A vector method for synthesis of orbits and the structure of satellite constellations for multiswath periodic coverage of the Earth

Single satellites and multisatellite constellations for the periodic coverage of the Earth are considered. The main feature is the use of several cameras with different swath widths. A vector method is proposed which makes it possible to find orbits minimizing the periodicities of coverage of a given area of Earth uniformly for all swaths. Their number is not limited, but the relative dimensions should satisfy the Fibonacci series or some new numerical sequences. The results apply to constellations of any number of satellites. Formulas were derived for calculating their structure, i.e., relative position in the constellation. Examples of orbits and the structure of constellations for the Earth’s multiswath coverage are presented.     

Mature systems for small satellite missions

Over the past several years Satellites International has developed an integrated suite of satellite sub-systems and small satellite buses. The sub-systems include S-band communications, attitude sensing and control, power conversion and distribution, and on-board data handling. They are inherently modular and readily adaptable to different satellite configurations, a concept known as semi-standardisation. This concept has been adopted by two generic low-cost buses: MicroSIL for satellites in the mass range 40–80kg; and MiniSIL for satellites in the range 100–500kg. Their architecture is based on the semi-standard sub-systems, but easily modified to utilise sub-systems from other manufacturers. They can support all stabilisation methods including spinning, 3-axis control and gravity gradient and are adaptable to a wide variety of missions including Earth resources, scientific, communications and technology demonstration. The Company also manufactures a range of low cost ground support equipment and complete ground stations to complement the space-borne systems.     

An ultra stable optical bench for the magnetic survey satellite

An optical bench has been designed and built that must hold the alignment of five optical elements to deflections of 1–2 arc s during orbital operation. In addition, it must suffer no alignment changes during the launch and prestabilization phase of the mission. Severe weight constraints, in conjunction with the thermal and structural requirements, led to the choice of graphite fiber reinforced epoxy egg crate core and face sheets for the bench construction. Active temperature control was necessary to meet thermal deflection objectives, and novel kinematic mountings were required to prevent spacecraft bending from deflecting the bench. The structural and thermal analyses both show that the mission objectives can be met with margin by the present design. No adverse effects from launch are expected, and the maximum thermal bending is expected to be less than 2 arc s.     

测控中的近地轨道卫星SEL事件分析及操控

针对空间辐射环境影响下近地卫星某器件单粒子锁定（SEL）事件频发现象,在分析卫星轨道根数演变的基础上,详细讨论SEL事件时空分布特征。结果表明,SEL事件的星下点分布具有明显地域特征,其在南大西洋区域、南北两极区域、其他区域的比例接近于3∶2∶1;器件SEL事件平均发生率略高于0.134 d-1,太阳活动较强时的发生率不足0.103 d-1,而太阳活动较弱时则接近0.165 d-1;近日点附近时的发生率达到0.200 d-1,远日点附近时约为0.072 d-1。在测控中,针对SEL事件进行遥控作业自动识别与处理,操控时长平均为130 s。     

卫星系统频谱分析方法研究及应用

文章讨论了复杂卫星系统的频谱分析思路和方法,通过对卫星射频系统的工作频段组合的线性计算,可以找到如谐波、互调等非线性干扰所引起的潜在电磁兼容问题。介绍了用LabView平台开发的一个频谱分析软件及其在具体型号中的应用界面,将已知的卫星射频分系统的一些收发设备相关频率信息输入该软件中,可以计算出各收发设备之间可能存在的干扰对。     

A survey and assessment of the capabilities of Cubesats for Earth observation

In less than a decade, Cubesats have evolved from purely educational tools to a standard platform for technology demonstration and scientific instrumentation. The use of COTS (Commercial-Off-The-Shelf) components and the ongoing miniaturization of several technologies have already led to scattered instances of missions with promising scientific value. Furthermore, advantages in terms of development cost and development time with respect to larger satellites, as well as the possibility of launching several dozens of Cubesats with a single rocket launch, have brought forth the potential for radically new mission architectures consisting of very large constellations or clusters of Cubesats. These architectures promise to combine the temporal resolution of GEO missions with the spatial resolution of LEO missions, thus breaking a traditional trade-off in Earth observation mission design. This paper assesses the current capabilities of Cubesats with respect to potential employment in Earth observation missions. A thorough review of Cubesat bus technology capabilities is performed, identifying potential limitations and their implications on 17 different Earth observation payload technologies. These results are matched to an exhaustive review of scientific requirements in the field of Earth observation, assessing the possibilities of Cubesats to cope with the requirements set for each one of 21 measurement categories. Based on this review, several Earth observation measurements are identified that can potentially be compatible with the current state-of-the-art of Cubesat technology although some of them have actually never been addressed by any Cubesat mission. Simultaneously, other measurements are identified which are unlikely to be performed by Cubesats in the next few years due to insuperable constraints. Ultimately, this paper is intended to supply a box of ideas for universities to design future Cubesat missions with high scientific payoff.     

