WorldWideScience

Sample records for polar orbiting spacecraft

  1. Chaos and its control in the pitch motion of an asymmetric magnetic spacecraft in polar elliptic orbit

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Inarrea, Manuel [Universidad de La Rioja, Area de Fisica Aplicada, 26006 Logrono (Spain)], E-mail: manuel.inarrea@unirioja.es

    2009-05-30

    We study the pitch attitude dynamics of an asymmetric magnetic spacecraft in a polar almost circular orbit under the influence of a gravity gradient torque. The spacecraft is perturbed by the small eccentricity of the elliptic orbit and by a small magnetic torque generated by the interaction between the Earth's magnetic field and the magnetic moment of the spacecraft. Under both perturbations, we show that the pitch motion exhibits heteroclinic chaotic behavior by means of the Melnikov method. Numerical methods applied to simulations of the pitch motion also confirm the chaotic character of the spacecraft attitude dynamics. Finally, a linear time-delay feedback method for controlling chaos is applied to the governing equations of the spacecraft pitch motion in order to remove the chaotic character of initially irregular attitude motions and transform them into periodic ones.

  2. Chaos and its control in the pitch motion of an asymmetric magnetic spacecraft in polar elliptic orbit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Inarrea, Manuel

    2009-01-01

    We study the pitch attitude dynamics of an asymmetric magnetic spacecraft in a polar almost circular orbit under the influence of a gravity gradient torque. The spacecraft is perturbed by the small eccentricity of the elliptic orbit and by a small magnetic torque generated by the interaction between the Earth's magnetic field and the magnetic moment of the spacecraft. Under both perturbations, we show that the pitch motion exhibits heteroclinic chaotic behavior by means of the Melnikov method. Numerical methods applied to simulations of the pitch motion also confirm the chaotic character of the spacecraft attitude dynamics. Finally, a linear time-delay feedback method for controlling chaos is applied to the governing equations of the spacecraft pitch motion in order to remove the chaotic character of initially irregular attitude motions and transform them into periodic ones.

  3. An Orbit Propagation Software for Mars Orbiting Spacecraft

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Young-Joo Song

    2004-12-01

    Full Text Available An orbit propagation software for the Mars orbiting spacecraft has been developed and verified in preparations for the future Korean Mars missions. Dynamic model for Mars orbiting spacecraft has been studied, and Mars centered coordinate systems are utilized to express spacecraft state vectors. Coordinate corrections to the Mars centered coordinate system have been made to adjust the effects caused by Mars precession and nutation. After spacecraft enters Sphere of Influence (SOI of the Mars, the spacecraft experiences various perturbation effects as it approaches to Mars. Every possible perturbation effect is considered during integrations of spacecraft state vectors. The Mars50c gravity field model and the Mars-GRAM 2001 model are used to compute perturbation effects due to Mars gravity field and Mars atmospheric drag, respectively. To compute exact locations of other planets, JPL's DE405 ephemerides are used. Phobos and Deimos's ephemeris are computed using analytical method because their informations are not released with DE405. Mars Global Surveyor's mapping orbital data are used to verify the developed propagator performances. After one Martian day propagation (12 orbital periods, the results show about maximum ±5 meter errors, in every position state components(radial, cross-track and along-track, when compared to these from the Astrogator propagation in the Satellite Tool Kit. This result shows high reliability of the developed software which can be used to design near Mars missions for Korea, in future.

  4. Jupiter's magnetosphere and aurorae observed by the Juno spacecraft during its first polar orbits

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Connerney, J. E. P.; Adriani, Alberto; Allegrini, F.

    2017-01-01

    The Juno spacecraft acquired direct observations of the jovian magnetosphere and auroral emissions from a vantage point above the poles. Juno's capture orbit spanned the jovian magnetosphere from bow shock to the planet, providing magnetic field, charged particle, and wave phenomena context...

  5. On the spacecraft attitude stabilization in the orbital frame

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antipov Kirill A.

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper deals with spacecraft in the circular near-Earth orbit. The spacecraft interacts with geomagnetic field by the moments of Lorentz and magnetic forces. The octupole approximation of the Earth’s magnetic field is accepted. The spacecraft electromagnetic parameters, namely the electrostatic charge moment of the first order and the eigen magnetic moment are the controlled quasiperiodic functions. The control algorithms for the spacecraft electromagnetic parameters, which allows to stabilize the spacecraft attitude position in the orbital frame are obtained. The stability of the spacecraft stabilized orientation is proved both analytically and by PC computations.

  6. Orbit Determination of Spacecraft in Earth-Moon L1 and L2 Libration Point Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woodard, Mark; Cosgrove, Daniel; Morinelli, Patrick; Marchese, Jeff; Owens, Brandon; Folta, David

    2011-01-01

    The ARTEMIS mission, part of the THEMIS extended mission, is the first to fly spacecraft in the Earth-Moon Lissajous regions. In 2009, two of the five THEMIS spacecraft were redeployed from Earth-centered orbits to arrive in Earth-Moon Lissajous orbits in late 2010. Starting in August 2010, the ARTEMIS P1 spacecraft executed numerous stationkeeping maneuvers, initially maintaining a lunar L2 Lissajous orbit before transitioning into a lunar L1 orbit. The ARTEMIS P2 spacecraft entered a L1 Lissajous orbit in October 2010. In April 2011, both ARTEMIS spacecraft will suspend Lissajous stationkeeping and will be maneuvered into lunar orbits. The success of the ARTEMIS mission has allowed the science team to gather unprecedented magnetospheric measurements in the lunar Lissajous regions. In order to effectively perform lunar Lissajous stationkeeping maneuvers, the ARTEMIS operations team has provided orbit determination solutions with typical accuracies on the order of 0.1 km in position and 0.1 cm/s in velocity. The ARTEMIS team utilizes the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS), using a batch least squares method, to process range and Doppler tracking measurements from the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN), Berkeley Ground Station (BGS), Merritt Island (MILA) station, and United Space Network (USN). The team has also investigated processing of the same tracking data measurements using the Orbit Determination Tool Kit (ODTK) software, which uses an extended Kalman filter and recursive smoother to estimate the orbit. The orbit determination results from each of these methods will be presented and we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages associated with using each method in the lunar Lissajous regions. Orbit determination accuracy is dependent on both the quality and quantity of tracking measurements, fidelity of the orbit force models, and the estimation techniques used. Prior to Lissajous operations, the team determined the appropriate quantity of tracking

  7. Secure communications with low-orbit spacecraft using quantum cryptography

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hughes, Richard J.; Buttler, William T.; Kwiat, Paul G.; Luther, Gabriel G.; Morgan, George L; Nordholt, Jane E.; Peterson, Charles G.; Simmons, Charles M.

    1999-01-01

    Apparatus and method for secure communication between an earth station and spacecraft. A laser outputs single pulses that are split into preceding bright pulses and delayed attenuated pulses, and polarized. A Pockels cell changes the polarization of the polarized delayed attenuated pulses according to a string of random numbers, a first polarization representing a "1," and a second polarization representing a "0." At the receiving station, a beamsplitter randomly directs the preceding bright pulses and the polarized delayed attenuated pulses onto longer and shorter paths, both terminating in a beamsplitter which directs the preceding bright pulses and a first portion of the polarized delayed attenuated pulses to a first detector, and a second portion of the polarized delayed attenuated pulses to a second detector to generate a key for secure communication between the earth station and the spacecraft.

  8. The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bloom, H.

    The tri-agency Integrated Program Office (IPO) is responsible for managing the development of the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS). NPOESS will replace the current military and civilian operational polar-orbiting ``weather'' satellites. The Northrop Grumman Space Technology - Raytheon team was competitively selected in 2002 as the Acquisition and Operations contractor team to develop, integrate, deploy, and operate NPOESS satellites to meet the tri-agency user requirements for NPOESS over the 10-year (2009-2018) operational life of the program. Beginning in 2009, NPOESS spacecraft will be launched into three orbital planes to provide significantly improved operational capabilities and benefits to satisfy critical civil and national security requirements for space-based, remotely sensed environmental data. With the development of NPOESS, we are evolving operational ``weather'' satellites into integrated environmental observing systems by expanding our capabilities to observe, assess, and predict the total Earth system - atmosphere, ocean, land, and the space environment. In recent years, the operational weather forecasting and climate science communities have levied more rigorous requirements on space-based observations of the Earth's system that have significantly increased demands on performance of the instruments, spacecraft, and ground systems required to deliver NPOESS data, products, and information to end users. The ``end-to-end'' system consists of: the spacecraft; instruments and sensors on the spacecraft; launch support capabilities; the command, control, communications, and data routing infrastructure; and data processing hardware and software. NPOESS will observe significantly more phenomena simultaneously from space than its operational predecessors. NPOESS is expected to deliver large volumes of more accurate measurements at higher spatial (horizontal and vertical) and temporal resolution at much higher data

  9. Spacecraft on-orbit deployment anomalies - What can be done?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Freeman, Michael T.

    1993-04-01

    Modern communications satellites rely heavily upon deployable appendage (i.e. solar arrays, communications antennas, etc.) to perform vital functions that enable the spacecraft to effectively conduct mission objectives. Communications and telemetry antennas provide the radiofrequency link between the spacecraft and the earth ground station, permitting data to be transmitted and received from the satellite. Solar arrays serve as the principle source of electrical energy to the satellite, and recharge internal batteries during operation. However, since satellites cannot carry backup systems, if a solar array fails to deploy, the mission is lost. This article examines the subject of on-orbit anomalies related to the deployment of spacecraft appendage, and possible causes of such failures. Topics discussed shall include mechanical launch loading, on-orbit thermal and solar concerns, reliability of spacecraft pyrotechnics, and practical limitations of ground-based deployment testing. Of particular significance, the article will feature an in-depth look at the lessons learned from the successful recovery of the Telesat Canada Anik-E2 satellite in 1991.

  10. Passive radiative cooling of a HTS coil for attitude orbit control in micro-spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inamori, Takaya; Ozaki, Naoya; Saisutjarit, Phongsatorn; Ohsaki, Hiroyuki

    2015-02-01

    This paper proposes a novel radiative cooling system for a high temperature superconducting (HTS) coil for an attitude orbit control system in nano- and micro-spacecraft missions. These days, nano-spacecraft (1-10 kg) and micro-spacecraft (10-100 kg) provide space access to a broader range of spacecraft developers and attract interest as space development applications. In planetary and high earth orbits, most previous standard-size spacecraft used thrusters for their attitude and orbit control, which are not available for nano- and micro-spacecraft missions because of the strict power consumption, space, and weight constraints. This paper considers orbit and attitude control methods that use a superconducting coil, which interacts with on-orbit space plasmas and creates a propulsion force. Because these spacecraft cannot use an active cooling system for the superconducting coil because of their mass and power consumption constraints, this paper proposes the utilization of a passive radiative cooling system, in which the superconducting coil is thermally connected to the 3 K cosmic background radiation of deep space, insulated from the heat generation using magnetic holders, and shielded from the sun. With this proposed cooling system, the HTS coil is cooled to 60 K in interplanetary orbits. Because the system does not use refrigerators for its cooling system, the spacecraft can achieve an HTS coil with low power consumption, small mass, and low cost.

  11. Generating Animated Displays of Spacecraft Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Candey, Robert M.; Chimiak, Reine A.; Harris, Bernard T.

    2005-01-01

    Tool for Interactive Plotting, Sonification, and 3D Orbit Display (TIPSOD) is a computer program for generating interactive, animated, four-dimensional (space and time) displays of spacecraft orbits. TIPSOD utilizes the programming interface of the Satellite Situation Center Web (SSCWeb) services to communicate with the SSC logic and database by use of the open protocols of the Internet. TIPSOD is implemented in Java 3D and effects an extension of the preexisting SSCWeb two-dimensional static graphical displays of orbits. Orbits can be displayed in any or all of the following seven reference systems: true-of-date (an inertial system), J2000 (another inertial system), geographic, geomagnetic, geocentric solar ecliptic, geocentric solar magnetospheric, and solar magnetic. In addition to orbits, TIPSOD computes and displays Sibeck's magnetopause and Fairfield's bow-shock surfaces. TIPSOD can be used by the scientific community as a means of projection or interpretation. It also has potential as an educational tool.

  12. Joint Polar Satellite System: the United States New Generation Civilian Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellite System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mandt, G.

    2017-12-01

    The Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) is the Nation's advanced series of polar-orbiting environmental satellites. JPSS represents significant technological and scientific advancements in observations used for severe weather prediction and environmental monitoring. The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP) is providing state-of-the art atmospheric, oceanographic, and environmental data, as the first of the JPSS satellites while the second in the series, J-1, is scheduled to launch in October 2017. The JPSS baseline consists of a suite of four instruments: an advanced microwave and infrared sounders which are critical for weather forecasting; a leading-edge visible and infrared imager critical to data sparse areas such as Alaska and needed for environmental assessments such as snow/ice cover, droughts, volcanic ash, forest fires and surface temperature; and an ozone sensor primarily used for global monitoring of ozone and input to weather and climate models. The same suite of instruments that are on JPSS-1 will be on JPSS-2, 3 and 4. The JPSS-2 instruments are well into their assembly and test phases and are scheduled to be completed in 2018. The JPSS-2 spacecraft critical design review (CDR) is scheduled for 2Q 2018 with the launch in 2021. The sensors for the JPSS-3 and 4 spacecraft have been approved to enter into their acquisition phases. JPSS partnership with the US National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) continues to provide a strong foundation for the program's success. JPSS also continues to maintain its important international relationships with European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). JPSS works closely with its user community through the Proving Ground and Risk Reduction (PGRR) Program to identify opportunities to maximize the operational application of current JPSS capabilities. The PGRR Program also helps identify and evaluate the use of JPSS

  13. Global optimum spacecraft orbit control subject to bounded thrust in presence of nonlinear and random disturbances in a low earth orbit

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tamer Mekky Ahmed Habib

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available The primary objective of this work is to develop an effective spacecraft orbit control algorithm suitable for spacecraft orbital maneuver and/or rendezvous. The actual governing equation of a spacecraft orbiting the earth is merely nonlinear. Disturbance forces resulting from aerodynamic drag, oblateness of the earth till the fourth order (i.e. J4, and random disturbances are modeled for the initial and target orbits. These disturbances increase the complexity of nonlinear governing equations. Global optimum solutions of the control algorithm parameters are determined throughout real coded genetic algorithms such that the steady state difference between the actual and desired trajectories is minimized. The resulting solutions are constrained to avoid spacecraft collision with the surface of the earth taking into account limited thrust budget.

  14. Spacecraft design project: Low Earth orbit communications satellite

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moroney, Dave; Lashbrook, Dave; Mckibben, Barry; Gardener, Nigel; Rivers, Thane; Nottingham, Greg; Golden, Bill; Barfield, Bill; Bruening, Joe; Wood, Dave

    1991-01-01

    This is the final product of the spacecraft design project completed to fulfill the academic requirements of the Spacecraft Design and Integration 2 course (AE-4871) taught at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. The Spacecraft Design and Integration 2 course is intended to provide students detailed design experience in selection and design of both satellite system and subsystem components, and their location and integration into a final spacecraft configuration. The design team pursued a design to support a Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) communications system (GLOBALSTAR) currently under development by the Loral Cellular Systems Corporation. Each of the 14 team members was assigned both primary and secondary duties in program management or system design. Hardware selection, spacecraft component design, analysis, and integration were accomplished within the constraints imposed by the 11 week academic schedule and the available design facilities.

  15. The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Spacecraft Power System Design and Orbital Performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dakermanji, George; Burns, Michael; Lee, Leonine; Lyons, John; Kim, David; Spitzer, Thomas; Kercheval, Bradford

    2016-01-01

    The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) spacecraft was jointly developed by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). It is a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) spacecraft launched on February 27, 2014. The spacecraft is in a circular 400 Km altitude, 65 degrees inclination nadir pointing orbit with a three year basic mission life. The solar array consists of two sun tracking wings with cable wraps. The panels are populated with triple junction cells of nominal 29.5% efficiency. One axis is canted by 52 degrees to provide power to the spacecraft at high beta angles. The power system is a Direct Energy Transfer (DET) system designed to support 1950 Watts orbit average power. The batteries use SONY 18650HC cells and consist of three 8s x 84p batteries operated in parallel as a single battery. The paper describes the power system design details, its performance to date and the lithium ion battery model that was developed for use in the energy balance analysis and is being used to predict the on-orbit health of the battery.

