitigation requirements.