Post-disposal orbital evolution of satellites and upper stages used by the GPS and GLONASS navigation constellations: The long-term impact on the Medium Earth Orbit environment

The long-term evolution and environmental impact in MEO of all the abandoned spacecraft and upper stages associated with the GPS and GLONASS navigation constellations were analyzed. The orbits of the disposed objects, as of 1 May 2011, were propagated for 200 years and snapshots of their evolving distribution were obtained, together with an estimation of the changing collision probability with the spacecraft of the operational navigation systems existing or planned in MEO, i.e., GLONASS, GPS, Beidou and Galileo. The probability that the abandoned objects considered will collide with the operational spacecraft of the navigation constellations is very low, even taking into account the intrinsic eccentricity instability of the disposal orbits. Assuming the present or envisaged configuration of the constellations in MEO, the probability of collision, integrated over 200 years, would be <1/300 with a GLONASS spacecraft, <1/15,000 with a GPS or Beidou spacecraft, and <1/250,000 with a Galileo spacecraft. The worst disposal strategy consists in abandoning satellites and upper stages close to the altitude of the operational constellation (GLONASS), while a re-orbiting a few hundred km away (GPS) is able to guarantee an effective long-term dilution of the collision risk, irrespective of the eccentricity instability due to geopotential and luni-solar perturbations. The disposal strategies applied so far to the GPS satellites should be able to guarantee for at least a few centuries a sustainable MEO environment free of collisions among intact objects. Consequently, there would be no need to adopt disposal schemes targeting also the optimal value of the eccentricity vector. However, it should be pointed out that the GPS disposal strategy was devised well in advance of the Beidou constellation announcement, so most of the abandoned satellites were re-orbited fairly close to the altitude of the new Chinese system. A new re-orbiting approach will be therefore needed in the future.     

导航卫星有效载荷新型扩频码研究及实现*

针对导航卫星中Gold扩频码存在的不足,卫星导航系统的多个频点在下一代系统建设中选用Weil码作为扩频码。首先对Gold码和Weil码的特性进行仿真分析,仿真结果表明,Weil码的自相关特性和互相关特性有明显的优势。针对导航卫星有效载荷需要提供长期稳定可靠的导航服务且资源有限,对Weil码的实现方式也有很高的要求,设计一种基于FPGA平台的Weil码实现方案,解决了导航卫星有效载荷中Weil扩频码生成的资源和可靠性问题,已实际在轨连续运行超过一年没有出现故障。     

卫星导航接收系统中一种快速稳健的干扰抑制技术

在基于阵列信号处理技术的卫星导航接收系统中,当卫星信号的估计导向矢量与真实导向矢量失配时,常规的干扰抑制算法将有较大的性能损失.将导向矢量旋转法引入到多级维纳滤波器中(CSA-MWF),该方法在提高系统稳健性的同时,有效降低了计算量.计算机仿真表明,小快拍条件下新算法的干扰抑制性能优于导向矢量旋转法.     

Development of standards for aeronautical satellite navigation system

One of the work objectives of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) is the development of the standards and procedures necessary to support transition to the CNS/ATM systems, which include Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). The Global Navigation Satellite System Panel (GNSSP) was established by the ICAO Air Navigation Commission in 1993 with the basic objective to develop ICAO standards and recommended practices (SARPs) and guidance material as required to support aeronautical GNSS applications world-wide. The first package of GNSS SARPs was adopted and published by ICAO in 2001, and further work is under way to introduce new satellite constellations and system elements in an evolutionary fashion.     

伽利略卫星导航系统简介

概述全球卫星导航定位系统现状及伽利略系统建设背景与阶段工作,分析伽利略系统的特点及其发展趋势.     

卫星导航系统天线阵接收机波束指向误差分析

研究表明：卫星导航系统阵元几何位置误差是影响波束指向误差的主要因素,而卫星和接收机位置误差则影响甚微,其中千米级的卫星位置误差以及接收机位置误差导致的波束指向误差不超过0.1°,而毫米级的阵元几何位置随机误差可导致典型7阵元天线阵波束指向误差达到几度。该研究成果可为卫星导航系统天线阵接收机的设计提供依据。     

Orbital and relative motion of a tethered satellite system

A simplified model for the orbital and relative motion of a tethered satellite system is presented. The tether acts as a light elastic string with small structural damping but without bending stiffness. Its mass is taken into account in the calculation of the total kinetic and potential energies of the tethered system. This formulation allows the inclusion of the complete gravity gradient influence on the dynamics of the system. The resulting three-dimensional motion is separated in the centre of mass orbital motion on the one hand and the relative motion of the end-bodies on the other. No restrictions on length of the tether or on mass ratio of the end-masses are imposed. It is found that the frequencies and amplitudes of the longitudinal tether oscillations are realistic as long as the tether mass is less than that of the subsatellite.     