  16. Guidance and Navigation for Rendezvous and Proximity Operations with a Non-Cooperative Spacecraft at Geosynchronous Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barbee, Brent William; Carpenter, J. Russell; Heatwole, Scott; Markley, F. Landis; Moreau, Michael; Naasz, Bo J.; VanEepoel, John

    2010-01-01

    The feasibility and benefits of various spacecraft servicing concepts are currently being assessed, and all require that the servicer spacecraft perform rendezvous, proximity, and capture operations with the target spacecraft to be serviced. Many high-value spacecraft, which would be logical targets for servicing from an economic point of view, are located in geosynchronous orbit, a regime in which autonomous rendezvous and capture operations are not commonplace. Furthermore, existing GEO spacecraft were not designed to be serviced. Most do not have cooperative relative navigation sensors or docking features, and some servicing applications, such as de-orbiting of a non-functional spacecraft, entail rendezvous and capture with a spacecraft that may be non-functional or un-controlled. Several of these challenges have been explored via the design of a notional mission in which a nonfunctional satellite in geosynchronous orbit is captured by a servicer spacecraft and boosted into super-synchronous orbit for safe disposal. A strategy for autonomous rendezvous, proximity operations, and capture is developed, and the Orbit Determination Toolbox (ODTBX) is used to perform a relative navigation simulation to assess the feasibility of performing the rendezvous using a combination of angles-only and range measurements. Additionally, a method for designing efficient orbital rendezvous sequences for multiple target spacecraft is utilized to examine the capabilities of a servicer spacecraft to service multiple targets during the course of a single mission.

  17. A simple method to design non-collision relative orbits for close spacecraft formation flying

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jiang, Wei; Li, JunFeng; Jiang, FangHua; Bernelli-Zazzera, Franco

    2018-05-01

    A set of linearized relative motion equations of spacecraft flying on unperturbed elliptical orbits are specialized for particular cases, where the leader orbit is circular or equatorial. Based on these extended equations, we are able to analyze the relative motion regulation between a pair of spacecraft flying on arbitrary unperturbed orbits with the same semi-major axis in close formation. Given the initial orbital elements of the leader, this paper presents a simple way to design initial relative orbital elements of close spacecraft with the same semi-major axis, thus preventing collision under non-perturbed conditions. Considering the mean influence of J 2 perturbation, namely secular J 2 perturbation, we derive the mean derivatives of orbital element differences, and then expand them to first order. Thus the first order expansion of orbital element differences can be added to the relative motion equations for further analysis. For a pair of spacecraft that will never collide under non-perturbed situations, we present a simple method to determine whether a collision will occur when J 2 perturbation is considered. Examples are given to prove the validity of the extended relative motion equations and to illustrate how the methods presented can be used. The simple method for designing initial relative orbital elements proposed here could be helpful to the preliminary design of the relative orbital elements between spacecraft in a close formation, when collision avoidance is necessary.

  18. Medical Implications of Space Radiation Exposure Due to Low-Altitude Polar Orbits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chancellor, Jeffery C; Auñon-Chancellor, Serena M; Charles, John

    2018-01-01

    Space radiation research has progressed rapidly in recent years, but there remain large uncertainties in predicting and extrapolating biological responses to humans. Exposure to cosmic radiation and solar particle events (SPEs) may pose a critical health risk to future spaceflight crews and can have a serious impact on all biomedical aspects of space exploration. The relatively minimal shielding of the cancelled 1960s Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program's space vehicle and the high inclination polar orbits would have left the crew susceptible to high exposures of cosmic radiation and high dose-rate SPEs that are mostly unpredictable in frequency and intensity. In this study, we have modeled the nominal and off-nominal radiation environment that a MOL-like spacecraft vehicle would be exposed to during a 30-d mission using high performance, multicore computers. Projected doses from a historically large SPE (e.g., the August 1972 solar event) have been analyzed in the context of the MOL orbit profile, providing an opportunity to study its impact to crew health and subsequent contingencies. It is reasonable to presume that future commercial, government, and military spaceflight missions in low-Earth orbit (LEO) will have vehicles with similar shielding and orbital profiles. Studying the impact of cosmic radiation to the mission's operational integrity and the health of MOL crewmembers provides an excellent surrogate and case-study for future commercial and military spaceflight missions.Chancellor JC, Auñon-Chancellor SM, Charles J. Medical implications of space radiation exposure due to low-altitude polar orbits. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2018; 89(1):3-8.

  19. Searching sequences of resonant orbits between a spacecraft and Jupiter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Formiga, J K S; Prado, A F B A

    2013-01-01

    This research shows a study of the dynamical behavior of a spacecraft that performs a series of close approaches with the planet Jupiter. The main idea is to find a sequence of resonant orbits that allows the spacecraft to stay in the region of the space near the orbit of Jupiter around the Sun gaining energy from each passage by the planet. The dynamical model considers the existence of only two massive bodies in the systems, which are the Sun and Jupiter. They are assumed to be in circular orbits around their center of mass. Analytical equations are used to obtain the values of the parameters required to get this sequence of close approaches. Those equations are useful, because they show which orbits are physically possible when taking into account that the periapsis distances have to be above the surface of the Sun and that the closest approach distances during the passage by Jupiter have to be above its surface

  20. On-orbit supervisor for controlling spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vandervoort, Richard J.

    1992-07-01

    Spacecraft systems of the 1990's and beyond will be substantially more complex than their predecessors. They will have demanding performance requirements and will be expected to operate more autonomously. This underscores the need for innovative approaches to Fault Detection, Isolation and Recovery (FDIR). A hierarchical expert system is presented that provides on-orbit supervision using intelligent FDIR techniques. Each expert system in the hierarchy supervises the operation of a local set of spacecraft functions. Spacecraft operational goals flow top down while responses flow bottom up. The expert system supervisors have a fairly high degree of autonomy. Bureaucratic responsibilities are minimized to conserve bandwidth and maximize response time. Data for FDIR can be acquired local to an expert and from other experts. By using a blackboard architecture for each supervisor, the system provides a great degree of flexibility in implementing the problem solvers for each problem domain. In addition, it provides for a clear separation between facts and knowledge, leading to an efficient system capable of real time response.

  1. Proposed gravity-gradient dynamics experiments in lunar orbit using the RAE-B spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blanchard, D. L.; Walden, H.

    1973-01-01

    A series of seven gravity-gradient dynamics experiments is proposed utilizing the Radio Astronomy Explorer (RAE-B) spacecraft in lunar orbit. It is believed that none of the experiments will impair the spacecraft structure or adversely affect the continuation of the scientific mission of the satellite. The first experiment is designed to investigate the spacecraft dynamical behavior in the absence of libration damper action and inertia. It requires stable gravity-gradient capture of the spacecraft in lunar orbit with small amplitude attitude librations as a prerequisite. Four subsequent experiments involve partial retraction, ultimately followed by full redeployment, of one or two of the 230-meter booms forming the lunar-directed Vee-antenna. These boom length change operations will induce moderate amplitude angular librations of the spacecraft.

  2. Simulated Aging of Spacecraft External Materials on Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khatipov, S.

    Moscow State Engineering Physics Institute (MIFI), in cooperation with Air Force Research Laboratory's Satellite Assessment Center (SatAC), the European Office of Aerospace Research and Development (EOARD), and the International Science and Technology Center (ISTC), has developed a database describing the changes in optical properties of materials used on the external surfaces of spacecraft due to space environmental factors. The database includes data acquired from tests completed under contract with the ISTC and EOARD, as well as from previous Russian materials studies conducted within the last 30 years. The space environmental factors studied are for those found in Low Earth Orbits (LEO) and Geosynchronous orbits (GEO), including electron irradiation at 50, 100, and 200 keV, proton irradiation at 50, 150, 300, and 500 keV, and ultraviolet irradiation equivalent to 1 sun-year. The material characteristics investigated were solar absorption (aS), spectral reflectance (rl), solar reflectance (rS), emissivity (e), spectral transmission coefficient (Tl), solar transmittance (TS), optical density (D), relative optical density (D/x), Bi-directional Reflectance Distribution Function (BRDF), and change of appearance and color in the visible wavelengths. The materials tested in the project were thermal control coatings (paints), multilayer insulation (films), and solar cells. The ability to predict changes in optical properties of spacecraft materials is important to increase the fidelity of space observation tools, better understand observation of space objects, and increase the longevity of spacecraft. The end goal of our project is to build semi-empirical mathematical models to predict the long-term effects of space aging as a function of time and orbit.

  3. BepiColombo — The Next Step of Mercury Exploration with Two Orbiting Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benkhoff, J.

    2018-05-01

    BepiColombo is a joint project between ESA and JAXA. The mission consists of two orbiters — the Mercury Planetary Orbiter and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter. From dedicated orbits, the spacecraft will be studying the planet and its environment.

  4. On-Orbit 3-Dimensional Electrostatic Detumble for Generic Spacecraft Geometries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bennett, Trevor J.

    In recent years, there is a growing interest in active debris removal and on-orbit servicing of Earth orbiting assets. The growing need for such approaches is often exemplified by the Iridium-Kosmos collision in 2009 that generated thousands of debris fragments. There exists a variety of active debris removal and on-orbit servicing technologies in development. Conventional docking mechanisms and mechanical capture by actuated manipulators, exemplified by NASA's Restore-L mission, require slow target tumble rates or more aggressive circumnavigation rate matching. The tumble rate limitations can be overcome with flexible capture systems such nets, harpoons, or tethers yet these systems require complex deployment, towing, and/or interfacing strategies to avoid servicer and target damage. Alternatively, touchless methods overcome the tumble rate limitations by provide detumble control prior to a mechanical interface. This thesis explores electrostatic detumble technology to touchlessly reduce large target rotation rates of Geostationary satellites and debris. The technical challenges preceding flight implementation largely reside in the long-duration formation flying guidance, navigation, and control of a servicer spacecraft equipped with electrostatic charge transfer capability. Leveraging prior research into the electrostatic charging of spacecraft, electrostatic detumble control formulations are developed for both axisymmetric and generic target geometries. A novel relative position vector and associated relative orbit control approach is created to manage the long-duration proximity operations. Through detailed numerical simulations, the proposed detumble and relative motion control formulations demonstrate detumble of several thousand kilogram spacecraft tumbling at several degrees per second in only several days. The availability, either through modeling or sensing, of the relative attitude, relative position, and electrostatic potential are among key concerns

  5. Solar Array Disturbances to Spacecraft Pointing During the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Calhoun, Philip

    2010-01-01

    The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the first spacecraft to support NASA s return to the Moon, launched on June 18, 2009 from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard an Atlas V launch vehicle. It was initially inserted into a direct trans-lunar trajectory to the Moon. After a five day transit to the Moon, LRO was inserted into the Lunar orbit and successfully lowered to a low altitude elliptical polar orbit for spacecraft commissioning. Successful commissioning was completed in October 2009 when LRO was placed in its near circular mission orbit with an approximate altitude of 50km. LRO will spend at least one year orbiting the Moon, collecting lunar environment science and mapping data, utilizing a suite of seven instruments to enable future human exploration. The objective is to provide key science data necessary to facilitate human return to the Moon as well as identification of opportunities for future science missions. LRO's instrument suite will provide the high resolution imaging data with sub-meter accuracy, highly accurate lunar cartographic maps, mineralogy mapping, amongst other science data of interest. LRO employs a 3-axis stabilized attitude control system (ACS) whose primary control mode, the "Observing Mode", provides Lunar nadir, off-nadir, and inertial fine pointing for the science data collection and instrument calibration. This controller combines the capability of fine pointing with on-demand large angle full-sky attitude reorientation. It provides simplicity of spacecraft operation as well as additional flexibility for science data collection. A conventional suite of ACS components is employed in the Observing Mode to meet the pointing and control objectives. Actuation is provided by a set of four reaction wheels developed in-house at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). Attitude feedback is provided by a six state Kalman filter which utilizes two SELEX Galileo Star Trackers for attitude updates, and a single Honeywell Miniature

  6. NOAA Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) Radiometer Data

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite (POES) series offers the advantage of daily global coverage, by making nearly polar orbits 14 times per day...

  7. Gravity-gradient dynamics experiments performed in orbit utilizing the Radio Astronomy Explorer (RAE-1) spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walden, H.

    1973-01-01

    Six dynamic experiments were performed in earth orbit utilizing the RAE spacecraft in order to test the accuracy of the mathematical model of RAE dynamics. The spacecraft consisted of four flexible antenna booms, mounted on a rigid cylindrical spacecraft hub at center, for measuring radio emissions from extraterrestrial sources. Attitude control of the gravity stabilized spacecraft was tested by using damper clamping, single lower leading boom operations, and double lower boom operations. Results and conclusions of the in-orbit dynamic experiments proved the accuracy of the analytic techniques used to model RAE dynamical behavior.

  8. The SPQR experiment: detecting damage to orbiting spacecraft with ground-based telescopes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paolozzi, Antonio; Porfilio, Manfredi; Currie, Douglas G.; Dantowitz, Ronald F.

    2007-09-01

    The objective of the Specular Point-like Quick Reference (SPQR) experiment was to evaluate the possibility of improving the resolution of ground-based telescopic imaging of manned spacecraft in orbit. The concept was to reduce image distortions due to atmospheric turbulence by evaluating the Point Spread Function (PSF) of a point-like light reference and processing the spacecraft image accordingly. The target spacecraft was the International Space Station (ISS) and the point-like reference was provided by a laser beam emitted by the ground station and reflected back to the telescope by a Cube Corner Reflector (CCR) mounted on an ISS window. The ultimate objective of the experiment was to demonstrate that it is possible to image spacecraft in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) with a resolution of 20 cm, which would have probably been sufficient to detect the damage which caused the Columbia disaster. The experiment was successfully performed from March to May 2005. The paper provides an overview of the SPQR experiment.

  9. Investigating the auroral electrojets with low altitude polar orbiting satellites

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Moretto, T.; Olsen, Nils; Ritter, P.

    2002-01-01

    Three geomagnetic satellite missions currently provide high precision magnetic field measurements from low altitude polar orbiting spacecraft. We demonstrate how these data can be used to determine the intensity and location of the horizontal currents that flow in the ionosphere, predominantly...... to another event for which the combined measurements of the three satellites provide a comprehensive view of the current systems. The analysis hereof reveals some surprising results concerning the connection between solar wind driver and the resulting ionospheric currents. Specifically, preconditioning.......8-0.9) is observed between the amplitudes of the derived currents and the commonly used auroral electro-jet indices based on magnetic measurements at ground. This points to the potential of defining an auroral activity index based on the satellite observations, which could be useful for space weather monitoring...

