A Geosynchronous Orbit Search Strategy

Since more than 10 years there is evidence that small-size space debris is accumulating in the geosynchronous orbit (GEO), probably as the result of breakups. Two break-ups have been reported in GEO. The 1978 break-up of an EKRAN 2 satellite, SSN 10365, was identified in 1992, and in 1992 a Titan 3C Transtage, SSN 3432, break-up produced at least twenty observable pieces. Subsequently several nations performed optical surveys of the GEO region in the form of independent observation campaigns. Such surveys suffer from the fact that the field of view of optical telescopes is small compared with the total area covered by the GEO ring. As a consequence only a small volume of the orbital element-magnitude-space is covered by each individual survey. Results from these surveys are thus affected by observational biases and therefore difficult to compare. This paper describes the development of a common search strategy to overcome these limitations. The strategy optimizes the sampling for objects in orbits similar to the orbits of the known GEO population but does not exclude the detection of objects with other orbital planes. A properly designed common search strategy clearly eases the comparison of results from different groups and the extrapolation from the sparse (biased) samples to the entire GEO environment.     

Tether Satellite System Collision Study

A study was performed to determine the probability of collision with resident space objects and untrackable debris for the tether component of the Tethered Satellite System (TSS) after it broke away from the Space Shuttle orbiter (mission STS-75) in February 1996. Both an analytical and a numerical approach were used in this study, and the results obtained with these two methods were found to be in good agreement. These results show that the deployed tether is expected to have been impacted by several particles 0.1mm or larger in size. The probability of collision with objects 10cm in size or larger was on the order of 10^–3 per month. Since the severed tether reentered within one month after deployment, the collision hazard to other objects while in orbit was small. The analytical methods used in this study are useful for tether collision evaluations in general.     

带充液腔的自旋卫星稳定性问题

本文应用Pfeiffer的思想讨论带轴对称充液腔的卫星系统自旋稳定性。本方法的基本思想为将轴对称腔内的液体旋度平均化,使之与空间位置无关,由此将液体的无限自由度问题离散化为有限自由度问题,从而用线性理论讨论系统的自旋稳定性。用这方法,本文讨论了带充液腔的非轴对称卫星系统、带充液腔的双自旋卫星系统的自旋稳定性,给出了它们的自旋稳定性判据。此外,本文还给出了一些带有不同形状腔体的卫星系统自旋稳定域图,为实际工程设计人员提供理论参考。     

远程导引可行飞行方案寻求算法研究

提出了一种寻求远程导引可行飞行方案的算法，能够满足远程导引对测控、日照、燃料和时间等各方面的要求；重点论述了Lambert一次变轨方案，给出了算法的具体步骤和主要模块的实现方法；最后给出了一个算例，说明算法是切实可行的。     

低轨航天器致空间等离子体尾流

建立起一个低轨道航天器引起的等离子体尾的二维计算机模式，结果表明：（１）尾流的宽度随表面负电位值的增加而变窄。（２）随离子马赫数增加尾流位垒变宽；（３）对正电位表面情况尾流近区有电子聚集，并且离子的放空更远。     

纯辐射换热航天器系统比缩热负载试验方法

首先讨论了纯辐射换热的航天器系统温度场在恒定热源情况下具有渐近稳定特性，然后据此提出了对该系统可采用比缩热负载进行热模拟试验的方法。     

泄漏检测技术在航天器中的应用

介绍了国内航天器应用的泄漏检测技术及国外先进的航天器泄漏检测技术和泄漏检测标准；分析了航天器泄漏检测技术的发展趋势。     

Phase Space Density Analysis of Energy Transport in the Earth’s Magnetotail

Two energetic events in the Earth’s magnetotail detected by Geotail are examined with detailed analysis of three-dimensional velocity phase space density. It is found that the occurrence of multiple ion components is high during these dynamic episodes. Different populations evolve independently of each other, suggesting particles from multiple activity sites contributing to the observed phase space density. The transport properties with consideration of multiple components are evaluated, with the result showing significant differences from those based on a single fluid approach. This comparison indicates that precise evaluation of the energy and magnetic flux transport of energetic events in the magnetotail requires resolving individual populations in the phase space density.     