Economics of satellite communications systems

This paper is partly a tutorial, telling systematically how one goes about calculating the total annual costs of a satellite communications system, and partly the expression of some original ideas on the choice of parameters so as to minimize these costs.The calculation of costs can be divided into two broad categories. The first is technical and is concerned with estimating what particular equipment will cost and what will be the annual expense to maintain and operate it. One starts in the estimation of any new system by listing the principal items of equipment, such as satellites, earth stations of various sizes and functions, telemetry and tracking equipment and terrestrial interfaces, and then estimating how much each item will cost. Methods are presented for generating such estimates, based on a knowledge of the gross parameters, such as antenna size, coverage area, transmitter power and information rate. These parameters determine the system performance and it is usually possible, knowing them, to estimate the costs of the equipment rather well. Some formulae based on regression analyses are presented. Methods are then given for estimating closely related expenses, such as maintenance and operation, and then an approximate method is developed for estimating terrestrial interconnection costs.It is pointed out that in specific cases when tariff and geographical information are available, it is usually better to work with specific data, but nonetheless it is often desirable, especially in global system estimating, to approximate these interconnect costs without recourse to individual tariffs. The procedure results in a set of costs for the purchase of equipment and its maintenance, and a schedule of payments. Some payments will be incurred during the manufacture of the satellite and before any systems operation, but many will not be incurred until the system is no longer in use, e.g. incentives. In any case, with the methods presented in the first section, one arrives at a schedule of costs and payments for all the items and the years in which they will be incurred. The second category of costing problems is one of financing or engineering economics. All the costs are first “present valued” to some reference period using rates of return appropriate to the particular situation.One finally arrives at sets of annual costs which can be used as the basis for setting lease costs or revenue requirements and tariffs. The correspondence between methods using discounted rates of return and capital recovery formulae on one hand and those using various depreciation schedules, such as is typical of regulated industries on the other hand, is discussed.The remainder of the paper is devoted to discussing the relationship between critical parameters, such as replacement schedules, design lifetime, satellite power and Earth station antenna size, and the overall costs.It is shown that optima for these parameters may exist and can be calculated. In particular, the optimization of satellite replacement schedules to minimize the present value of total investment over a very long period is presented, along with simplified versions of the theory suitable for system planning.The choice of EIRP is also discussed and a procedure for choosing the value that minimizes the costs is shown.     

Global measurement of the Earth gravity field using a gradiometric satellite

Two techniques are able to permit a significant progress in the global measurement of the Earth gravity field: satellite to satellite tracking and gradiometry. The preliminary results concerning the study of a gradiometric satellite to be launched by Ariane are presented.After stating the scientific objectives and the mission specifications, one focuses on the definition of the gradiometer and the gradiometric satellite. After analysis of the problems associated with gradiometry based upon differential accelerometry, one presents the Cactus accelerometer design evolution and the implications on the satellite configuration and interfaces with the gradiometer. Finally a short mission analysis is presented.     

A systems engineering environment for integrated satellite development

Space mission implementation faces a very dynamic environment with fast-paced information technology advancement and shrinking space budgets. A more focused use of decreasing public investments in space requires a cost reduction over their entire life cycle, up to the end of the useful life of a spacecraft. The anticipation of cost, schedule, risk and performance requirements from all over the product life cycle to the early stages of product development is generally recognised as a necessary condition to reduce life cycle cost. In order to cope with the intrinsic functional complexity of space products, such requirements engineering activity must be performed in a structured way within a systems engineering approach. This paper aims to describe how Cradle, a commercial systems engineering environment software package, can be used for integrated satellite development, taking into consideration functional and life cycle process requirements. Cradle has requirements management, system modelling, performance modelling, configuration management and document generation capabilities integrated in the same environment. Also, the paper provides some examples of application and highlights how Cradle can enhance the satellite development related activities performed by the Brazilian Institute for Space Research (INPE).     

Supporting multilateral environmental agreement with satellite Earth observation

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the potential contribution of satellite Earth observation (EO) to implementing and ensuring compliance with Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) from the institutional and legal point of view. EO has recently been recognized as an effective means to satisfy the demand for environmental information required by MEAs; however, actual usage of EO data in MEA implementation and compliance assurance has not yet made significant progress. While EO's legal and technical characteristics appear relevant to such applications, institutional linkage and technical reliability are still missing. Further efforts to promote EO data use for MEAs are needed through initiatives that link the EO system and data supplier with decision makers in the MEA community. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) Kyoto and Carbon Initiative may be one example of such efforts. Recent movements, such as the Group on Earth Observation (GEO), could also provide an ideal focal point for coordinating and developing globally integrated EO and data utilization systems that could facilitate MEA implementation and compliance.     