  10. Coordinated polar spacecraft, geosynchronous spacecraft, and ground-based observations of magnetopause processes and their coupling to the ionosphere

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    G. Le

    2004-12-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we present in-situ observations of processes occurring at the magnetopause and vicinity, including surface waves, oscillatory magnetospheric field lines, and flux transfer events, and coordinated observations at geosynchronous orbit by the GOES spacecraft, and on the ground by CANOPUS and 210° Magnetic Meridian (210MM magnetometer arrays. On 7 February 2002, during a high-speed solar wind stream, the Polar spacecraft was skimming the magnetopause in a post-noon meridian plane for ~3h. During this interval, it made two short excursions and a few partial crossings into the magnetosheath and observed quasi-periodic cold ion bursts in the region adjacent to the magnetopause current layer. The multiple magnetopause crossings, as well as the velocity of the cold ion bursts, indicate that the magnetopause was oscillating with an ~6-min period. Simultaneous observations of Pc5 waves at geosynchronous orbit by the GOES spacecraft and on the ground by the CANOPUS magnetometer array reveal that these magnetospheric pulsations were forced oscillations of magnetic field lines directly driven by the magnetopause oscillations. The magnetospheric pulsations occurred only in a limited longitudinal region in the post-noon dayside sector, and were not a global phenomenon, as one would expect for global field line resonance. Thus, the magnetopause oscillations at the source were also limited to a localized region spanning ~4h in local time. These observations suggest that it is unlikely that the Kelvin-Helmholz instability and/or fluctuations in the solar wind dynamic pressure were the direct driving mechanisms for the observed boundary oscillations. Instead, the likely mechanism for the localized boundary oscillations was pulsed reconnection at the magnetopause occurring along the X-line extending over the same 4-h region. The Pc5 band pressure fluctuations commonly seen in high-speed solar wind streams may modulate the reconnection rate as an

  11. Particle-in-Cell Simulation Study on the Floating Potential of Spacecraft in the Low Earth Orbit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang Daotan; Yang Shengsheng; Zheng Kuohai; Qin Xiaogang; Li Detian; Liu Qing; Zhao Chengxuan; Du Shanshan

    2015-01-01

    In order to further understand the characteristics of the floating potential of low earth orbit spacecraft, the effects of the electron current collection area, background electron temperature, photocurrent emission, spacecraft wake, and the shape of spacecraft on spacecraft floating potential were studied here by particle-in-cell simulation in the low earth orbit. The simulation results show that the electron current collection area and background electron temperature impact on the floating potential by changing the electron current collection of spacecraft. By increasing the electron current collection area or background electron temperature, the spacecraft will float at a lower electric potential with respect to the surrounding plasma. However, the spacecraft wake affects the floating potential by increasing the ion current collected by spacecraft. The emission of the photocurrent from the spacecraft surface, which compensates for the electrons collected from background plasma, causes the floating potential to increase. The shape of the spacecraft is also an important factor influencing the floating potential. (paper)

  12. Combined spacecraft orbit and attitude control through extended Kalman filtering of magnetometer, gyro, and GPS measurements

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tamer Mekky Ahmed Habib

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available The main goal of this research is to establish spacecraft orbit and attitude control algorithms based on extended Kalman filter which provides estimates of spacecraft orbital and attitude states. The control and estimation algorithms must be capable of dealing with the spacecraft conditions during the detumbling and attitude acquisition modes of operation. These conditions are characterized by nonlinearities represented by large initial attitude angles, large initial angular velocities, large initial attitude estimation error, and large initial position estimation error. All of the developed estimation and control algorithms are suitable for application to the next Egyptian scientific satellite, EGYPTSAT-2. The parameters of the case-study spacecraft are similar but not identical to the former Egyptian satellite EGYPTSAT-1. This is done because the parameters of EGYPTSAT-2 satellite have not been consolidated yet. The sensors utilized are gyro, magnetometer, and GPS. Gyro and magnetometer are utilized to provide measurements for the estimates of spacecraft attitude state vector where as magnetometer and GPS are utilized to provide measurements for the estimates of spacecraft orbital state vector.

  13. Contingency Trajectory Design for a Lunar Orbit Insertion Maneuver Failure by the LADEE Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Genova, A. L.

    2014-01-01

    This paper presents results from a contingency trajectory analysis performed for the Lunar Atmosphere & Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) mission in the event of a missed lunar-orbit insertion (LOI) maneuver by the LADEE spacecraft. The effects of varying solar perturbations in the vicinity of the weak stability boundary (WSB) in the Sun-Earth system on the trajectory design are analyzed and discussed. It is shown that geocentric recovery trajectory options existed for the LADEE spacecraft, depending on the spacecraft's recovery time to perform an Earth escape-prevention maneuver after the hypothetical LOI maneuver failure and subsequent path traveled through the Sun-Earth WSB. If Earth-escape occurred, a heliocentric recovery option existed, but with reduced science capacapability for the spacecraft in an eccentric, not circular near-equatorial retrograde lunar orbit.

  14. Relativity mission with two counter-orbiting polar satellites

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van Patten, R.A.; Everitt, C.W.F.

    1975-01-01

    In 1918, J. Lense and H. Thirring calculated that a moon in orbit around a massive rotating planet would experience a nodal dragging effect due to general relativity. An experiment to measure this effect with two counter-orbiting drag-free satellites in polar earth orbit is described. For a 2 1 / 2 year experiment, the measurement accuracy should approach 1 percent. In addition to precision tracking data from existing ground stations, satellite-to-satellite Doppler ranging data are taken at points of passing near the poles. New geophysical information on both earth harmonics and tidal effects is inherent in the polar ranging data. (auth)

  15. METRIC: A Dedicated Earth-Orbiting Spacecraft for Investigating Gravitational Physics and the Space Environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roberto Peron

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available A dedicated mission in low Earth orbit is proposed to test predictions of gravitational interaction theories and to directly measure the atmospheric density in a relevant altitude range, as well as to provide a metrological platform able to tie different space geodesy techniques. The concept foresees a small spacecraft to be placed in a dawn-dusk eccentric orbit between 450 and 1200 km of altitude. The spacecraft will be tracked from the ground with high precision, and a three-axis accelerometer package on-board will measure the non-gravitational accelerations acting on its surface. Estimates of parameters related to fundamental physics and geophysics should be obtained by a precise orbit determination, while the accelerometer data will be instrumental in constraining the atmospheric density. Along with the mission scientific objectives, a conceptual configuration is described together with an analysis of the dynamical environment experienced by the spacecraft and the accelerometer.

  16. ADRC for spacecraft attitude and position synchronization in libration point orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Chen; Yuan, Jianping; Zhao, Yakun

    2018-04-01

    This paper addresses the problem of spacecraft attitude and position synchronization in libration point orbits between a leader and a follower. Using dual quaternion, the dimensionless relative coupled dynamical model is derived considering computation efficiency and accuracy. Then a model-independent dimensionless cascade pose-feedback active disturbance rejection controller is designed to spacecraft attitude and position tracking control problems considering parameter uncertainties and external disturbances. Numerical simulations for the final approach phase in spacecraft rendezvous and docking and formation flying are done, and the results show high-precision tracking errors and satisfactory convergent rates under bounded control torque and force which validate the proposed approach.

  17. Model predictive control for spacecraft rendezvous in elliptical orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Peng; Zhu, Zheng H.

    2018-05-01

    This paper studies the control of spacecraft rendezvous with attitude stable or spinning targets in an elliptical orbit. The linearized Tschauner-Hempel equation is used to describe the motion of spacecraft and the problem is formulated by model predictive control. The control objective is to maximize control accuracy and smoothness simultaneously to avoid unexpected change or overshoot of trajectory for safe rendezvous. It is achieved by minimizing the weighted summations of control errors and increments. The effects of two sets of horizons (control and predictive horizons) in the model predictive control are examined in terms of fuel consumption, rendezvous time and computational effort. The numerical results show the proposed control strategy is effective.

  18. Interrogation of orbital structure by elliptically polarized intense femtosecond laser pulses

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abu-samha, M.; Madsen, L. B.

    2011-01-01

    We solve the three-dimensional time-dependent Schroedinger equation and present investigations of the imprint of the orbital angular node in photoelectron momentum distributions of an aligned atomic p-type orbital following ionization by an intense elliptically polarized laser pulse of femtosecond duration. We investigate the role of light ellipticity and the alignment angle of the major polarization axis of the external field relative to the probed orbital by studying radial and angular momentum distributions, the latter at a fixed narrow interval of final momenta close to the peak of the photoelectron momentum distribution. In general only the angular distributions carry a clear signature of the orbital symmetry. Our study shows that circular polarization gives the most clear imprints of orbital nodes. These findings are insensitive to pulse duration.

  19. Effects of the Eccentricity of a Perturbing Third Body on the Orbital Correction Maneuvers of a Spacecraft

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. C. Domingos

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The fuel consumption required by the orbital maneuvers when correcting perturbations on the orbit of a spacecraft due to a perturbing body was estimated. The main goals are the measurement of the influence of the eccentricity of the perturbing body on the fuel consumption required by the station keeping maneuvers and the validation of the averaged methods when applied to the problem of predicting orbital maneuvers. To study the evolution of the orbits, the restricted elliptic three-body problem and the single- and double-averaged models are used. Maneuvers are made by using impulsive and low thrust maneuvers. The results indicated that the averaged models are good to make predictions for the orbital maneuvers when the spacecraft is in a high inclined orbit. The eccentricity of the perturbing body plays an important role in increasing the effects of the perturbation and the fuel consumption required for the station keeping maneuvers. It is shown that the use of more frequent maneuvers decreases the annual cost of the station keeping to correct the orbit of a spacecraft. An example of an eccentric planetary system of importance to apply the present study is the dwarf planet Haumea and its moons, one of them in an eccentric orbit.

  20. Orbit Correction for the Newly Developed Polarization-Switching Undulator

    Science.gov (United States)

    Obina, Takashi; Honda, Tohru; Shioya, Tatsuro; Kobayashi, Yukinori; Tsuchiya, Kimichika; Yamamoto, Shigeru

    2007-01-01

    A new scheme of undulator magnet arrangements has been proposed and developed as a polarization-switching radiation source, and its test-stand was installed in the 2.5-GeV Photon Factory storage ring (PF ring) in order to investigate the effects on the beam orbit. The closed orbit distortion (COD) over 200 μm was produced in a vertical direction when we switched the polarization of the radiation from the test-stand. In a horizontal direction, the COD was less than 50μm. The results agreed well with the predictions from the magnetic-field measurement on the bench. In order to suppress the CODs and realize a stable operation of the ring with the polarization-switching, we developed an orbit correction system which consists of an encoder to detect motion of magnets, a pair of beam position monitors (BPMs), signal processing parts, and a pair of steering magnets. We succeeded in suppressing the CODs to the level below 3μm using the system even when we switch the polarization at a maximum frequency of 0.8 Hz.

  1. In-orbit evaluation of the control system/structural mode interactions of the OSO-8 spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slafer, L. I.

    1979-01-01

    The Orbiting Solar Observatory-8 experienced severe structural mode/control loop interaction problems during the spacecraft development. Extensive analytical studies, using the hybrid coordinate modeling approach, and comprehensive ground testing were carried out in order to achieve the system's precision pointing performance requirements. A recent series of flight tests were conducted with the spacecraft in which a wide bandwidth, high resolution telemetry system was utilized to evaluate the on-orbit flexible dynamics characteristics of the vehicle along with the control system performance. The paper describes the results of these tests, reviewing the basic design problem, analytical approach taken, ground test philosophy, and on-orbit testing. Data from the tests was used to determine the primary mode frequency, damping, and servo coupling dynamics for the on-orbit condition. Additionally, the test results have verified analytically predicted differences between the on-orbit and ground test environments, and have led to a validation of both the analytical modeling and servo design techniques used during the development of the control system.

  2. On-Orbit Assembly of a Universally Interlocking Modular Spacecraft (7224-110), Phase I

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Physical Sciences Inc. and Advanced Solutions, Inc. propose a novel approach for on-orbit assembly of a modular spacecraft using a unique universal, intelligent,...

  3. Laboratory investigations: Low Earth orbit environment chemistry with spacecraft surfaces

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cross, Jon B.

    1990-01-01

    Long-term space operations that require exposure of material to the low earth orbit (LEO) environment must take into account the effects of this highly oxidative atmosphere on material properties and the possible contamination of the spacecraft surroundings. Ground-based laboratory experiments at Los Alamos using a newly developed hyperthermal atomic oxygen (AO) source have shown that not only are hydrocarbon based materials effected but that inorganic materials such as MoS2 are also oxidized and that thin protective coatings such as Al2O3 can be breached, producing oxidation of the underlying substrate material. Gas-phase reaction products, such as SO2 from oxidation of MoS2 and CO and CO2 from hydrocarbon materials, have been detected and have consequences in terms of spacecraft contamination. Energy loss through gas-surface collisions causing spacecraft drag has been measured for a few select surfaces and has been found to be highly dependent on the surface reactivity.

  4. Searching Less Perturbed Circular Orbits for a Spacecraft Travelling around Europa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. P. S. Carvalho

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Space missions to visit the natural satellite of Jupiter, Europa, constitute an important topic in space activities today, because missions to this moon are under study now. Several considerations have to be made for these missions. The present paper searches for less perturbed circular orbits around Europa. This search is made based on the total effects of the perturbing forces over the time, evaluated by the integral of those forces over the time. This value depends on the dynamical model and on the orbit of the spacecraft. The perturbing forces considered are the third-body perturbation that comes from Jupiter and the J2, J3, and C22 terms of the gravitational potential of Europa. Several numerical studies are performed and the results show the locations of the less perturbed orbits. Using those results, it is possible to find near-circular frozen orbits with smaller amplitudes of variations of the orbital elements.

  5. LO2/LH2 propulsion for outer planet orbiter spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garrison, P. W.; Sigurdson, K. B.

    1983-01-01

    Galileo class orbiter missions (750-1500 kg) to the outer planets require a large postinjection delta-V for improved propulsion performance. The present investigation shows that a pump-fed low thrust LO2/LH2 propulsion system can provide a significantly larger net on-orbit mass for a given delta-V than a state-of-the-art earth storable, N2O4/monomethylhydrazine pressure-fed propulsion system. A description is given of a conceptual design for a LO2/LH2 pump-fed propulsion system developed for a Galileo class mission to the outer planets. Attention is given to spacecraft configuration, details regarding the propulsion system, the thermal control of the cryogenic propellants, and aspects of mission performance.

  6. A Small Spacecraft Swarm Deployment and Stationkeeping Strategy for Sun-Earth L1 Halo Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Renea Conn, Tracie; Bookbinder, Jay

    2018-01-01

    Spacecraft orbits about the Sun-Earth librarian point L1 have been of interest since the 1950s. An L1 halo orbit was first achieved with the International Sun-Earth Explorer-3 (ISEE-3) mission, and similar orbits around Sun-Earth L1 were achieved in the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE), Genesis, and Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) missions. With recent advancements in CubeSat technology, we envision that it will soon be feasible to deploy CubeSats at L1. As opposed to these prior missions where one large satellite orbited alone, a swarm of CubeSats at L1 would enable novel science data return, providing a topology for intersatellite measurements of heliophysics phenomena both spatially and temporally, at varying spatial scales.The purpose of this iPoster is to present a flight dynamics strategy for a swarm of numerous CubeSats orbiting Sun-Earth L1. The presented method is a coupled, two-part solution. First, we present a deployment strategy for the CubeSats that is optimized to produce prescribed, time-varying intersatellite baselines for the purposes of collecting magnetometer data as well as radiometric measurements from cross-links. Second, we employ a loose control strategy that was successfully applied to SOHO and ACE for minimized stationkeeping propellant expenditure. We emphasize that the presented solution is practical within the current state-of-the-art and heritage CubeSat technology, citing capabilities of CubeSat designs that will launch on the upcoming Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) to lunar orbits and beyond. Within this iPoster, we present animations of the simulated deployment strategy and resulting spacecraft trajectories. Mission design parameters such as total Δv required for long-term station keeping and minimum/maximum/mean spacecraft separation distances are also presented.

  7. Early Assessment of VIIRS On-Orbit Calibration and Support Activities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiong, Xiaoxiong; Chiang, Kwofu; McIntire, Jeffrey; Oudrari, Hassan; Wu, Aisheng; Schwaller, Mathew; Butler, James

    2012-01-01

    The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP) satellite, formally the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Preparatory Project (NPP), provides a bridge between current and future low-Earth orbiting weather and environmental observation satellite systems. The NASA s NPP VIIRS Characterization Support Team (VCST) is designed to assess the long term geometric and radiometric performance of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument onboard the S-NPP spacecraft and to support NPP Science Team Principal Investigators (PI) for their independent evaluation of VIIRS Environmental Data Records (EDRs). This paper provides an overview of Suomi NPP VIIRS on-orbit calibration activities and examples of sensor initial on-orbit performance. It focuses on the radiometric calibration support activities and capabilities provided by the NASA VCST.

  8. Comparison of technologies for deorbiting spacecraft from low-earth-orbit at end of mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sánchez-Arriaga, G.; Sanmartín, J. R.; Lorenzini, E. C.