卫星电缆网内部充电效应仿真分析

电缆结构作为最常见的卫星上的介质-金属结构,只受到卫星蒙皮的保护,其内部充电效应须引起重视。针对卫星上常见的电缆网结构进行了分析,使用内部充电三维仿真软件计算分析了GEO卫星上几种不同型号电缆对应不同蒙皮厚度下的充电效应,并对弯曲电缆、蒙皮孔洞处的电缆、电缆固定件等结构的简化模型进行了仿真分析。结果显示,在GEO恶劣电子环境下,单一卫星电缆会因为内部充电效应带上一定的负电位,在绝缘皮较厚或电缆处于蒙皮孔洞处等情况下,充电负电位会升高;电缆固定件介质块的充电电位与介质材料的尺寸有关,会带来较高的放电风险。     

Analysis on coverage ability of BeiDou navigation satellite system for manned spacecraft

To investigate the service ability of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) for manned spacecraft, both the current regional and the future-planned global constellations of BDS are introduced and simulated. The orbital parameters of the International Space Station and China׳s Tiangong-1 spacelab are used to create the simulation scenario and evaluate the performance of the BDS constellations. The number of visible satellites and the position dilution (PDOP) of precision at the spacecraft-based receiver are evaluated. Simulation and analysis show quantitative results on the coverage ability and time percentages of both the current BDS regional and future global constellations for manned-space orbits which can be a guideline to the applications and mission design of BDS receivers on manned spacecraft.     

An analysis of characteristics of the satellite autonomous optical navigation system

The autonomous navigation system characteristics are investigated for an artificial satellite around a planet. Navigation is based on the optical scanning of stars near the planet's horizon. The recognition of stars and the measurement of angles of star elevation above the horizon are carried out. The subsequent statistical processing of the measurements allows one to determine the satellite's orbital elements with an accuracy dependent on the measurement accuracy and procedure.The analysis employs an exact numerical algorithm and approximate numerical-analytical technique. The navigational accuracies are studied in relation to independent and correlated measurement errors. Comparison is made for navigational accuracies determined by the above two methods. It shows that the approximate technique allows rather well (with an error less than 10%) to find navigational errors even at a small number (3–6) of times of measurements per revolution. When this number is increased the methodical error of the approximate technique quickly diminishes. The navigational accuracies are obtained for the satellite in an orbit with altitude of 300 to 36,000 km.The navigational algorithm was tested in direct numerical simulation and its convergence bounds were determined. The latter show admissible deviations of initial values in orbital elements from the exact ones. The analysis shows that the algorithm is stable at rather large errors in giving the elements of initial approximation.     

近地卫星磁测自主导航算法研究

地磁场具有较为完善的数学模型，而地磁场矢量是卫星位置的函数，利用三轴磁强计的测量信息即可实现近地卫星的自主导航。本文提出了采用UKF(Unscented Kalman Filter)滤波作为处理磁测自主导航问题的滤波算法。基于unscented变换，UKF滤波算法能够给出更精确的均值和协方差的估计，从而带来更高的精度。本文以地磁场矢量为测量量，进行了数学仿真。仿真结果表明：经UKF滤波后，卫星总的位置误差在1km(3σ)以内。通过比较可知，该方法比传统的扩展Kalman滤波(EKF)有更好的收敛性和更高的精度。     

Analysis of satellite systems for the periodic survey of the Earth

Satellite systems for the periodic survey of a given range of the Earth’s latitudes have been analyzed. As a rule, the efficiency of the satellite systems is estimated based on the maximum interruption, i.e., the maximum time interval that appears when surveying. However, this performance cannot serve as a full criterion for the quality of the survey, since it does not reflect all survey interruptions with their frequencies. To adequately analyze the operation of the satellite system, it is necessary to use the frequency distribution function of the survey interruptions; its determination is a complex problem and has not yet been solved in the general case. In this paper, we propose a method for calculating the set of all interruptions and frequencies suitable for any multisatellite systems with an arbitrary structure. The method is based on the vector model of the Earth’s survey. To estimate the efficiency of the satellite system operation, a complex criterion has been recommended that takes into account all survey interruptions and their frequencies. Two examples of the application of the developed method have been presented.     

