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.     

CubeSail: A low cost CubeSat based solar sail demonstration mission

CubeSail is a nano-solar sail mission based on the 3U CubeSat standard, which is currently being designed and built at the Surrey Space Centre, University of Surrey. CubeSail will have a total mass of around 3 kg and will deploy a 5 × 5 m sail in low Earth orbit. The primary aim of the mission is to demonstrate the concept of solar sailing and end-of-life de-orbiting using the sail membrane as a drag-sail. The spacecraft will have a compact 3-axis stabilised attitude control system, which uses three magnetic torquers aligned with the spacecraft principle axis as well as a novel two-dimensional translation stage separating the spacecraft bus from the sail. CubeSail’s deployment mechanism consists of four novel booms and four-quadrant sail membranes. The proposed booms are made from tape-spring blades and will deploy the sail membrane from a 2U CubeSat standard structure. This paper presents a systems level overview of the CubeSat mission, focusing on the mission orbit and de-orbiting, in addition to the deployment, attitude control and the satellite bus.     

Dynamic orbit propagation in a gravitational field of an inhomogeneous attractive body using the Lagrange coefficients

The analytical methods have nearly been replaced by the numerical methods due to their higher accuracy and accessibility of computation facilities. The semi-analytical Lagrange method of orbit propagation using f and g series is a competitive alternative to the numerical integration technique if the Lagrange coefficients are derived in a full gravitational field. In this paper, a generalization of the Lagrange method of orbit propagation is introduced. In other words, we introduce a complete form of the Lagrange coefficients in all force fields developed in the spherical harmonics for example full gravitational field of the Earth. The method is numerically compared with the numerical integration technique. In order to show the numerical performance of the method, it has been implemented for orbit propagation of a GPS-like MEO and CHAMP-like LEO satellites. Discrepancy at centimeter level for CHAMP-like and sub-millimeter accuracy for GPS-like satellites shows relatively high performance of the developed algorithm. Compared to integration method, the proposed Lagrange method is nearly faster by a factor two for small Nmax and four for large Nmax.     

美国AEHF军事通信卫星推进系统及其在首发星上的应用

美国先进极高频（AEHF）项目将采用4颗运行于地球同步轨道（GEO）的AE—HF军事通信卫星。AEHF卫星的推进系统由远地点发动机、姿态控制发动机组和双模式霍尔电推进子系统组成。首发星AEHF-1是世界上首个采用霍尔电推进系统执行发射后轨道提升任夯的GEO卫星。AEHF-1卫星星箭分离后,远地点发动机未能正常工作,因此...     

一种提高卫星相对轨道运动全物理仿真逼真度的新方法

现有的卫星控制系统全物理仿真很少对卫星绕地球的轨道运动进行模拟,即使在卫星间相对轨道运动的全物理仿真中也没有考虑地心引力差和惯性力项的存在,因此其逼真度受到了影响.提出一种在共面圆轨道近距离卫星相对运动全物理仿真中引入地心引力差和惯性力项的方法,提高了物理仿真实验的逼真度.     

用于卫星入轨段测控的箭载天基测控中继系统

为满足卫星入轨段关键遥测参数下传和遥控指令上传的需求,设计了一种用于卫星入轨段测控的中继系统,方案主要基于火箭现成天基测控终端和卫星现成测控设备。介绍了中继系统的组成、工作原理和工作流程,研究了天基测控相控阵天线波束指向算法,设计了一种卫星遥测、遥控信号中继功能的地面测试系统。该箭载中继系统在快舟一号甲火箭上完成了两次飞行试验验证,两次飞行试验中继转发的卫星遥测数据完整,箭载卫星通信终端接收用户卫星遥测数据的载噪比大于20dB;地面测控中心接收天基遥测返向信号比特信噪比相对接收门限有3dB以上的余量。试验表明,该箭载天基测控中继系统通信链路余量充足,工作可靠,相比通过地面测控资源保障或卫星自身使用天基测控可节省一半以上成本。     

空间非合作目标未知构型重建质量评估方法

针对基于线阵激光雷达扫描重建获得的三维模型,因其构型未知,无法通过模型对比进行质量评估,本文着重研究未知构型的质量评估方法。首先,采用3σ优化的最小二乘法对空间非合作目标点云平面与直线进行拟合;其次,从点云密度、重建几何性质、表面完整度进行重建质量评估,再基于上述三种评估方法建立多因素综合评估数学模型,对三维重建结果进行满意度质量评估;最后通过仿真实验验证评估方法,获得多因素综合评估满意度为95.5889%,实验结果表明该评估方法合理且具有参考价值。该研究不仅能验证基于线阵激光雷达三维重建结果的精度,还为空间非合作目标未知构型质量评估提供一种新的研究思路。     

同步轨道遥感器热设计和热分析

为解决遥感器在同步轨道环境温度场分析中热传导与热辐射的综合处理问题,热传导模型温度计算采用控制容积方法建立有限差分方程;热辐射模型采用奥本海姆方法计算设备表面单元之间辐射换热;根据是否被遮挡,辐射换热中表面单元角系数的计算分别采用积分和数值方法。计算结果表明,采用上述方法进行温度场分析能够有效解决热传导模型与热辐射模型的耦合,求解精度较高,遥感器设备部件稳态分析温度分布和在轨瞬态分析温度曲线变化清楚,可作为进一步精密热控设计的依据。     

航天器近距编队轨道动力学模型及仿真

针对目前航天器近距编队长期飞行中存在的HCW模型精确度不够的问题,提出了利用平均轨道根数线性微分漂移率预测J_2摄动下航天器近距编队相对运动的方法,建立了一种新的航天器近距编队轨道动力学模型.仿真结果表明,解析模型计算得到的相对运动轨道和不考虑J_2摄动影响的相对运动轨道相比,解析模型运算时间很短,精度提高约50%(10个轨道周期之后),证明了模型的有效性和快速性,适合在线运行,同时给出了解析模型的适用范围.     

接触非线性仿真中接触刚度因子选取的方法研究

接触问题分析中,接触刚度的取值是难点也是重点.目前,对于接触刚度的取值,并没有成熟的方法.利用ANSYS有限元软件对弹性环式挤压油膜阻尼器的接触行为进行了分析,从理论上研究了其接触动力学、接触条件及接触参数,特别针对接触刚度因子的取值进行研究.列举不同接触刚度取值对应的有限元计算结果并分析结果的收敛性,提出了接触刚度因子的数值递推法.该方法也可以用来分析类似的接触问题的有限元计算.