    2017-09-01

    An analytical comparison of four technologies for deorbiting spacecraft from Low-Earth-Orbit at end of mission is presented. Basic formulas based on simple physical models of key figures of merit for each device are found. Active devices - rockets and electrical thrusters - and passive technologies - drag augmentation devices and electrodynamic tethers - are considered. A basic figure of merit is the deorbit device-to-spacecraft mass ratio, which is, in general, a function of environmental variables, technology development parameters and deorbit time. For typical state-of-the-art values, equal deorbit time, middle inclination and initial altitude of 850 km, the analysis indicates that tethers are about one and two orders of magnitude lighter than active technologies and drag augmentation devices, respectively; a tether needs a few percent mass-ratio for a deorbit time of a couple of weeks. For high inclination, the performance drop of the tether system is moderate: mass ratio and deorbit time increase by factors of 2 and 4, respectively. Besides collision risk with other spacecraft and system mass considerations, such as main driving factors for deorbit space technologies, the analysis addresses other important constraints, like deorbit time, system scalability, manoeuver capability, reliability, simplicity, attitude control requirement, and re-entry and multi-mission capability (deorbit and re-boost) issues. The requirements and constraints are used to make a critical assessment of the four technologies as functions of spacecraft mass and initial orbit (altitude and inclination). Emphasis is placed on electrodynamic tethers, including the latest advances attained in the FP7/Space project BETs. The superiority of tape tethers as compared to round and multi-line tethers in terms of deorbit mission performance is highlighted, as well as the importance of an optimal geometry selection, i.e. tape length, width, and thickness, as function of spacecraft mass and initial

  9. Towards a standardized grasping and refuelling on-orbit servicing for geo spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Medina, Alberto; Tomassini, Angelo; Suatoni, Matteo; Avilés, Marcos; Solway, Nick; Coxhill, Ian; Paraskevas, Iosif S.; Rekleitis, Georgios; Papadopoulos, Evangelos; Krenn, Rainer; Brito, André; Sabbatinelli, Beatrice; Wollenhaupt, Birk; Vidal, Christian; Aziz, Sarmad; Visentin, Gianfranco

    2017-05-01

    Exploitation of space must benefit from the latest advances in robotics. On-orbit servicing is a clear candidate for the application of autonomous rendezvous and docking mechanisms. However, during the last three decades most of the trials took place combining extravehicular activities (EVAs) with telemanipulated robotic arms. The European Space Agency (ESA) considers that grasping and refuelling are promising near-mid-term capabilities that could be performed by servicing spacecraft. Minimal add-ons on spacecraft to enhance their serviceability may protect them for a changing future in which satellite servicing may become mainstream. ESA aims to conceive and promote standard refuelling provisions that can be installed in present and future European commercial geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite platforms and scientific spacecraft. For this purpose ESA has started the ASSIST activity addressing the analysis, design and validation of internal provisions (such as modifications to fuel, gas, electrical and data architecture to allow servicing) and external provisions (such as integrated berthing fixtures with peripheral electrical, gas, liquid connectors, leak check systems and corresponding optical and radio markers for cooperative rendezvous and docking). This refuelling approach is being agreed with European industry (OHB, Thales Alenia Space) and expected to be consolidated with European commercial operators as a first step to become an international standard; this approach is also being considered for on-orbit servicing spacecraft, such as the SpaceTug, by Airbus DS. This paper describes in detail the operational means, structure, geometry and accommodation of the system. Internal and external provisions will be designed with the minimum possible impact on the current architecture of GEO satellites without introducing additional risks in the development and commissioning of the satellite. End-effector and berthing fixtures are being designed in the range of few

  10. SAMSI: An orbiting spatial interferometer for micro-arc second astronomical observations. [Spacecraft Array for Michelson Spatial Interferometry (SAMSI)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stachnik, R. V.; Gezari, D. Y.

    1985-01-01

    The concept and performance of (SAMSI) Spacecraft Array for Michelson Spatial Interferometry, an orbiting spatial interferometer comprised of three free-flying spacecraft, two collector telescopes and a central mixing station are described. In the one-dimensional interferometry mode orbits exist which provide natural scanning of the baseline. These orbits place extremely small demands on thrusters and fuel consumption. Resolution of 0.00001 arcsecond and magnitude limits of mv = 15 to 20 are achievable in a single orbit. In the imaging mode, SAMSI could synthesize images equivalent to those produced by equal diameter filled apertures in space, making use of the fuel resupply capability of a space station. Simulations indicate that image reconstruction can be performed with milliarcsecond resolution to a visual magnitude 12 in 12 hr of spiral scanning integration time.

  11. High-precision relative position and attitude measurement for on-orbit maintenance of spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Bing; Chen, Feng; Li, Dongdong; Wang, Ying

    2018-02-01

    In order to realize long-term on-orbit running of satellites, space stations, etc spacecrafts, in addition to the long life design of devices, The life of the spacecraft can also be extended by the on-orbit servicing and maintenance. Therefore, it is necessary to keep precise and detailed maintenance of key components. In this paper, a high-precision relative position and attitude measurement method used in the maintenance of key components is given. This method mainly considers the design of the passive cooperative marker, light-emitting device and high resolution camera in the presence of spatial stray light and noise. By using a series of algorithms, such as background elimination, feature extraction, position and attitude calculation, and so on, the high precision relative pose parameters as the input to the control system between key operation parts and maintenance equipment are obtained. The simulation results show that the algorithm is accurate and effective, satisfying the requirements of the precision operation technique.

  12. Time-dependent polar distribution of outgassing from a spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scialdone, J. J.

    1974-01-01

    A technique has been developed to obtain a characterization of the self-generated environment of a spacecraft and its variation with time, angular position, and distance. The density, pressure, outgassing flux, total weight loss, and other important parameters were obtained from data provided by two mass measuring crystal microbalances, mounted back to back, at distance of 1 m from the spacecraft equivalent surface. A major outgassing source existed at an angular position of 300 deg to 340 deg, near the rocket motor, while the weakest source was at the antennas. The strongest source appeared to be caused by a material diffusion process which produced a directional density at 1 m distance of about 1.6 x 10 to the 11th power molecules/cu cm after 1 hr in vacuum and decayed to 1.6 x 10 to the 9th power molecules/cu cm after 200 hr. The total average outgassing flux at the same distance and during the same time span changed from 1.2 x 10 to the minus 7th power to 1.4 x to the minus 10th power g/sq cm/s. These values are three times as large at the spacecraft surface. Total weight loss was 537 g after 10 hr and about 833 g after 200 hr. Self-contamination of the spacecraft was equivalent to that in orbit at about 300-km altitude.

  13. Lesions to polar/orbital prefrontal cortex selectively impair reasoning about emotional material.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goel, Vinod; Lam, Elaine; Smith, Kathleen W; Goel, Amit; Raymont, Vanessa; Krueger, Frank; Grafman, Jordan

    2017-05-01

    While it is widely accepted that lesions to orbital prefrontal cortex lead to emotion related disruptions and poor decision-making, there is very little patient data on this issue involving actual logical reasoning tasks. We tested patients with circumscribed, focal lesions largely confined to polar/orbital prefrontal cortex (BA 10 & 11) (N=17) on logical reasoning tasks involving neutral and emotional content, and compared their performance to that of an age and education-matched normal control group (N=22) and a posterior lesion control group (N=24). Our results revealed a significant group by content interaction driven by a selective impairment in the polar/orbital prefrontal cortex group compared to healthy normal controls and to the parietal patient group, in the emotional content reasoning trials. Subsequent analyses of congruent and incongruent reasoning trials indicated that this impairment was driven by the poor performance of patients with polar/orbital lesions in the incongruent trials. We conclude that the polar/orbital prefrontal cortex plays a critical role in filtering emotionally charged content from the material before it is passed on to the reasoning system in lateral/dorsal regions of prefrontal cortex. Where unfiltered content is passed to the reasoning engine, either as a result of pathology (as in the case of our patients) or as a result of individual differences, reasoning performance suffers. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Satellite orbits in Levi-Civita space

    Science.gov (United States)

    Humi, Mayer

    2018-03-01

    In this paper we consider satellite orbits in central force field with quadratic drag using two formalisms. The first using polar coordinates in which the satellite angular momentum plays a dominant role. The second is in Levi-Civita coordinates in which the energy plays a central role. We then merge these two formalisms by introducing polar coordinates in Levi-Civita space and derive a new equation for satellite orbits which unifies these two paradigms. In this equation energy and angular momentum appear on equal footing and thus characterize the orbit by its two invariants. Using this formalism we show that equatorial orbits around oblate spheroids can be expressed analytically in terms of Elliptic functions. In the second part of the paper we derive in Levi-Civita coordinates a linearized equation for the relative motion of two spacecrafts whose trajectories are in the same plane. We carry out also a numerical verification of these equations.

  15. A computer graphics system for visualizing spacecraft in orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eyles, Don E.

    1989-01-01

    To carry out unanticipated operations with resources already in space is part of the rationale for a permanently manned space station in Earth orbit. The astronauts aboard a space station will require an on-board, spatial display tool to assist the planning and rehearsal of upcoming operations. Such a tool can also help astronauts to monitor and control such operations as they occur, especially in cases where first-hand visibility is not possible. A computer graphics visualization system designed for such an application and currently implemented as part of a ground-based simulation is described. The visualization system presents to the user the spatial information available in the spacecraft's computers by drawing a dynamic picture containing the planet Earth, the Sun, a star field, and up to two spacecraft. The point of view within the picture can be controlled by the user to obtain a number of specific visualization functions. The elements of the display, the methods used to control the display's point of view, and some of the ways in which the system can be used are described.

  16. Semi-Autonomous Telerobotic Manipulation for On-Orbit Spacecraft Servicing and Assembly over Time-Delayed Telemetry

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Despite the prevalence of this telerobotic surgery of humans, we still do not have the capability to service (refuel and repair) or assemble spacecraft on-orbit with...

  17. Circular-Polarization-Selective Transmission Induced by Spin-Orbit Coupling in a Helical Tape Waveguide

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yahong; Guo, Qinghua; Liu, Hongchao; Liu, Congcong; Song, Kun; Yang, Biao; Hou, Quanwen; Zhao, Xiaopeng; Zhang, Shuang; Navarro-Cía, Miguel

    2018-05-01

    Spin-orbit coupling of light, describing the interaction between the polarization (spin) and spatial degrees of freedom (orbit) of light, plays an important role in subwavelength scale systems and leads to many interesting phenomena, such as the spin Hall effect of light. Here, based on the spin-orbit coupling, we design and fabricate a helical tape waveguide (HTW), which can realize a circular-polarization-selective process. When the incident circularly polarized wave is of the same handedness as the helix of the HTW, a nearly complete transmission is observed; in contrast, a counterrotating circular polarization of incident wave results in a much lower transmission or is even totally blocked by the HTW. Indeed, both simulations and experiments reveal that the blocked component of power leaks through the helical aperture of the HTW and forms a conical beam analogous to helical Cherenkov radiation due to the conversion from the spin angular momentum to the orbital angular momentum. Our HTW structure demonstrates its potential as a polarization selector in a broadband frequency range.

  18. Current-induced spin polarization in a spin-polarized two-dimensional electron gas with spin-orbit coupling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, C.M.; Pang, M.Q.; Liu, S.Y.; Lei, X.L.

    2010-01-01

    The current-induced spin polarization (CISP) is investigated in a combined Rashba-Dresselhaus spin-orbit-coupled two-dimensional electron gas, subjected to a homogeneous out-of-plane magnetization. It is found that, in addition to the usual collision-related in-plane parts of CISP, there are two impurity-density-free contributions, arising from intrinsic and disorder-mediated mechanisms. The intrinsic parts of spin polarization are related to the Berry curvature, analogous with the anomalous and spin Hall effects. For short-range collision, the disorder-mediated spin polarizations completely cancel the intrinsic ones and the total in-plane components of CISP equal those for systems without magnetization. However, for remote disorders, this cancellation does not occur and the total in-plane components of CISP strongly depend on the spin-orbit interaction coefficients and magnetization for both pure Rashba and combined Rashba-Dresselhaus models.

  19. Ionic Potential and Band Narrowing as a Source of Orbital Polarization in Nickelate/Insulator Superlattices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Georgescu, Alexandru B.; Disa, Ankit S.; Kumah, Divine P.; Ismail-Beigi, Sohrab; Walker, Frederick J.; Ahn, Charles H.

    Nickelate interfaces display complex, interacting electronic properties such as thickness dependent metal-insulator transitions. One large body of effort involving nickelates has aimed to split the energies of the Ni 3d orbitals (orbital polarization) to make the resulting band structure resemble that of cuprate superconductors. The most commonly studied interfacial system involves superlattices of alternating nickelate and insulating perovksite-structure layers; the resulting orbital polarization at the nickelate-insulator interface is understood as being due to confinement or structural symmetry breaking. By using first principles theory on the NdNiO3/NdAlO3 superlattice, we show that another important source of orbital polarization stems from electrostatic effects: the more ionic nature of the cations in the insulator (when compared to the nickelate) can shift the relative orbital energies of the Ni. We use density functional theory (DFT) and add electronic correlations via slave-bosons to describe the effect of correlation-induced band narrowing on the orbital polarization. Work supported by NSF Grant MRSEC DMR-1119826.

  20. Jupiter's Magnetic Field and Magnetosphere after Juno's First 8 Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Connerney, J. E. P.; Oliversen, R. J.; Espley, J. R.; Gruesbeck, J.; Kotsiaros, S.; DiBraccio, G. A.; Joergensen, J. L.; Joergensen, P. S.; Merayo, J. M. G.; Denver, T.; Benn, M.; Bjarno, J. B.; Malinnikova Bang, A.; Bloxham, J.; Moore, K.; Bolton, S. J.; Levin, S.; Gershman, D. J.

    2017-12-01

    The Juno spacecraft entered polar orbit about Jupiter on July 4, 2016, embarking upon an ambitious mission to map Jupiter's magnetic and gravitational potential fields and probe its deep atmosphere, in search of clues to the planet's formation and evolution. Juno is also instrumented to conduct the first exploration of the polar magnetosphere and to acquire images and spectra of its polar auroras and atmosphere. Juno's 53.5-day orbit trajectory carries her science instruments from pole to pole in approximately 2 hours, with a closest approach to within 1.05 Rj of the center of the planet (one Rj = 71,492 km, Jupiter's equatorial radius), just a few thousand km above the clouds. Repeated periapsis passes will eventually encircle the planet with a dense net of observations equally spaced in longitude (magnetometer sensor suites, located 10 and 12 m from the center of the spacecraft at the end of one of Juno's three solar panel wings. Each contains a vector fluxgate magnetometer (FGM) sensor and a pair of co-located non-magnetic star tracker camera heads, providing accurate attitude determination for the FGM sensors. We present an overview of the magnetometer observations obtained during Juno's first year in orbit in context with prior observations and those acquired by Juno's other science instruments.

  1. Interrogation of orbital structure by elliptically polarized intense femtosecond laser pulses

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Abu-Samha, Mahmoud; Madsen, Lars Bojer

    2011-01-01

    We solve the three-dimensional time-dependent Schrödinger equation and present investigations of the imprint of the orbital angular node in photoelectron momentum distributions of an aligned atomic p-type orbital following ionization by an intense elliptically polarized laser pulse of femtosecond...

  2. Stable low-altitude orbits around Ganymede considering a disturbing body in a circular orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cardoso dos Santos, J.; Carvalho, J. P. S.; Vilhena de Moraes, R.

    2014-10-01

    Some missions are being planned to visit Ganymede like the Europa Jupiter System Mission that is a cooperation between NASA and ESA to insert the spacecraft JGO (Jupiter Ganymede Orbiter) into Ganymedes orbit. This comprehension of the dynamics of these orbits around this planetary satellite is essential for the success of this type of mission. Thus, this work aims to perform a search for low-altitude orbits around Ganymede. An emphasis is given in polar orbits and it can be useful in the planning of space missions to be conducted around, with respect to the stability of orbits of artificial satellites. The study considers orbits of artificial satellites around Ganymede under the influence of the third-body (Jupiter's gravitational attraction) and the polygenic perturbations like those due to non-uniform distribution of mass (J_2 and J_3) of the main body. A simplified dynamic model for these perturbations is used. The Lagrange planetary equations are used to describe the orbital motion of the artificial satellite. The equations of motion are developed in closed form to avoid expansions in eccentricity and inclination. The results show the argument of pericenter circulating. However, low-altitude (100 and 150 km) polar orbits are stable. Another orbital elements behaved variating with small amplitudes. Thus, such orbits are convenient to be applied to future space missions to Ganymede. Acknowledgments: FAPESP (processes n° 2011/05671-5, 2012/12539-9 and 2012/21023-6).

  3. Chorus observations by the Polar spacecraft near the mid-altitude cusp

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Menietti, J. D.; Santolík, Ondřej; Abaci, P. C.

