A new approach based on crater detection and matching for visual navigation in planetary landing

This paper provides an approach of crater detection and matching to visual navigation in planetary landing missions. The approach aims to detect craters on the planetary surface and match them to a landmark database during the descent phase of a planetary landing mission. Firstly an image region pairing method is proposed to detect the crater by using an image region feature detector. Then a WTA-rule is adopted to match the detected crater to the crater in database. To further reduce the false matching rate, an efficient method for reducing false matches using parameters of crater in 3-D database is proposed. Real images of planetary terrain and a semi-physical planetary landing simulation platform are utilized to test the performance of the approach, simulation results show the proposed approach is able to match the required number of craters to the database for pin-point planetary landing with a low rate of false detection and false matching, which will lead to an improved planetary landing precision.     

The classical Laplace plane as a stable disposal orbit for geostationary satellites

The classical Laplace plane is a frozen orbit, or equilibrium solution for the averaged dynamics arising from Earth oblateness and lunisolar gravitational perturbations. The pole of the orbital plane of uncontrolled GEO satellites regress around the pole of the Laplace plane at nearly constant inclination and rate. In accordance with Friesen et al. (1993), we show how this stable plane can be used as a robust long-term disposal orbit. The current graveyard regions for end-of-life retirement of GEO payloads, which is several hundred kilometers above GEO depending on the spacecraft characteristics, cannot contain the newly discovered high area-to-mass ratio debris population. Such objects are highly susceptible to the effects of solar radiation pressure exhibiting dramatic variations in eccentricity and inclination over short periods of time. The Laplace plane graveyard, on the contrary, would trap this debris and would not allow these objects to rain down through GEO. Since placing a satellite in this inclined orbit can be expensive, we discuss some alternative disposal schemes that have acceptable cost-to-benefit ratios.     

Experimental study on impact of roller imbalance on cage stability

This study presents a method for measuring the imbalance in a small-sized cylindrical roller. The roller imbalance was calibrated on the built static-pressure-air flotation measurement machine. The impact of the roller imbalance on the dynamic characteristics of a cage were then studied on the aero-bearing test rig. The displacement spectrums with different roller imbalance of the obtained cage orbits under various bearing speed and radial load were used to evaluate the cage stability. The results show that the cage cannot form a stable operating state at a lower bearing speed with or without the unbalanced rollers. The cage with balanced rollers gradually develops stable motion with the increase of the bearing speed. The existence of a small roller imbalance causes the stability of the cage to deteriorate. With an increase in the bearing speed and radial load, the cage with the unbalanced rollers runs unsteadily accompanied by a high-frequency vibration when the roller imbalance is large enough. The vibration amplitude of the cage in the horizontal direction is greater than that in the vertical direction during an unstable operation, which is similar in the stable status.     

Medium Earth Orbit dynamical survey and its use in passive debris removal

The Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) region hosts satellites for navigation, communication, and geodetic/space environmental science, among which are the Global Navigation Satellites Systems (GNSS). Safe and efficient removal of debris from MEO is problematic due to the high cost for maneuvers needed to directly reach the Earth (reentry orbits) and the relatively crowded GNSS neighborhood (graveyard orbits). Recent studies have highlighted the complicated secular dynamics in the MEO region, but also the possibility of exploiting these dynamics, for designing removal strategies. In this paper, we present our numerical exploration of the long-term dynamics in MEO, performed with the purpose of unveiling the set of reentry and graveyard solutions that could be reached with maneuvers of reasonable $\mathrm{\Delta }V$ cost. We simulated the dynamics over 120–200?years for an extended grid of millions of fictitious MEO satellites that covered all inclinations from 0 to 90°, using non-averaged equations of motion and a suitable dynamical model that accounted for the principal geopotential terms, 3rd-body perturbations and solar radiation pressure (SRP). We found a sizeable set of usable solutions with reentry times that exceed $～40$ years, mainly around three specific inclination values: 46°, 56°, and 68°; a result compatible with our understanding of MEO secular dynamics. For $\mathrm{\Delta }V?300$ m/s (i.e., achieved if you start from a typical GNSS orbit and target a disposal orbit with $e<0.3$), reentry times from GNSS altitudes exceed $～70$ years, while low-cost ($\mathrm{\Delta }V?5–35$ m/s) graveyard orbits, stable for at lest 200?years, are found for eccentricities up to $e\approx 0.018$. This investigation was carried out in the framework of the EC-funded “ReDSHIFT” project.     