高超声速无粘流场的推进计算

本文将文[1]中用于时间相关法计算的NND格式推广到定常超声速流动的空间推进计算,采用二步的预测、校正方法保证了推进方向的二阶精度,可以证明,这种二阶精度的NND格式具有TVD性质,是MacCormack二步显式格式的推广。本文首先将格式应用于二维平板上斜激波反射流场的推进计算,以检验格式捕捉激波的能力,同时研究了不同的通量分裂方法对格式捕捉激波能力的影响,得到了相当满意的结果。在此基础上,计算了航天飞机简化外形的身部超声速流场,给出了M_∞=10,α=0°,和M_∞=5,α=5°两种状态的部分结果,计算结果清楚地描绘了由于气流在机翼附近受到强烈压缩而产生的内嵌激波与外激波相交的复杂流场结构,与文[7]相比,流场结构更为清晰。     

Magnetosphere Imaging Instrument (MIMI) on the Cassini Mission to Saturn/Titan

The magnetospheric imaging instrument (MIMI) is a neutral and charged particle detection system on the Cassini orbiter spacecraft designed to perform both global imaging and in-situ measurements to study the overall configuration and dynamics of Saturn’s magnetosphere and its interactions with the solar wind, Saturn’s atmosphere, Titan, and the icy satellites. The processes responsible for Saturn’s aurora will be investigated; a search will be performed for substorms at Saturn; and the origins of magnetospheric hot plasmas will be determined. Further, the Jovian magnetosphere and Io torus will be imaged during Jupiter flyby. The investigative approach is twofold. (1) Perform remote sensing of the magnetospheric energetic (E > 7 keV) ion plasmas by detecting and imaging charge-exchange neutrals, created when magnetospheric ions capture electrons from ambient neutral gas. Such escaping neutrals were detected by the Voyager l spacecraft outside Saturn’s magnetosphere and can be used like photons to form images of the emitting regions, as has been demonstrated at Earth. (2) Determine through in-situ measurements the 3-D particle distribution functions including ion composition and charge states (E > 3 keV/e). The combination of in-situ measurements with global images, together with analysis and interpretation techniques that include direct “forward modeling’’ and deconvolution by tomography, is expected to yield a global assessment of magnetospheric structure and dynamics, including (a) magnetospheric ring currents and hot plasma populations, (b) magnetic field distortions, (c) electric field configuration, (d) particle injection boundaries associated with magnetic storms and substorms, and (e) the connection of the magnetosphere to ionospheric altitudes. Titan and its torus will stand out in energetic neutral images throughout the Cassini orbit, and thus serve as a continuous remote probe of ion flux variations near 20R _S (e.g., magnetopause crossings and substorm plasma injections). The Titan exosphere and its cometary interaction with magnetospheric plasmas will be imaged in detail on each flyby. The three principal sensors of MIMI consists of an ion and neutral camera (INCA), a charge–energy–mass-spectrometer (CHEMS) essentially identical to our instrument flown on the ISTP/Geotail spacecraft, and the low energy magnetospheric measurements system (LEMMS), an advanced design of one of our sensors flown on the Galileo spacecraft. The INCA head is a large geometry factor (G ∼ 2.4 cm² sr) foil time-of-flight (TOF) camera that separately registers the incident direction of either energetic neutral atoms (ENA) or ion species (≥5^∘ full width half maximum) over the range 7 keV/nuc < E < 3 MeV/nuc. CHEMS uses electrostatic deflection, TOF, and energy measurement to determine ion energy, charge state, mass, and 3-D anisotropy in the range 3 ≤ E ≤ 220 keV/e with good (∼0.05 cm² sr) sensitivity. LEMMS is a two-ended telescope that measures ions in the range 0.03 ≤ E ≤ 18 MeV and electrons 0.015 ≤ E≤ 0.884 MeV in the forward direction (G ∼ 0.02 cm² sr), while high energy electrons (0.1–5 MeV) and ions (1.6–160 MeV) are measured from the back direction (G ∼ 0.4 cm² sr). The latter are relevant to inner magnetosphere studies of diffusion processes and satellite microsignatures as well as cosmic ray albedo neutron decay (CRAND). Our analyses of Voyager energetic neutral particle and Lyman-α measurements show that INCA will provide statistically significant global magnetospheric images from a distance of ∼60 R _S every 2–3 h (every ∼10 min from ∼20 R _S). Moreover, during Titan flybys, INCA will provide images of the interaction of the Titan exosphere with the Saturn magnetosphere every 1.5 min. Time resolution for charged particle measurements can be < 0.1 s, which is more than adequate for microsignature studies. Data obtained during Venus-2 flyby and Earth swingby in June and August 1999, respectively, and Jupiter flyby in December 2000 to January 2001 show that the instrument is performing well, has made important and heretofore unobtainable measurements in interplanetary space at Jupiter, and will likely obtain high-quality data throughout each orbit of the Cassini mission at Saturn. Sample data from each of the three sensors during the August 18 Earth swingby are shown, including the first ENA image of part of the ring current obtained by an instrument specifically designed for this purpose. Similarily, measurements in cis-Jovian space include the first detailed charge state determination of Iogenic ions and several ENA images of that planet’s magnetosphere.This revised version was published online in July 2005 with a corrected cover date.