    2009-01-01

    Roč. 57, č. 12 (2009), s. 1412-1418 ISSN 0032-0633 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA301120601 Grant - others:NSF(US) ATM-04-43531; NASA (US) NNG05GM52G.; GA MŠk(CZ) ME 842 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z30420517 Keywords : chorus * mid-altitude cusp * Polar spacecraft Subject RIV: BL - Plasma and Gas Discharge Physics Impact factor: 2.067, year: 2009

  4. Spin-polarized spin-orbit-split quantum-well states in a metal film

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Varykhalov, Andrei; Sanchez-Barriga, Jaime; Gudat, Wolfgang; Eberhardt, Wolfgang; Rader, Oliver [BESSY Berlin (Germany); Shikin, Alexander M. [St. Petersburg State University (Russian Federation)

    2008-07-01

    Elements with high atomic number Z lead to a large spin-orbit coupling. Such materials can be used to create spin-polarized electronic states without the presence of a ferromagnet or an external magnetic field if the solid exhibits an inversion asymmetry. We create large spin-orbit splittings using a tungsten crystal as substrate and break the structural inversion symmetry through deposition of a gold quantum film. Using spin- and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy, it is demonstrated that quantum-well states forming in the gold film are spin-orbit split and spin polarized up to a thickness of at least 10 atomic layers. This is a considerable progress as compared to the current literature which reports spin-orbit split states at metal surfaces which are either pure or covered by at most a monoatomic layer of adsorbates.

  5. Nuclear electric propulsion /NEP/ spacecraft for the outer planet orbiter mission

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Garrison, P.W.; Nock, K.T.

    1982-01-01

    The design, operating features, and a possible Neptune orbit for the spacecraft powered by the SP-100 nuclear electric propulsion (NEP) system under study by NASA and the DOE are described. The system features a reactor and a payload situated on opposite ends of a 0.5 m diam, 11 m long astromast. Mercury-ion thrusters are located beneath the reactor for side thrusting, and no contamination of the payload or obstruction of the viewing angles for scientific objectives occurs with the system, which would not degrade in performance even under high insolation during near-sun maneuvers. Results of a theoretical study of earth escapes are presented to show that an NEP powered spiral trajectory out of a 700 km Shuttle orbit and using a Triton gravity assist would be superior to departing from a 300 km orbit with a Centaur boost. The mission profile includes a 1249 kg Galileo payload. The SP-100 has a 1.4 MWth reactor with UO2 fuel tiles and weighs 19,904 kg

  6. Contingency Trajectory Design for a Lunar Orbit Insertion Maneuver Failure by the Lunar Atmosphere Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Genova, Anthony L.; Loucks, Michael; Carrico, John

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of this extended abstract is to present results from a failed lunar-orbit insertion (LOI) maneuver contingency analysis for the Lunar Atmosphere Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) mission, managed and operated by NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, CA. The LADEE spacecrafts nominal trajectory implemented multiple sub-lunar phasing orbits centered at Earth before eventually reaching the Moon (Fig. 1) where a critical LOI maneuver was to be performed [1,2,3]. If this LOI was missed, the LADEE spacecraft would be on an Earth-escape trajectory, bound for heliocentric space. Although a partial mission recovery is possible from a heliocentric orbit (to be discussed in the full paper), it was found that an escape-prevention maneuver could be performed several days after a hypothetical LOI-miss, allowing a return to the desired science orbit around the Moon without leaving the Earths sphere-of-influence (SOI).

  7. Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite Polarization Sensitivity Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Junqiang; Xiong, Xiaoxiong; Waluschka, Eugene; Wang, Menghua

    2016-01-01

    The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) is one of five instruments onboard the Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (SNPP) satellite that launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, on October 28, 2011. It is a whiskbroom radiometer that provides +/-56.28deg scans of the Earth view. It has 22 bands, among which 14 are reflective solar bands (RSBs). The RSBs cover a wavelength range from 410 to 2250 nm. The RSBs of a remote sensor are usually sensitive to the polarization of incident light. For VIIRS, it is specified that the polarization factor should be smaller than 3% for 410 and 862 nm bands and 2.5% for other RSBs for the scan angle within +/-45deg. Several polarization sensitivity tests were performed prelaunch for SNPP VIIRS. The first few tests either had large uncertainty or were less reliable, while the last one was believed to provide the more accurate information about the polarization property of the instrument. In this paper, the measured data in the last polarization sensitivity test are analyzed, and the polarization factors and phase angles are derived from the measurements for all the RSBs. The derived polarization factors and phase angles are band, detector, and scan angle dependent. For near-infrared bands, they also depend on the half-angle mirror side. Nevertheless, the derived polarization factors are all within the specification, although the strong detector dependence of the polarization parameters was not expected. Compared to the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer on both Aqua and Terra satellites, the polarization effect on VIIRS RSB is much smaller.

  8. Polar spacecraft observations of the turbulent outer cusp/magnetopause boundary layer of Earth

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. S. Pickett

    1999-01-01

    Full Text Available The orbit of the Polar spacecraft has been ideally suited for studying the turbulent region of the cusp that is located near or just outside the magnetopause current sheet at 7-9 RE. The wave data obtained in this region show that electromagnetic turbulence is dominant in the frequency range 1-10 Hz. The waves responsible for this turbulence usually propagate perpendicular to the local magnetic field and have an index of refraction that generally falls between the estimated cold plasma theoretical values of the electromagnetic lower hybrid and whistler modes and may be composed of both modes in concert with kinetic Alfvén waves and/or fast magnetosonic waves. Fourier spectra of the higher frequency wave data also show the electromagnetic turbulence at frequencies up to and near the electron cyclotron frequency. This higher frequency electromagnetic turbulence is most likely associated with whistler mode waves. The lower hybrid drift and current gradient instabilities are suggested as possible mechanisms for producing the turbulence. The plasma and field environment of this turbulent region is examined and found to be extremely complex. Some of the wave activity is associated with processes occurring locally, such as changes in the DC magnetic field, while others are associated with solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field changes.

  9. Polar Spacecraft Observations of the Turbulent Outer Cusp/Magnetopause Boundary Layer of Earth

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pickett, J. S.; Menietti, J. D.; Dowell, J. H.; Gurnett, D. A.; Scudder, J. D.

    1999-01-01

    The orbit of the Polar spacecraft has been ideally suited for studying the turbulent region of the cusp that is located near or just outside the magnetopause current sheet at 7-9 R(sub E). The wave data obtained in this region show that electromagnetic turbulence is dominant in the frequency range 1-10 Hz. The waves responsible for this turbulence usually propagate perpendicular to the local magnetic field and have an index of refraction that generally falls between the estimated cold plasma theoretical values of the electromagnetic lower hybrid and whistler modes and may be composed of both modes in concert with kinetic Alfven waves and/or fast magnetosonic waves. Fourier spectra of the higher frequency wave data also show the electromagnetic turbulence at frequencies up to and near the electron cyclotron frequency. This higher frequency electromagnetic turbulence is most likely associated with whistler mode waves. The lower hybrid drift and current gradient instabilities are suggested as possible mechanisms for producing the turbulence. The plasma and field environment of this turbulent region is examined and found to be extremely complex. Some of the wave activity is associated with processes occurring locally, such as changes in the DC magnetic field, while others are associated with solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field changes.

  10. Spacecraft TT&C and information transmission theory and technologies

    CERN Document Server

    Liu, Jiaxing

    2015-01-01

    Spacecraft TT&C and Information Transmission Theory and Technologies introduces the basic theory of spacecraft TT&C (telemetry, track and command) and information transmission. Combining TT&C and information transmission, the book presents several technologies for continuous wave radar including measurements for range, range rate and angle, analog and digital information transmissions, telecommand, telemetry, remote sensing and spread spectrum TT&C. For special problems occurred in the channels for TT&C and information transmission, the book represents radio propagation features and its impact on orbit measurement accuracy, and the effects caused by rain attenuation, atmospheric attenuation and multi-path effect, and polarization composition technology. This book can benefit researchers and engineers in the field of spacecraft TT&C and communication systems. Liu Jiaxing is a professor at The 10th Institute of China Electronics Technology Group Corporation.

  11. Long-term orbit prediction for Tiangong-1 spacecraft using the mean atmosphere model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Jingshi; Liu, Lin; Cheng, Haowen; Hu, Songjie; Duan, Jianfeng

    2015-03-01

    China is planning to complete its first space station by 2020. For the long-term management and maintenance, the orbit of the space station needs to be predicted for a long period of time. Since the space station is expected to work in a low-Earth orbit, the error in the a priori atmosphere model contributes significantly to the rapid increase of the predicted orbit error. When the orbit is predicted for 20 days, the error in the a priori atmosphere model, if not properly corrected, could induce a semi-major axis error of up to a few kilometers and an overall position error of several thousand kilometers respectively. In this work, we use a mean atmosphere model averaged from NRLMSISE00. The a priori reference mean density can be corrected during the orbit determination. For the long-term orbit prediction, we use sufficiently long period of observations and obtain a series of the diurnal mean densities. This series contains the recent variation of the atmosphere density and can be analyzed for various periodic components. After being properly fitted, the mean density can be predicted and then applied in the orbit prediction. Here we carry out the test with China's Tiangong-1 spacecraft at the altitude of about 340 km and we show that this method is simple and flexible. The densities predicted with this approach can serve in the long-term orbit prediction. In several 20-day prediction tests, most predicted orbits show semi-major axis errors better than 700 m and overall position errors better than 400 km.

  12. On-orbit assembly of a team of flexible spacecraft using potential field based method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Ti; Wen, Hao; Hu, Haiyan; Jin, Dongping

    2017-04-01

    In this paper, a novel control strategy is developed based on artificial potential field for the on-orbit autonomous assembly of four flexible spacecraft without inter-member collision. Each flexible spacecraft is simplified as a hub-beam model with truncated beam modes in the floating frame of reference and the communication graph among the four spacecraft is assumed to be a ring topology. The four spacecraft are driven to a pre-assembly configuration first and then to the assembly configuration. In order to design the artificial potential field for the first step, each spacecraft is outlined by an ellipse and a virtual leader of circle is introduced. The potential field mainly depends on the attitude error between the flexible spacecraft and its neighbor, the radial Euclidian distance between the ellipse and the circle and the classical Euclidian distance between the centers of the ellipse and the circle. It can be demonstrated that there are no local minima for the potential function and the global minimum is zero. If the function is equal to zero, the solution is not a certain state, but a set. All the states in the set are corresponding to the desired configurations. The Lyapunov analysis guarantees that the four spacecraft asymptotically converge to the target configuration. Moreover, the other potential field is also included to avoid the inter-member collision. In the control design of the second step, only small modification is made for the controller in the first step. Finally, the successful application of the proposed control law to the assembly mission is verified by two case studies.

  13. A technician works on the Mars Climate Orbiter in SAEF-2

    Science.gov (United States)

    1998-01-01

    In the Spacecraft Assembly and Encapsulation Facility-2 (SAEF-2), a technician works on the Mars Climate Orbiter which is scheduled to launch on Dec. 10, 1998, aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket. The Mars Climate Orbiter is heading for Mars where it will primarily support its companion Mars Polar Lander spacecraft, planned for launch on Jan. 3, 1999. After that, the Mars Climate Orbiter's instruments will monitor the Martian atmosphere and image the planet's surface on a daily basis for one Martian year (two Earth years). It will observe the appearance and movement of atmospheric dust and water vapor, as well as characterize seasonal changes on the surface. The detailed images of the surface features will provide important clues to the planet's early climate history and give scientists more information about possible liquid water reserves beneath the surface.

  14. Electrical polarization and orbital magnetization: the modern theories

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Resta, Raffaele

    2010-01-01

    Macroscopic polarization P and magnetization M are the most fundamental concepts in any phenomenological description of condensed media. They are intensive vector quantities that intuitively carry the meaning of dipole per unit volume. But for many years both P and the orbital term in M evaded even a precise microscopic definition, and severely challenged quantum-mechanical calculations. If one reasons in terms of a finite sample, the electric (magnetic) dipole is affected in an extensive way by charges (currents) at the sample boundary, due to the presence of the unbounded position operator in the dipole definitions. Therefore P and the orbital term in M-phenomenologically known as bulk properties-apparently behave as surface properties; only spin magnetization is problemless. The field has undergone a genuine revolution since the early 1990s. Contrary to a widespread incorrect belief, P has nothing to do with the periodic charge distribution of the polarized crystal: the former is essentially a property of the phase of the electronic wavefunction, while the latter is a property of its modulus. Analogously, the orbital term in M has nothing to do with the periodic current distribution in the magnetized crystal. The modern theory of polarization, based on a Berry phase, started in the early 1990s and is now implemented in most first-principle electronic structure codes. The analogous theory for orbital magnetization started in 2005 and is partly work in progress. In the electrical case, calculations have concerned various phenomena (ferroelectricity, piezoelectricity, and lattice dynamics) in several materials, and are in spectacular agreement with experiments; they have provided thorough understanding of the behaviour of ferroelectric and piezoelectric materials. In the magnetic case the very first calculations are appearing at the time of writing (2010). Here I review both theories on a uniform ground in a density functional theory (DFT) framework, pointing out

  15. Simultaneous spacecraft orbit estimation and control based on GPS measurements via extended Kalman filter

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tamer Mekky Ahmed Habib

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available The primary aim of this work is to provide simultaneous spacecraft orbit estimation and control based on the global positioning system (GPS measurements suitable for application to the next coming Egyptian remote sensing satellites. Disturbance resulting from earth’s oblateness till the fourth order (i.e., J4 is considered. In addition, aerodynamic drag and random disturbance effects are taken into consideration.

  16. Spin-orbit-induced spin splittings in polar transition metal dichalcogenide monolayers

    KAUST Repository

    Cheng, Yingchun

    2013-06-01

    The Rashba effect in quasi two-dimensional materials, such as noble metal surfaces and semiconductor heterostructures, has been investigated extensively, while interest in real two-dimensional systems has just emerged with the discovery of graphene. We present ab initio electronic structure, phonon, and molecular-dynamics calculations to study the structural stability and spin-orbit-induced spin splitting in the transition metal dichalcogenide monolayers MXY (M = Mo, W and X, Y = S, Se, Te). In contrast to the non-polar systems with X = Y, in the polar systems with X ≠ Y the Rashba splitting at the Γ-point for the uppermost valence band is caused by the broken mirror symmetry. An enhancement of the splitting can be achieved by increasing the spin-orbit coupling and/or the potential gradient. © Copyright EPLA, 2013.

  17. Spin-orbit controlled capacitance of a polar heterostructure

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Steffen, Kevin; Kopp, Thilo [Center for Electronic Correlations and Magnetism, EP VI, Institute of Physics, University of Augsburg, 86135 Augsburg (Germany); Loder, Florian [Center for Electronic Correlations and Magnetism, EP VI and TP III, Institute of Physics, University of Augsburg, 86135 Augsburg (Germany)

    2015-07-01

    Oxide heterostructures with polar films display special electronic properties, such as the electronic reconstruction at their internal interfaces with the formation of two-dimensional metallic states. Moreover, the electrical field from the polar layers is inversion-symmetry breaking and may generate a strong Rashba spin-orbit coupling (RSOC) in the interfacial electronic system. We investigate the capacitance of a heterostructure in which a strong RSOC at a metallic interface is controlled by the electric field of a surface electrode. Such a structure is for example given by a LaAlO{sub 3} film on a SrTiO{sub 3} substrate which is gated by a top electrode. We find that due to a strong RSOC the capacitance can be larger than the classical geometric value.

  18. Advanced Solar-propelled Cargo Spacecraft for Mars Missions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Auziasdeturenne, Jacqueline; Beall, Mark; Burianek, Joseph; Cinniger, Anna; Dunmire, Barbrina; Haberman, Eric; Iwamoto, James; Johnson, Stephen; Mccracken, Shawn; Miller, Melanie

    1989-01-01

    Three concepts for an unmanned, solar powered, cargo spacecraft for Mars support missions were investigated. These spacecraft are designed to carry a 50,000 kg payload from a low Earth orbit to a low Mars orbit. Each design uses a distinctly different propulsion system: A Solar Radiation Absorption (SRA) system, a Solar-Pumped Laser (SPL) system and a solar powered magnetoplasmadynamic (MPD) arc system. The SRA directly converts solar energy to thermal energy in the propellant through a novel process. In the SPL system, a pair of solar-pumped, multi-megawatt, CO2 lasers in sunsynchronous Earth orbit converts solar energy to laser energy. The MPD system used indium phosphide solar cells to convert sunlight to electricity, which powers the propulsion system. Various orbital transfer options are examined for these concepts. In the SRA system, the mother ship transfers the payload into a very high Earth orbit and a small auxiliary propulsion system boosts the payload into a Hohmann transfer to Mars. The SPL spacecraft and the SPL powered spacecraft return to Earth for subsequent missions. The MPD propelled spacecraft, however, remains at Mars as an orbiting space station. A patched conic approximation was used to determine a heliocentric interplanetary transfer orbit for the MPD propelled spacecraft. All three solar-powered spacecraft use an aerobrake procedure to place the payload into a low Mars parking orbit. The payload delivery times range from 160 days to 873 days (2.39 years).