赤道异常的行星波周期振荡的统计特征与逐年变化及其QBO调制

利用赤道异常峰区台站(Okinawa)观测的, f₀F₂资料(1977—1990), 分析计算了赤道电离层行星波周期振荡(2日、3—4日、5—7日及10—16日)的特征及其变化规律, 发现其在一年四季都有出现, 但相对强度在冬、夏季较大, 且冬季更强;其振荡周期也随季节有所变化, 以2日波而言, 夏季更接近于2日, 而冬季则多在2日多至2日半区间振荡;更长周期的波的所谓夏季峰值的出现, 还有向夏初和夏末过渡的趋势。并发现振荡与太阳活动性呈负相关, 即低年的相对幅度要强于高年, 并且周期越长负相关越显著;同时显示出振荡的出现率及频率变化受到QBO的调制, QBO东风相期间比西风相更易于出现长周期振荡。这些结果说明赤道电离层明显受到中低层大气动力学变化的向上耦合的影响。      

行星际火箭和人造行星卫星的轨道设计问题

本文探讨行星际探测器和人造行星卫星的动力学模型,研究它们的运动轨道,给出飞行时间的近似式,并且从飞行时间和消耗能量二个方面对它们的轨道设计问题提出了一些新的看法.另外,文中还讨论了人造行星卫星的运动及其稳定条件.      

航天器开普勒轨道和非开普勒轨道的定义、分类及控制

给出了航天器开普勒轨道（KO）和非开普勒轨道（NKO）的来源、定义、分类和特点,阐明了KO和NKO之间的关系,介绍了相关的轨道控制与轨道确定、制导与导航的涵义.     

波箔型径向气体箔片轴承-转子系统升降速动态特性试验

为了研究以波箔型径向气体箔片轴承为支承的轴承-转子系统动力学特性,专门设计了波箔型径向气体箔片轴承试验台,质量为0.458kg的转子在该试验台上实现了超过80000r/min的运转速度.径向轴承为波箔型径向气体箔片轴承,止推轴承为多叶箔片轴承.试验结果表明:波箔型径向气体箔片轴承能够实现转子高速运行,在转子起飞后具有良好的运行稳定性,其轴承支承处振动位移幅值一直维持在20μm之内.由于驱动涡轮受到不平衡气流力的作用,转轴升速时的起飞转速要高于降速时的起飞转速.      

Biological assessment of Ariane 5 fairing

United Nations Space Treaties [10 and 11] require the preservation of planets and of Earth from contamination. All nations part to these Treaties shall take measures to prevent forward and backward contamination during missions exploring our solar system. As observer for the United Nations Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the COSPAR (Committee of Space Research) defines and handles the applicable policy and proposes recommendations to Space Agencies [COSPAR Planetary Protection Panel, Planetary Protection Policy accepted by the COSPAR Council and Bureau, 20 October 2002, amended 24 March 2005. http://www.cosparhq.org/scistr/PPPolicy.htm.]. The goal is to protect celestial bodies from terrestrial biological contamination as well as to protect the Earth environment from an eventual biohazard which may be carried by extraterrestrial samples or by space systems returning to Earth. According to the applicable specifications, including in our case the French requirements [CNES, System Safety. Planetary Protection Requirements. Normative referential CNES RNC-CNES-R-14, CNES Toulouse, ed. 4, 04 October 2002.], the prevention of forward contamination is accomplished by reducing the bioburden on space hardware to acceptable, prescribed levels, including in some instances system sterilization, assembling and integrating the appropriate spacecraft systems in cleanrooms of appropriate biological cleanliness, avoiding or controlling any recontamination risk, and limiting the probability impact of space systems. In order to prepare for future exploration missions [Debus, A., Planetary protection: organization requirements and needs for future planetary exploration missions, ESA conference publication SP-543, pp 103–114, 2003.], and in particular for missions to Mars requiring to control the spacecraft bioburden, a test program has been developed to evaluate the biological contamination under the fairing of the Ariane 5 launcher.