Optimization of geosynchronous satellite constellation for independent regional navigation and positioning in Middle East region

Regional Navigation and positioning systems using geosynchronous satellites are emerging for different parts of the world. Optimal constellation geometry achievement for a set of geosynchronous satellites is a key sector in designing of such systems. Genetic algorithm is applied for optimization of constellations with 6 and 7 satellites which is to be used in Middle East region where these systems have been deprived of. Based on the fact that the coverage criterion is not sufficient enough to guarantee a good navigation service, positioning process by the satellite systems is discussed and the performance of the system on the basis of position dilution of precision is collected as the fitness criterion. Placing the satellites in groups to pass over the same ground track is applied as a constraint to the genetic algorithm. By simulation, performance of the best obtained results and GPS are compared in terms of position dilution of precision, visibility and the required epochs (time span) to resolve the ambiguities with a 99% success rate, in this region. Also, capability of the GA for such problems is demonstrated.     

基于Unscented卡尔曼滤波器的卫星自主天文导航研究

针对星光折射间接敏感地平的卫星自主天文导航方法，建立了带摄动项的状态方程和以星光视高度为观测量的量测方程。由于该状态方程和量测方程都是严重非线性的，利用推广的卡尔曼滤波器进行导航时精度较低。Unscented卡尔曼滤波是一种针对非线性系统的估计新方法。本文提出将Unscented卡尔曼滤波用于自主天文导航。计算机仿真结果显示Unscented卡尔曼滤波的估计精度远优于推广的卡尔曼滤波。     

Egocentric frames of reference used for the retrieval of survey knowledge learned by map and navigation

Two experiments are reported that use a ``point-to-unseen-targets' task to study the role of egocentric reference frames in the retrieval of survey knowledge learned from either studying a map or navigating an environment. In Experiment 1, performance was generally consistent with the hypothesis that map knowledge is retrieved using a frame of reference centered on the eye, characterized by (a) a fixed orientation in a ``frontal representational plane' and (b) equal access to spatial relations both in front of, or above, and behind, or below, a right-left retrieval axis. The results of Experiment 2 were consistent with the hypothesis that environment knowledge is retrieved within a frame of reference centered on the body, characterized by (a) flexible orientation within a ``transverse representational plane' and (b) privileged access to spatial relations located in front of the right-left retrieval axis in representational space. Both types of knowledge function as if they preserve information about the Euclidean angles connecting elements in physical space.     

All-propulsion design of the drag-free and attitude control of the European satellite GOCE

This paper concerns the drag-free and attitude control (DFAC) of the European Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer satellite (GOCE), during the science phase. GOCE aims to determine the Earth's gravity field with high accuracy and spatial resolution, through complementary space techniques such as gravity gradiometry and precise orbit determination. Both techniques rely on accurate attitude and drag-free control, especially in the gradiometer measurement bandwidth (5–100 mHz), where non-gravitational forces must be counteracted down to micronewton, and spacecraft attitude must track the local orbital reference frame with micro-radian accuracy. DFAC aims to enable the gravity gradiometer to operate so as to determine the Earth's gravity field especially in the so-called measurement bandwidth (5–100 mHz), making use of ion and micro-thruster actuators. The DFAC unit has been designed entirely on a simplified discrete-time model (Embedded Model) derived from the fine dynamics of the spacecraft and its environment; the relevant control algorithms are implemented and tuned around the Embedded Model, which is the core of the control unit. The DFAC has been tested against uncertainties in spacecraft and environment and its code has been the preliminary model for final code development. The DFAC assumes an all-propulsion command authority, partly abandoned by the actual GOCE control system because of electric micro-propulsion not being fully developed. Since all-propulsion authority is expected to be imperative for future scientific and observation missions, design and simulated results are believed to be of interest to the space community.     

通信卫星系统潜在故障识别与应对方法

针对新一代高集成度、高复杂度通信卫星系统应用背景,以通信卫星平台长寿命、高可靠设计需求为牵引,提出一种基于系统理论事故模型与过程（STAMP）的系统级潜在故障识别与分析方法,在总体设计早期即提出对卫星平台各分系统的可靠性设计需求。以某地球同步轨道（GEO）通信卫星为例介绍该方法,通过构建系统控制逻辑架构自上至下地分析潜在的不安全控制过程,通过检查控制与反馈回路的各环节确定故障发生场景,提出对控制过程的约束条件以消除或降低故障发生的可能,最终形成有针对性的分系统可靠性设计需求。     

基于模糊理论的卫星导航系统综合效能评估研究

根据卫星导航系统的功能，建立了卫星导航系统综合效能评价指标体系，运用模糊数学和层次分析法，建立了多级模糊综合评价模型，并利用实例说明了评估方法和过程，取得了满意的结果。