  19. Multi-spacecraft observations of solar hard X-ray bursts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kane, S.R.

    1981-01-01

    The role of multi-spacecraft observations in solar flare research is examined from the point of view of solar hard X-ray bursts and their implications with respect to models of the impulsive phase. Multi-spacecraft measurements provide a stereoscopic view of the flare region, and hence represent the only direct method of measuring directivity of X-rays. In absence of hard X-ray imaging instruments with high spatial and temporal resolution, multi-spacecraft measurements provide the only means of determining the radial (vertical) structure of the hard X-ray source. This potential of the multi-spacecraft observations is illustrated with an analysis of the presently available observations of solar hard X-ray bursts made simultaneously by two or more of the following spacecraft: International Sun Earth Explorer-3 (ISEE-3), Pioneer Venus Orbiter (PVO), Helios-B and High Energy Astrophysical Observatory-A (HEAO-A). In particular, some conclusions have been drawn about the spatial structure and directivity of 50-100 keV X-rays from impulsive flares. Desirable features of future multi-spacecraft missions are briefly discussed followed by a short description of the hard X-ray experiment on the International Solar Polar Mission which has been planned specifically for multi-spacecraft observations of the Sun. (orig.)

  20. A Brief History of Meteoroid and Orbital Debris Shielding Technology for US Manned Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bjorkman, Michael D.; Hyde, James L.

    2008-01-01

    Meteoroid and orbital debris shielding has played an important role from the beginning of manned spaceflight. During the early 60 s, meteoroid protection drove requirements for new meteor and micrometeoroid impact science. Meteoroid protection also stimulated advances in the technology of hypervelocity impact launchers and impact damage assessment methodologies. The first phase of meteoroid shielding assessments closed in the early 70 s with the end of the Apollo program. The second phase of meteoroid protection technology began in the early 80 s when it was determined that there is a manmade Earth orbital debris belt that poses a significant risk to LEO manned spacecraft. The severity of the Earth orbital debris environment has dictated changes in Space Shuttle and ISS operations as well as driven advances in shielding technology and assessment methodologies. A timeline of shielding technology and assessment methodology advances is presented along with a summary of risk assessment results.

  1. Application of Space Environmental Observations to Spacecraft Pre-Launch Engineering and Spacecraft Operations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barth, Janet L.; Xapsos, Michael

    2008-01-01

    This presentation focuses on the effects of the space environment on spacecraft systems and applying this knowledge to spacecraft pre-launch engineering and operations. Particle radiation, neutral gas particles, ultraviolet and x-rays, as well as micrometeoroids and orbital debris in the space environment have various effects on spacecraft systems, including degradation of microelectronic and optical components, physical damage, orbital decay, biasing of instrument readings, and system shutdowns. Space climate and weather must be considered during the mission life cycle (mission concept, mission planning, systems design, and launch and operations) to minimize and manage risk to both the spacecraft and its systems. A space environment model for use in the mission life cycle is presented.

  2. Deployable Brake for Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rausch, J. R.; Maloney, J. W.

    1987-01-01

    Aerodynamic shield that could be opened and closed proposed. Report presents concepts for deployable aerodynamic brake. Brake used by spacecraft returning from high orbit to low orbit around Earth. Spacecraft makes grazing passes through atmosphere to slow down by drag of brake. Brake flexible shield made of woven metal or ceramic withstanding high temperatures created by air friction. Stored until needed, then deployed by set of struts.

  3. Long-term orbit prediction for China's Tiangong-1 spacecraft based on mean atmosphere model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Jingshi; Liu, Lin; Miao, Manqian

    Tiangong-1 is China's test module for future space station. It has gone through three successful rendezvous and dockings with Shenzhou spacecrafts from 2011 to 2013. For the long-term management and maintenance, the orbit sometimes needs to be predicted for a long period of time. As Tiangong-1 works in a low-Earth orbit with an altitude of about 300-400 km, the error in the a priori atmosphere model contributes significantly to the rapid increase of the predicted orbit error. When the orbit is predicted for 10-20 days, the error in the a priori atmosphere model, if not properly corrected, could induce the semi-major axis error and the overall position error up to a few kilometers and several thousand kilometers respectively. In this work, we use a mean atmosphere model averaged from NRLMSIS00. The a priori reference mean density can be corrected during precise orbit determination (POD). For applications in the long-term orbit prediction, the observations are first accumulated. With sufficiently long period of observations, we are able to obtain a series of the diurnal mean densities. This series bears the recent variation of the atmosphere density and can be analyzed for various periods. After being properly fitted, the mean density can be predicted and then applied in the orbit prediction. We show that the densities predicted with this approach can serve to increase the accuracy of the predicted orbit. In several 20-day prediction tests, most predicted orbits show semi-major axis errors better than 700m and overall position errors better than 600km.

  4. Spin-orbit torque induced magnetic vortex polarity reversal utilizing spin-Hall effect

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Cheng; Cai, Li; Liu, Baojun; Yang, Xiaokuo; Cui, Huanqing; Wang, Sen; Wei, Bo

    2018-05-01

    We propose an effective magnetic vortex polarity reversal scheme that makes use of spin-orbit torque introduced by spin-Hall effect in heavy-metal/ferromagnet multilayers structure, which can result in subnanosecond polarity reversal without endangering the structural stability. Micromagnetic simulations are performed to investigate the spin-Hall effect driven dynamics evolution of magnetic vortex. The mechanism of magnetic vortex polarity reversal is uncovered by a quantitative analysis of exchange energy density, magnetostatic energy density, and their total energy density. The simulation results indicate that the magnetic vortex polarity is reversed through the nucleation-annihilation process of topological vortex-antivortex pair. This scheme is an attractive option for ultra-fast magnetic vortex polarity reversal, which can be used as the guidelines for the choice of polarity reversal scheme in vortex-based random access memory.

  5. Investigating the auroral electrojets with low altitude polar orbiting satellites

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. Moretto

    2002-07-01

    Full Text Available Three geomagnetic satellite missions currently provide high precision magnetic field measurements from low altitude polar orbiting spacecraft. We demonstrate how these data can be used to determine the intensity and location of the horizontal currents that flow in the ionosphere, predominantly in the auroral electrojets. First, we examine the results during a recent geomagnetic storm. The currents derived from two satellites at different altitudes are in very good agreement, which verifies good stability of the method. Further, a very high degree of correlation (correlation coefficients of 0.8–0.9 is observed between the amplitudes of the derived currents and the commonly used auroral electrojet indices based on magnetic measurements at ground. This points to the potential of defining an auroral activity index based on the satellite observations, which could be useful for space weather monitoring. A specific advantage of the satellite observations over the ground-based magnetic measurements is their coverage of the Southern Hemisphere, as well as the Northern. We utilize this in an investigation of the ionospheric currents observed in both polar regions during a period of unusually steady interplanetary magnetic field with a large negative Y-component. A pronounced asymmetry is found between the currents in the two hemispheres, which indicates real inter-hemispheric differences beyond the mirror-asymmetry between hemispheres that earlier studies have revealed. The method is also applied to another event for which the combined measurements of the three satellites provide a comprehensive view of the current systems. The analysis hereof reveals some surprising results concerning the connection between solar wind driver and the resulting ionospheric currents. Specifically, preconditioning of the magnetosphere (history of the interplanetary magnetic field is seen to play an important role, and in the winther hemisphere, it seems to be harder to

  6. Use of Faraday-rotation data from beacon satellites to determine ionospheric corrections for interplanetary spacecraft navigation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Royden, H. N.; Green, D. W.; Walson, G. R.

    1981-01-01

    Faraday-rotation data from the linearly polarized 137-MHz beacons of the ATS-1, SIRIO, and Kiku-2 geosynchronous satellites are used to determine the ionospheric corrections to the range and Doppler data for interplanetary spacecraft navigation. The JPL operates the Deep Space Network of tracking stations for NASA; these stations monitor Faraday rotation with dual orthogonal, linearly polarized antennas, Teledyne polarization tracking receivers, analog-to-digital converter/scanners, and other support equipment. Computer software examines the Faraday data, resolves the pi ambiguities, constructs a continuous Faraday-rotation profile and converts the profile to columnar zenith total electron content at the ionospheric reference point; a second program computes the line-of-sight ionospheric correction for each pass of the spacecraft over each tracking complex. Line-of-sight ionospheric electron content using mapped Faraday-rotation data is compared with that using dispersive Doppler data from the Voyager spacecraft; a difference of about 0.4 meters, or 5 x 10 to the 16th electrons/sq m is obtained. The technique of determining the electron content of interplanetary plasma by subtraction of the ionospheric contribution is demonstrated on the plasma torus surrounding the orbit of Io.

  7. Absolute orbit determination using line-of-sight vector measurements between formation flying spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ou, Yangwei; Zhang, Hongbo; Li, Bin

    2018-04-01

    The purpose of this paper is to show that absolute orbit determination can be achieved based on spacecraft formation. The relative position vectors expressed in the inertial frame are used as measurements. In this scheme, the optical camera is applied to measure the relative line-of-sight (LOS) angles, i.e., the azimuth and elevation. The LIDAR (Light radio Detecting And Ranging) or radar is used to measure the range and we assume that high-accuracy inertial attitude is available. When more deputies are included in the formation, the formation configuration is optimized from the perspective of the Fisher information theory. Considering the limitation on the field of view (FOV) of cameras, the visibility of spacecraft and the installation of cameras are investigated. In simulations, an extended Kalman filter (EKF) is used to estimate the position and velocity. The results show that the navigation accuracy can be enhanced by using more deputies and the installation of cameras significantly affects the navigation performance.

  8. Production of activation products in space-craft components by protons in low earth orbit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Normand, E.; Johnson, M.L.

    1986-01-01

    A spacecraft orbiting the Earth through trapped radiation belts will be subject to an induced effect as well as to the direct irradiation by the protons and electrons of the trapped belts. This induced effect is activation of the spacecraft materials by the trapped belt protons. This activation will produce many radioisotopes having half-lives ranging from seconds to millions of years, and emitting various types of radiation. Of primary concern are radioisotopes that emit gamma rays and have half-lives of several years or less. Cross-section data sets are currently being compiled for proton-induced activation products by the Los Alamos National Laboratory. Despite uncertainties in cross-section data, it is instructive to illustrate the magnitude of activation levels and the resulting dose rates calculated in an approximate manner. A number of simplifying assumptions are made

  9. The scientific objectives of the International Solar Polar Mission

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wenzel, K.-P.

    1980-01-01

    The International Solar Polar Mission (I.S.P.M.), originally known as the Out-of-Ecliptic Mission, will be the first spacecraft mission to explore the third dimension of the heliosphere within a few astronomical units of the Sun and to view the Sun over the full range of heliographic latitudes. Its main objectives are to investigate, as a function of solar latitude, the properties of the interplanetary medium and the solar corona. The I.S.P.M. is a two spacecraft venture jointly conducted by E.S.A. and N.A.S.A. The two spacecraft will be injected into elliptical heliocentric orbits approximately at right angles to the ecliptic plane, by using the Jupiter gravity assist method, one northwards and the other southwards. After passing nearly above the poles of the Sun, each spacecraft crosses the ecliptic plane and passes over the other solar pole. The complete mission time from launch, foreseen for February 1983, to the second polar passage is approximately 42/3 years. This paper summarizes the main scientific objectives of the instruments to be carried on this exploratory mission. It concludes with an outline of the payload, the spacecraft, the trajectory and the mission schedule. (author)

  10. Earth Orbiting Support Systems for commercial low Earth orbit data relay: Assessing architectures through tradespace exploration

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palermo, Gianluca; Golkar, Alessandro; Gaudenzi, Paolo

    2015-06-01

    As small satellites and Sun Synchronous Earth Observation systems are assuming an increased role in nowadays space activities, including commercial investments, it is of interest to assess how infrastructures could be developed to support the development of such systems and other spacecraft that could benefit from having a data relay service in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), as opposed to traditional Geostationary relays. This paper presents a tradespace exploration study of the architecture of such LEO commercial satellite data relay systems, here defined as Earth Orbiting Support Systems (EOSS). The paper proposes a methodology to formulate architectural decisions for EOSS constellations, and enumerate the corresponding tradespace of feasible architectures. Evaluation metrics are proposed to measure benefits and costs of architectures; lastly, a multicriteria Pareto criterion is used to downselect optimal architectures for subsequent analysis. The methodology is applied to two case studies for a set of 30 and 100 customer-spacecraft respectively, representing potential markets for LEO services in Exploration, Earth Observation, Science, and CubeSats. Pareto analysis shows how increased performance of the constellation is always achieved by an increased node size, as measured by the gain of the communications antenna mounted on EOSS spacecraft. On the other hand, nonlinear trends in optimal orbital altitude, number of satellites per plane, and number of orbital planes, are found in both cases. An upward trend in individual node memory capacity is found, although never exceeding 256 Gbits of onboard memory for both cases that have been considered, assuming the availability of a polar ground station for EOSS data downlink. System architects can use the proposed methodology to identify optimal EOSS constellations for a given service pricing strategy and customer target, thus identifying alternatives for selection by decision makers.

  11. Detection of the lunar body tide by the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mazarico, Erwan; Barker, Michael K; Neumann, Gregory A; Zuber, Maria T; Smith, David E

    2014-04-16

    The Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter instrument onboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft collected more than 5 billion measurements in the nominal 50 km orbit over ∼10,000 orbits. The data precision, geodetic accuracy, and spatial distribution enable two-dimensional crossovers to be used to infer relative radial position corrections between tracks to better than ∼1 m. We use nearly 500,000 altimetric crossovers to separate remaining high-frequency spacecraft trajectory errors from the periodic radial surface tidal deformation. The unusual sampling of the lunar body tide from polar lunar orbit limits the size of the typical differential signal expected at ground track intersections to ∼10 cm. Nevertheless, we reliably detect the topographic tidal signal and estimate the associated Love number h 2 to be 0.0371 ± 0.0033, which is consistent with but lower than recent results from lunar laser ranging. Altimetric data are used to create radial constraints on the tidal deformationThe body tide amplitude is estimated from the crossover dataThe estimated Love number is consistent with previous estimates but more precise.

  12. Spacecraft Charging and the Microwave Anisotropy Probe Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Timothy, VanSant J.; Neergaard, Linda F.

    1998-01-01

    The Microwave Anisotropy Probe (MAP), a MIDEX mission built in partnership between Princeton University and the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), will study the cosmic microwave background. It will be inserted into a highly elliptical earth orbit for several weeks and then use a lunar gravity assist to orbit around the second Lagrangian point (L2), 1.5 million kilometers, anti-sunward from the earth. The charging environment for the phasing loops and at L2 was evaluated. There is a limited set of data for L2; the GEOTAIL spacecraft measured relatively low spacecraft potentials (approx. 50 V maximum) near L2. The main area of concern for charging on the MAP spacecraft is the well-established threat posed by the "geosynchronous region" between 6-10 Re. The launch in the autumn of 2000 will coincide with the falling of the solar maximum, a period when the likelihood of a substorm is higher than usual. The likelihood of a substorm at that time has been roughly estimated to be on the order of 20% for a typical MAP mission profile. Because of the possibility of spacecraft charging, a requirement for conductive spacecraft surfaces was established early in the program. Subsequent NASCAP/GEO analyses for the MAP spacecraft demonstrated that a significant portion of the sunlit surface (solar cell cover glass and sunshade) could have nonconductive surfaces without significantly raising differential charging. The need for conductive materials on surfaces continually in eclipse has also been reinforced by NASCAP analyses.

