Novel mission concepts for polar coverage: An overview of recent developments and possible future applications |
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| Institution: | 1. Hydrological Sciences (Code 617), ESSIC/NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA;2. Water and Environment Management Research Centre, Department of Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1TR, United Kingdom;3. CIRA/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), College Park, MD, USA;4. Water Resources, Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, India;1. Department of Geography and Environmental Management, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada;2. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada;3. Air Quality Processes Research Section, Environment Canada, Toronto, ON, Canada;4. Boundary Water Issues, Environment Canada, Burlington, ON, Canada;5. National Hydrology Research Centre, Environment Canada, Saskatoon, SK, Canada |
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| Abstract: | The paper provides a survey of novel mission concepts for continuous, hemispheric polar observation and direct-link polar telecommunications. It is well known that these services cannot be provided by traditional platforms: geostationary satellites do not cover high-latitude regions, while low- and medium-orbit Sun-synchronous spacecraft only cover a narrow swath of the Earth at each passage. Concepts that are proposed in the literature are described, including the pole-sitter concept (in which a spacecraft is stationary above the pole), spacecraft in artificial equilibrium points in the Sun–Earth system and non-Keplerian polar Molniya orbits. Additionally, novel displaced eight-shaped orbits at Lagrangian points are presented. For many of these concepts, a continuous acceleration is required and propulsion systems include solar electric propulsion, solar sail and a hybridisation of the two. Advantages and drawbacks of each mission concept are assessed, and a comparison in terms of high-latitude coverage and distance, spacecraft mass, payload and lifetime is presented. Finally, the paper will describe a number of potential applications enabled by these concepts, focusing on polar Earth observation and telecommunications. |
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