Trends in the design of future communications satellite systems

This paper presents a review of the trends in communication satellite technology. In the near term the development of moderate size, dedicated satellites is to be expected. In the long term international coordination of orbit and spectrum allocations, introduction of higher-frequency bands, spectrum conserving techniques and the concept of large communication platforms deserve particular attention. Means to improve the cost effectiveness of satellite communications system and technology aspects are considered. Finally some German contributions to these developments are presented, mainly concerning high-power TWTs in the 12 and 20 GHz range.     

European R&D in the satellite communication user Earth segment

This paper refers to a study (specificaly to its chapter 7)¹ carried out by Euroconsult for ESA on the key characteristics of European R&D in the satellite communications user Earth segment. The study was initiated by the Working Group on Satellite Communications Policy² of the Joint Board on Communications Satellite Programmes (JCB), which was established by the Director General of ESA in July 1990 to contribute to the European agency's response to the EC Green Paper. The working group specifically expresses the European space communications industry's point of view.     

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。     

Families of periodic solutions to Hamiltonian systems: Nonsymmetrical periodic solutions for a planar restricted three-body problem

A monodromy matrix calculated at a single arbitrary point of the periodic solution to a Hamiltonian system allows one to obtain both the direction of continuation for the family of solutions of the first (in Poincarés sense) kind and the multiplicity and direction of branching for periodic solutions of the second kind. In case of resonances 1 : 1 and 1 : 2 one needs to take into account the structure of elementary divisors of the monodromy matrix. Using the planar circular restricted three-body problem as an example, the infiniteness of the process of branching for a nonintegrable system and its finiteness for an integrable system are demonstrated. It is proved that periodic solutions of both first and second kinds which are obtained by continuation of symmetric periodic solutions of a restricted problem are also symmetric. The only exception is the case of resonance 1 : 1 and two second-order cells of the monodromy matrix in the Jordanian form. In this case, all periodic solutions of the second kind turned out to be nonsymmetrical. Examples of the families of nonsymmetrical periodic solutions are given.__________Translated from Kosmicheskie Issledovaniya, Vol. 43, No. 2, 2005, pp. 88–110.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Kreisman.     

ERDSAT,a satellite concept for Earth observations with combined optical and microwave payload

The concept of a European remote sensing satellite (ERDSAT) launched by ARIANE is characterized by a model payload, consisting of a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) and an optical multispectral scanner with 9 channels, for land applications or coastal zone missions. The mission goal of ERDSAT is based on European user requrements where a strong need for optical and microwave sensor operation on board the same satellite in a simultaneous or sequential mode is expressed. A data collection system is included. The proposed spacecraft is three-axes-stabilized and has a Sun-synchronous, near polar circular orbit with 750 km altitude. The selected configuration separates payload module and bus module. A thermostable carbon fibre grating structure is the central framework of the satellite. Each major subsystem is housed in a separate compartment and can be integrated and tested individually. First mass estimates resulted in 450 kg for the payload and 880 kg for the bus. The maximum power needed is 1750 W (for 6 min three times a day), which will be provided by a 1330 W solar array and two batteries. A “low cost” model philosophy is defined; the time schedule envisages a program start in late 1980 and a launch possibility end of 1985.     

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。     

空间卫星红外辐射灵敏度分析

考虑卫星本体表面包覆绝热材料的实际物理状态,根据数值传热学和有限容积法建立了目标表面温度场和红外辐射计算模型.建立卫星结构模型,基于热控涂层性能退化,提出红外辐射灵敏度概念,并建立了卫星红外辐射灵敏度计算模型.对在轨飞行卫星的瞬态温度场进行数值模拟,与遥测数据对比分析.最后,分析了空间卫星的红外辐射和红外辐射灵敏度.结...     

Assessing the performance of a heuristic simulated annealing algorithm for the design of distributed satellite systems

A heuristic multidisciplinary design optimization technique has been investigated for applicability to the conceptual design of distributed satellite systems. Different permutations of a simulated algorithm are applied to the problem of developing a systems architecture that minimizes a multicriterion metric (cost per image) for the NASA Origins Terrestrial Planet Finder mission. It was found that the efficiency of the simulated annealing algorithm could be improved by modifying the degrees of freedom within the algorithm. Further, a methodology has been developed for finding the Pareto-optimal set of design solutions within the system trade space when the distributed satellite system is modeled as a multi-objective design problem. These advances combine to yield new tools for systems engineers exploring the trade space of distributed satellite systems during the conceptual design stage.