  13. A Dual Polarization, Active, Microstrip Antenna for an Orbital Imaging Radar System Operating at L-Band

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelly, Kenneth C.; Huang, John

    2000-01-01

    A highly successful Earth orbiting synthetic antenna aperture radar (SAR) system, known as the SIR-C mission, was carried into orbit in 1994 on a U.S. Shuttle (Space Transportation System) mission. The radar system was mounted in the cargo bay with no need to fold, or in any other way reduce the size of the antennas for launch. Weight and size were not limited for the L-Band, C-Band, and X-Band radar systems of the SIR-C radar imaging mission; the set of antennas weighed 10,500 kg, the L-Band antenna having the major share of the weight. This paper treats designing an L-Band antenna functionally similar to that used for SIR-C, but at a fraction of the cost and at a weight in the order of 250 kg. Further, the antenna must be folded to fit into the small payload shroud of low cost booster rocket systems. Over 31 square meters of antenna area is required. This low weight, foldable, electronic scanning antenna is for the proposed LightSAR radar system which is to be placed in Earth orbit on a small, dedicated space craft at the lowest possible cost for an efficient L- Band radar imaging system. This LightSAR spacecraft radar is to be continuously available for at least five operational years, and have the ability to map or repeat-map any area on earth within a few days of any request. A microstrip patch array, with microstrip transmission lines heavily employed in the aperture and in the corporate feed network, was chosen as the low cost approach for this active dual-polarization, 80 MHz (6.4%) bandwidth antenna design.

  14. Spacecraft Charging: Hazard Causes, Hazard Effects, Hazard Controls

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koontz, Steve.

    2018-01-01

    Spacecraft flight environments are characterized both by a wide range of space plasma conditions and by ionizing radiation (IR), solar ultraviolet and X-rays, magnetic fields, micrometeoroids, orbital debris, and other environmental factors, all of which can affect spacecraft performance. Dr. Steven Koontz's lecture will provide a solid foundation in the basic engineering physics of spacecraft charging and charging effects that can be applied to solving practical spacecraft and spacesuit engineering design, verification, and operations problems, with an emphasis on spacecraft operations in low-Earth orbit, Earth's magnetosphere, and cis-Lunar space.

  15. Effect of Rashba and Dresselhaus Spin-Orbit Couplings on Electron Spin Polarization in a Hybrid Magnetic-Electric Barrier Nanostructure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Shi-Peng; Lu, Mao-Wang; Huang, Xin-Hong; Tang, Qiang; Zhou, Yong-Long

    2017-04-01

    A theoretical study has been carried out on the spin-dependent electron transport in a hybrid magnetic-electric barrier nanostructure with both Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit couplings, which can be experimentally realized by depositing a ferromagnetic strip and a Schottky metal strip on top of a semiconductor heterostructure. The spin-orbit coupling-dependent transmission coefficient, conductance, and spin polarization are calculated by solving the Schrödinger equation exactly with the help of the transfer-matrix method. We find that both the magnitude and sign of the electron spin polarization vary strongly with the spin-orbit coupling strength. Thus, the degree of electron spin polarization can be manipulated by properly adjusting the spin-orbit coupling strength, and such a nanosystem can be employed as a controllable spin filter for spintronics applications.

  16. A New Model of Jupiter's Magnetic Field from Juno's First Nine Orbits

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Connerney, J. E. P.; Kotsiaros, S.; Oliversen, R. J.

    2018-01-01

    A spherical harmonic model of the magnetic field of Jupiter is obtained from vector magnetic field observations acquired by the Juno spacecraft during its first nine polar orbits about the planet. Observations acquired during eight of these orbits provide the first truly global coverage of Jupiter...... currents. Partial solution of the underdetermined inverse problem using generalized inverse techniques yields a model (“Juno Reference Model through Perijove 9”) of the planetary magnetic field with spherical harmonic coefficients well determined through degree and order 10, providing the first detailed...

  17. Summary of the results from the lunar orbiter laser altimeter after seven years in lunar orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, David E.; Zuber, Maria T.; Neumann, Gregory A.; Mazarico, Erwan; Lemoine, Frank G.; Head, James W., III; Lucey, Paul G.; Aharonson, Oded; Robinson, Mark S.; Sun, Xiaoli; Torrence, Mark H.; Barker, Michael K.; Oberst, Juergen; Duxbury, Thomas C.; Mao, Dandan; Barnouin, Olivier S.; Jha, Kopal; Rowlands, David D.; Goossens, Sander; Baker, David; Bauer, Sven; Gläser, Philipp; Lemelin, Myriam; Rosenburg, Margaret; Sori, Michael M.; Whitten, Jennifer; Mcclanahan, Timothy

    2017-02-01

    In June 2009 the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft was launched to the Moon. The payload consists of 7 science instruments selected to characterize sites for future robotic and human missions. Among them, the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) was designed to obtain altimetry, surface roughness, and reflectance measurements. The primary phase of lunar exploration lasted one year, following a 3-month commissioning phase. On completion of its exploration objectives, the LRO mission transitioned to a science mission. After 7 years in lunar orbit, the LOLA instrument continues to map the lunar surface. The LOLA dataset is one of the foundational datasets acquired by the various LRO instruments. LOLA provided a high-accuracy global geodetic reference frame to which past, present and future lunar observations can be referenced. It also obtained high-resolution and accurate global topography that were used to determine regions in permanent shadow at the lunar poles. LOLA further contributed to the study of polar volatiles through its unique measurement of surface brightness at zero phase, which revealed anomalies in several polar craters that may indicate the presence of water ice. In this paper, we describe the many LOLA accomplishments to date and its contribution to lunar and planetary science.

  18. Summary of the Results from the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter after Seven Years in Lunar Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, David E.; Zuber, Maria T.; Neumann, Gregory A.; Mazarico, Erwan; Lemoine, Frank G.; Head, James W., III; Lucey, Paul G.; Aharonson, Oded; Robinson, Mark S.; Sun, Xiaoli; hide

    2016-01-01

    In June 2009 the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft was launched to the Moon. The payload consists of 7 science instruments selected to characterize sites for future robotic and human missions. Among them, the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) was designed to obtain altimetry, surface roughness, and reflectance measurements. The primary phase of lunar exploration lasted one year, following a 3-month commissioning phase. On completion of its exploration objectives, the LRO mission transitioned to a science mission. After 7 years in lunar orbit, the LOLA instrument continues to map the lunar surface. The LOLA dataset is one of the foundational datasets acquired by the various LRO instruments. LOLA provided a high-accuracy global geodetic reference frame to which past, present and future lunar observations can be referenced. It also obtained high-resolution and accurate global topography that were used to determine regions in permanent shadow at the lunar poles. LOLA further contributed to the study of polar volatiles through its unique measurement of surface brightness at zero phase, which revealed anomalies in several polar craters that may indicate the presence of water ice. In this paper, we describe the many LOLA accomplishments to date and its contribution to lunar and planetary science.

  19. How Spacecraft Fly Spaceflight Without Formulae

    CERN Document Server

    Swinerd, Graham

    2009-01-01

    About half a century ago a small satellite, Sputnik 1, was launched. The satellite did very little other than to transmit a radio signal to announce its presence in orbit. However, this humble beginning heralded the dawn of the Space Age. Today literally thousands of robotic spacecraft have been launched, many of which have flown to far-flung regions of the Solar System carrying with them the human spirit of scientific discovery and exploration. Numerous other satellites have been launched in orbit around the Earth providing services that support our technological society on the ground. How Spacecraft Fly: Spaceflight Without Formulae by Graham Swinerd focuses on how these spacecraft work. The book opens with a historical perspective of how we have come to understand our Solar System and the Universe. It then progresses through orbital flight, rocket science, the hostile environment within which spacecraft operate, and how they are designed. The concluding chapters give a glimpse of what the 21st century may ...

  20. Modification of the method of polarized orbitals for electron--alkali-metal scattering: Application to e-Li

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bhatia, A.K.; Temkin, A.; Silver, A.; Sullivan, E.C.

    1978-01-01

    The method of polarized orbitals is modified to treat low-energy scattering of electrons from highly polarizable systems, specifically alkali-metal atoms. The modification is carried out in the particular context of the e-Li system, but the procedure is general; it consists of modifying the polarized orbital, so that when used in the otherwise orthodox form of the method, it gives (i) the correct electron affinity of the negative ion (in this case Li - ), (ii) the proper (i.e., Levinson-Swan) number of nodes of the associated zero-energy scattering orbital, and (iii) the correct polarizability. A procedure is devised whereby the scattering length can be calculated from the (known) electron affinity without solving the bound-state equation. Using this procedure we adduce a 1 S scattering length of 8.69a 0 . (The 3 S scattering length is -9.22a 0 .) The above modifications can also be carried out in the (lesser) exchange adiabatic approximation. However, they lead to qualitatively incorrect 3 S phase shifts. The modified polarized-orbital phase shifts are qualitatively similar to close-coupling and elaborate variational calculations. Quantitative differences from the latter calculations, however, remain; they are manifested most noticeably in the very-low-energy total and differential spin-flip cross sections

  1. Spin polarization of tunneling current in barriers with spin-orbit coupling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fujita, T; Jalil, M B A; Tan, S G

    2008-01-01

    We present a general method for evaluating the maximum transmitted spin polarization and optimal spin axis for an arbitrary spin-orbit coupling (SOC) barrier system, in which the spins lie in the azimuthal plane and finite spin polarization is achieved by wavevector filtering of electrons. Besides momentum filtering, another prerequisite for finite spin polarization is asymmetric occupation or transmission probabilities of the eigenstates of the SOC Hamiltonian. This is achieved most efficiently by resonant tunneling through multiple SOC barriers. We apply our analysis to common SOC mechanisms in semiconductors: pure bulk Dresselhaus SOC, heterostructures with mixed Dresselhaus and Rashba SOC and strain-induced SOC. In particular, we find that the interplay between Dresselhaus and Rashba SOC effects can yield several advantageous features for spin filter and spin injector functions, such as increased robustness to wavevector spread of electrons

  2. Spin polarization of tunneling current in barriers with spin-orbit coupling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fujita, T; Jalil, M B A; Tan, S G

    2008-03-19

    We present a general method for evaluating the maximum transmitted spin polarization and optimal spin axis for an arbitrary spin-orbit coupling (SOC) barrier system, in which the spins lie in the azimuthal plane and finite spin polarization is achieved by wavevector filtering of electrons. Besides momentum filtering, another prerequisite for finite spin polarization is asymmetric occupation or transmission probabilities of the eigenstates of the SOC Hamiltonian. This is achieved most efficiently by resonant tunneling through multiple SOC barriers. We apply our analysis to common SOC mechanisms in semiconductors: pure bulk Dresselhaus SOC, heterostructures with mixed Dresselhaus and Rashba SOC and strain-induced SOC. In particular, we find that the interplay between Dresselhaus and Rashba SOC effects can yield several advantageous features for spin filter and spin injector functions, such as increased robustness to wavevector spread of electrons.

  3. Cassini ISS Observation of Saturn from Grand Finale Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blalock, J. J.; Sayanagi, K. M.; Ingersoll, A. P.; Dyudina, U.; Ewald, S. P.; McCabe, R. M.; Garland, J.; Gunnarson, J.; Gallego, A.

    2017-12-01

    We present images captured during Cassini's Grand Finale orbits, and their preliminary analyses. During the final 22 orbits of the mission, the spacecraft is in orbits that have 6.5 day period at an inclination of 62 degrees, apoapsis altitude of about 1,272,000 km, and periapsis altitudes of about 2,500 km. Images captured during periapsis passes show Saturn's atmosphere at unprecedented spatial resolution. We present preliminary analyses of these images, including the final images captured before the end of the mission when the spacecraft enters Saturn's atmosphere on September 15th, 2017. Prominent features captured during the final orbits include the north polar vortex and other vortices as well as very detailed views of the "popcorn clouds" that reside between the Hexagon and the north pole. In the cloud field between zonal jets, clouds either resemble linear streaks suggestive of cirrus-like clouds or round shapes suggestive of vortices or cumulus anvil. The presence of linear streaks that follow lines of constant latitudes suggests that meridional mixing is inhibited at those latitudes. The size of vortices may reflect latitudinal variation in the atmospheric deformation radius. We also compare the new images to those captured earlier in the Cassini mission to characterize the temporal evolution such as changes in the zonal jet speeds, and prevalence and colors of vortices. A particular focus of our interest is the long-term change in the color of the hexagon, the evolution of the wind speeds in the jetstream that blows eastward at the boundary of the hexagon, and the morphology of the north polar vortex. Our work has been supported by NASA PATM NNX14AK07G, NSF AAG 1212216, and NASA NESSF NNX15AQ70H.

  4. National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Design and Architecture

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hinnant, F.

    2008-12-01

    The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Department of Defense (DoD), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are jointly acquiring the next-generation weather and environmental satellite system - the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS). NPOESS will replace the current Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) managed by NOAA and the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) managed by the DoD and will provide continuity for the NASA Earth Observing System (EOS) with the launch of the NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP). This poster will provide an overview of the NPOESS architecture, which includes four segments. The space segment includes satellites in two orbits that carry a suite of sensors to collect meteorological, oceanographic, climatological, and solar-geophysical observations of the Earth, atmosphere, and near-Earth space environment. The NPOESS design allows centralized mission management and delivers high quality environmental products to military, civil and scientific users through a Command, Control, and Communication Segment (C3S). The data processing for NPOESS is accomplished through an Interface Data Processing Segment (IDPS)/Field Terminal Segment (FTS) that processes NPOESS satellite data to provide environmental data products to NOAA and DoD processing centers operated by the United States government as well as to remote terminal users. The Launch Support Segment completes the four segments that make up NPOESS that will enhance the connectivity between research and operations and provide critical operational and scientific environmental measurements to military, civil, and scientific users until 2026.

  5. Spacecraft Charge Monitor

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goembel, L.

    2003-12-01

    We are currently developing a flight prototype Spacecraft Charge Monitor (SCM) with support from NASA's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The device will use a recently proposed high energy-resolution electron spectroscopic technique to determine spacecraft floating potential. The inspiration for the technique came from data collected by the Atmosphere Explorer (AE) satellites in the 1970s. The data available from the AE satellites indicate that the SCM may be able to determine spacecraft floating potential to within 0.1 V under certain conditions. Such accurate measurement of spacecraft charge could be used to correct biases in space plasma measurements. The device may also be able to measure spacecraft floating potential in the solar wind and in orbit around other planets.

  6. Internet Technology on Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rash, James; Parise, Ron; Hogie, Keith; Criscuolo, Ed; Langston, Jim; Powers, Edward I. (Technical Monitor)

    2000-01-01

    The Operating Missions as Nodes on the Internet (OMNI) project has shown that Internet technology works in space missions through a demonstration using the UoSAT-12 spacecraft. An Internet Protocol (IP) stack was installed on the orbiting UoSAT-12 spacecraft and tests were run to demonstrate Internet connectivity and measure performance. This also forms the basis for demonstrating subsequent scenarios. This approach provides capabilities heretofore either too expensive or simply not feasible such as reconfiguration on orbit. The OMNI project recognized the need to reduce the risk perceived by mission managers and did this with a multi-phase strategy. In the initial phase, the concepts were implemented in a prototype system that includes space similar components communicating over the TDRS (space network) and the terrestrial Internet. The demonstration system includes a simulated spacecraft with sample instruments. Over 25 demonstrations have been given to mission and project managers, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Department of Defense (DoD), contractor technologists and other decisions makers, This initial phase reached a high point with an OMNI demonstration given from a booth at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) Inspection Day 99 exhibition. The proof to mission managers is provided during this second phase with year 2000 accomplishments: testing the use of Internet technologies onboard an actual spacecraft. This was done with a series of tests performed using the UoSAT-12 spacecraft. This spacecraft was reconfigured on orbit at very low cost. The total period between concept and the first tests was only 6 months! On board software was modified to add an IP stack to support basic IP communications. Also added was support for ping, traceroute and network timing protocol (NTP) tests. These tests show that basic Internet functionality can be used onboard spacecraft. The performance of data was measured to show no degradation from current

  7. Polarized atomic orbitals for linear scaling methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berghold, Gerd; Parrinello, Michele; Hutter, Jürg

    2002-02-01

    We present a modified version of the polarized atomic orbital (PAO) method [M. S. Lee and M. Head-Gordon, J. Chem. Phys. 107, 9085 (1997)] to construct minimal basis sets optimized in the molecular environment. The minimal basis set derives its flexibility from the fact that it is formed as a linear combination of a larger set of atomic orbitals. This approach significantly reduces the number of independent variables to be determined during a calculation, while retaining most of the essential chemistry resulting from the admixture of higher angular momentum functions. Furthermore, we combine the PAO method with linear scaling algorithms. We use the Chebyshev polynomial expansion method, the conjugate gradient density matrix search, and the canonical purification of the density matrix. The combined scheme overcomes one of the major drawbacks of standard approaches for large nonorthogonal basis sets, namely numerical instabilities resulting from ill-conditioned overlap matrices. We find that the condition number of the PAO overlap matrix is independent from the condition number of the underlying extended basis set, and consequently no numerical instabilities are encountered. Various applications are shown to confirm this conclusion and to compare the performance of the PAO method with extended basis-set calculations.

  8. A planet in a polar orbit of 1.4 solar-mass star

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guenther E.W.

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Although more than a thousand transiting extrasolar planets have been discovered, only very few of them orbit stars that are more massive than the Sun. The discovery of such planets is interesting, because they have formed in disks that are more massive but had a shorter life time than those of solar-like stars. Studies of planets more massive than the Sun thus tell us how the properties of the proto-planetary disks effect the formation of planets. Another aspect that makes these planets interesting is that they have kept their original orbital inclinations. By studying them we can thus find out whether the orbital axes planets are initially aligned to the stars rotational axes, or not. Here we report on the discovery of a planet of a 1.4 solar-mass star with a period of 5.6 days in a polar orbit made by CoRoT. This new planet thus is one of the few known close-in planets orbiting a star that is substantially more massive than the Sun.

  9. Retrieval of RTG'S in earth orbit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Raab, B.; Frieder, M.A.; Skrabek, A.

    1982-01-01

    Since 1961, some ten Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (RTG's) have been placed into a variety of spacecraft which are now in earth orbit. All of these spacecraft are in orbits with lifetimes in excess of 100 years and pose no risk. However, since most of these spacecraft are no longer being actively used, these may be subject to an active removal program to reduce the population of objects in space. Therefore, a study was undertaken to evaluate the feasibility of retrieving or disposing of spacecraft with RTGs on board. Intervention scenarios are developed and an orbital rendezvous vehicle is conceptualized. The costs of RTG retrieval are derived and compared to the costs of RTG disposal, i.e., boost to a higher, multi-millenium-lifetime orbit, and are found to be not significantly different

  10. Spin-orbit-coupled Bose-Einstein condensates of rotating polar molecules

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deng, Y.; You, L.; Yi, S.

    2018-05-01

    An experimental proposal for realizing spin-orbit (SO) coupling of pseudospin 1 in the ground manifold 1Σ (υ =0 ) of (bosonic) bialkali polar molecules is presented. The three spin components are composed of the ground rotational state and two substates from the first excited rotational level. Using hyperfine resolved Raman processes through two select excited states resonantly coupled by a microwave, an effective coupling between the spin tensor and linear momentum is realized. The properties of Bose-Einstein condensates for such SO-coupled molecules exhibiting dipolar interactions are further explored. In addition to the SO-coupling-induced stripe structures, the singly and doubly quantized vortex phases are found to appear, implicating exciting opportunities for exploring novel quantum physics using SO-coupled rotating polar molecules with dipolar interactions.

  11. Design feasibility via ascent optimality for next-generation spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miele, A.; Mancuso, S.

    This paper deals with the optimization of the ascent trajectories for single-stage-sub-orbit (SSSO), single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO), and two-stage-to-orbit (TSTO) rocket-powered spacecraft. The maximum payload weight problem is studied for different values of the engine specific impulse and spacecraft structural factor. The main conclusions are that: feasibility of SSSO spacecraft is guaranteed for all the parameter combinations considered; feasibility of SSTO spacecraft depends strongly on the parameter combination chosen; not only feasibility of TSTO spacecraft is guaranteed for all the parameter combinations considered, but the TSTO payload is several times the SSTO payload. Improvements in engine specific impulse and spacecraft structural factor are desirable and crucial for SSTO feasibility; indeed, aerodynamic improvements do not yield significant improvements in payload. For SSSO, SSTO, and TSTO spacecraft, simple engineering approximations are developed connecting the maximum payload weight to the engine specific impulse and spacecraft structural factor. With reference to the specific impulse/structural factor domain, these engineering approximations lead to the construction of zero-payload lines separating the feasibility region (positive payload) from the unfeasibility region (negative payload).

  12. JSC Orbital Debris Website Description

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Nicholas L.

    2006-01-01

    Purpose: The website provides information about the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office at JSC, which is the lead NASA center for orbital debris research. It is recognized world-wide for its leadership in addressing orbital debris issues. The NASA Orbital Debris Program Office has taken the international lead in conducting measurements of the environment and in developing the technical consensus for adopting mitigation measures to protect users of the orbital environment. Work at the center continues with developing an improved understanding of the orbital debris environment and measures that can be taken to control its growth. Major Contents: Orbital Debris research is divided into the following five broad efforts. Each area of research contains specific information as follows: 1) Modeling - NASA scientists continue to develop and upgrade orbital debris models to describe and characterize the current and future debris environment. Evolutionary and engineering models are described in detail. Downloadable items include a document in PDF format and executable software. 2) Measurements - Measurements of near-Earth orbital debris are accomplished by conducting ground-based and space-based observations of the orbital debris environment. The data from these sources provide validation of the environment models and identify the presence of new sources. Radar, optical and surface examinations are described. External links to related topics are provided. 3) Protection - Orbital debris protection involves conducting hypervelocity impact measurements to assess the risk presented by orbital debris to operating spacecraft and developing new materials and new designs to provide better protection from the environment with less weight penalty. The data from this work provides the link between the environment defined by the models and the risk presented by that environment to operating spacecraft and provides recommendations on design and operations procedures to reduce the risk as

  13. Artist concept of Galileo spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    1988-01-01

    Galileo spacecraft is illustrated in artist concept. Gallileo, named for the Italian astronomer, physicist and mathematician who is credited with construction of the first complete, practical telescope in 1620, will make detailed studies of Jupiter. A cooperative program with the Federal Republic of Germany the Galileo mission will amplify information acquired by two Voyager spacecraft in their brief flybys. Galileo is a two-element system that includes a Jupiter-orbiting observatory and an entry probe. Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is Galileo project manager and builder of the main spacecraft. Ames Research Center (ARC) has responsibility for the entry probe, which was built by Hughes Aircraft Company and General Electric. Galileo will be deployed from the payload bay (PLB) of Atlantis, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 104, during mission STS-34.

  14. Cassini UVIS Observations of Saturn during the Grand Finale Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pryor, W. R.; Esposito, L. W.; West, R. A.; Jouchoux, A.; Radioti, A.; Grodent, D. C.; Gerard, J. C. M. C.; Gustin, J.; Lamy, L.; Badman, S. V.

    2017-12-01

    In 2016 and 2017, the Cassini Saturn orbiter executed a final series of high inclination, low-periapsis orbits ideal for studies of Saturn's polar regions. The Cassini Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVIS) obtained an extensive set of auroral images, some at the highest spatial resolution obtained during Cassini's long orbital mission (2004-2017). In some cases, two or three spacecraft slews at right angles to the long slit of the spectrograph were required to cover the entire auroral region to form auroral images. We will present selected images from this set showing narrow arcs of emission, more diffuse auroral emissions, multiple auroral arcs in a single image, discrete spots of emission, small scale vortices, large-scale spiral forms, and parallel linear features that appear to cross in places like twisted wires. Some shorter features are transverse to the main auroral arcs, like barbs on a wire. UVIS observations were in some cases simultaneous with auroral observations from the Hubble Space Telescope Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) that will also be presented. UVIS polar images also contain spectral information suitable for studies of the auroral electron energy distribution. The long wavelength part of the UVIS polar images contains a signal from reflected sunlight containing absorption signatures of acetylene and other Saturn hydrocarbons. The hydrocarbon spatial distribution will also be examined.

  15. A user's guide to the Flexible Spacecraft Dynamics and Control Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fedor, J. V.

    1984-01-01

    A guide to the use of the Flexible Spacecraft Dynamics Program (FSD) is presented covering input requirements, control words, orbit generation, spacecraft description and simulation options, and output definition. The program can be used in dynamics and control analysis as well as in orbit support of deployment and control of spacecraft. The program is applicable to inertially oriented spinning, Earth oriented or gravity gradient stabilized spacecraft. Internal and external environmental effects can be simulated.

  16. Guidance and control of swarms of spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Morgan, Daniel James

    There has been considerable interest in formation flying spacecraft due to their potential to perform certain tasks at a cheaper cost than monolithic spacecraft. Formation flying enables the use of smaller, cheaper spacecraft that distribute the risk of the mission. Recently, the ideas of formation flying have been extended to spacecraft swarms made up of hundreds to thousands of 100-gram-class spacecraft known as femtosatellites. The large number of spacecraft and limited capabilities of each individual spacecraft present a significant challenge in guidance, navigation, and control. This dissertation deals with the guidance and control algorithms required to enable the flight of spacecraft swarms. The algorithms developed in this dissertation are focused on achieving two main goals: swarm keeping and swarm reconfiguration. The objectives of swarm keeping are to maintain bounded relative distances between spacecraft, prevent collisions between spacecraft, and minimize the propellant used by each spacecraft. Swarm reconfiguration requires the transfer of the swarm to a specific shape. Like with swarm keeping, minimizing the propellant used and preventing collisions are the main objectives. Additionally, the algorithms required for swarm keeping and swarm reconfiguration should be decentralized with respect to communication and computation so that they can be implemented on femtosats, which have limited hardware capabilities. The algorithms developed in this dissertation are concerned with swarms located in low Earth orbit. In these orbits, Earth oblateness and atmospheric drag have a significant effect on the relative motion of the swarm. The complicated dynamic environment of low Earth orbits further complicates the swarm-keeping and swarm-reconfiguration problems. To better develop and test these algorithms, a nonlinear, relative dynamic model with J2 and drag perturbations is developed. This model is used throughout this dissertation to validate the algorithms

  17. Navigating the MESSENGER Spacecraft through End of Mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bryan, C. G.; Williams, B. G.; Williams, K. E.; Taylor, A. H.; Carranza, E.; Page, B. R.; Stanbridge, D. R.; Mazarico, E.; Neumann, G. A.; O'Shaughnessy, D. J.; McAdams, J. V.; Calloway, A. B.

    2015-12-01

    The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft orbited the planet Mercury from March 2011 until the end of April 2015, when it impacted the planetary surface after propellant reserves used to maintain the orbit were depleted. This highly successful mission was led by the principal investigator, Sean C. Solomon, of Columbia University. The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) designed and assembled the spacecraft and served as the home for spacecraft operations. Spacecraft navigation for the entirety of the mission was provided by the Space Navigation and Flight Dynamics Practice (SNAFD) of KinetX Aerospace. Orbit determination (OD) solutions were generated through processing of radiometric tracking data provided by NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN) using the MIRAGE suite of orbital analysis tools. The MESSENGER orbit was highly eccentric, with periapsis at a high northern latitude and periapsis altitude in the range 200-500 km for most of the orbital mission phase. In a low-altitude "hover campaign" during the final two months of the mission, periapsis altitudes were maintained within a narrow range between about 35 km and 5 km. Navigating a spacecraft so near a planetary surface presented special challenges. Tasks required to meet those challenges included the modeling and estimation of Mercury's gravity field and of solar and planetary radiation pressure, and the design of frequent orbit-correction maneuvers. Superior solar conjunction also presented observational modeling issues. One key to the overall success of the low-altitude hover campaign was a strategy to utilize data from an onboard laser altimeter as a cross-check on the navigation team's reconstructed and predicted estimates of periapsis altitude. Data obtained from the Mercury Laser Altimeter (MLA) on a daily basis provided near-real-time feedback that proved invaluable in evaluating alternative orbit estimation strategies, and

  18. Multiple spacecraft Michelson stellar interferometer

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stachnik, R. V.; Arnold, D.; Melroy, P.; Mccormack, E. F.; Gezari, D. Y.

    1984-01-01

    Results of an orbital analysis and performance assessment of SAMSI (Spacecraft Array for Michelson Spatial Interferometry) are presented. The device considered includes two one-meter telescopes in orbits which are identical except for slightly different inclinations; the telescopes achieve separations as large as 10 km and relay starlight to a central station which has a one-meter optical delay line in one interferometer arm. It is shown that a 1000-km altitude, zero mean inclination orbit affords natural scanning of the 10-km baseline with departures from optical pathlength equality which are well within the corrective capacity of the optical delay line. Electric propulsion is completely adequate to provide the required spacecraft motions, principally those needed for repointing. Resolution of 0.00001 arcsec and magnitude limits of 15 to 20 are achievable.

  19. An Artificial Gravity Spacecraft Approach which Minimizes Mass, Fuel and Orbital Assembly Reg

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bell, L.

    2002-01-01

    The Sasakawa International Center for Space Architecture (SICSA) is undertaking a multi-year research and design study that is exploring near and long-term commercial space development opportunities. Space tourism in low-Earth orbit (LEO), and possibly beyond LEO, comprises one business element of this plan. Supported by a financial gift from the owner of a national U.S. hotel chain, SICSA has examined opportunities, requirements and facility concepts to accommodate up to 100 private citizens and crewmembers in LEO, as well as on lunar/planetary rendezvous voyages. SICSA's artificial gravity Science Excursion Vehicle ("AGSEV") design which is featured in this presentation was conceived as an option for consideration to enable round-trip travel to Moon and Mars orbits and back from LEO. During the course of its development, the AGSEV would also serve other important purposes. An early assembly stage would provide an orbital science and technology testbed for artificial gravity demonstration experiments. An ultimate mature stage application would carry crews of up to 12 people on Mars rendezvous missions, consuming approximately the same propellant mass required for lunar excursions. Since artificial gravity spacecraft that rotate to create centripetal accelerations must have long spin radii to limit adverse effects of Coriolis forces upon inhabitants, SICSA's AGSEV design embodies a unique tethered body concept which is highly efficient in terms of structural mass and on-orbit assembly requirements. The design also incorporates "inflatable" as well as "hard" habitat modules to optimize internal volume/mass relationships. Other important considerations and features include: maximizing safety through element and system redundancy; means to avoid destabilizing mass imbalances throughout all construction and operational stages; optimizing ease of on-orbit servicing between missions; and maximizing comfort and performance through careful attention to human needs. A

  20. Formation flying for electric sails in displaced orbits. Part II: Distributed coordinated control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Wei; Mengali, Giovanni; Quarta, Alessandro A.; Yuan, Jianping

    2017-09-01

    We analyze a cooperative control framework for electric sail formation flying around a heliocentric displaced orbit, aiming at observing the polar region of a celestial body. The chief spacecraft is assumed to move along an elliptic displaced orbit, while each deputy spacecraft adjusts its thrust vector (that is, both its sail attitude and characteristic acceleration) in order to track a prescribed relative trajectory. The relative motion of the electric sail formation system is formulated in the chief rotating frame, where the control inputs of each deputy are the relative sail attitude angles and the relative lightness number with respect to those of the chief. The information exchange among the spacecraft, characterized by the communication topology, is represented by a weighted graph. Two typical cases, according to whether the communication graph is directed or undirected, are discussed. For each case, a distributed coordinated control law is designed in such a way that each deputy not only tracks the chief state, but also makes full use of information from its neighbors, thus increasing the redundancy and robustness of the formation system in case of failure among the communication links. Illustrative examples show the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

  1. Science Planning and Orbit Classification for Solar Probe Plus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kusterer, M. B.; Fox, N. J.; Rodgers, D. J.; Turner, F. S.

    2016-12-01

    There are a number of challenges for the Science Planning Team (SPT) of the Solar Probe Plus (SPP) Mission. Since SPP is using a decoupled payload operations approach, tight coordination between the mission operations and payload teams will be required. The payload teams must manage the volume of data that they write to the spacecraft solid-state recorders (SSR) for their individual instruments for downlink to the ground. Making this process more difficult, the geometry of the celestial bodies and the spacecraft during some of the SPP mission orbits cause limited uplink and downlink opportunities. The payload teams will also be required to coordinate power on opportunities, command uplink opportunities, and data transfers from instrument memory to the spacecraft SSR with the operation team. The SPT also intend to coordinate observations with other spacecraft and ground based systems. To solve these challenges, detailed orbit activity planning is required in advance for each orbit. An orbit planning process is being created to facilitate the coordination of spacecraft and payload activities for each orbit. An interactive Science Planning Tool is being designed to integrate the payload data volume and priority allocations, spacecraft ephemeris, attitude, downlink and uplink schedules, spacecraft and payload activities, and other spacecraft ephemeris. It will be used during science planning to select the instrument data priorities and data volumes that satisfy the orbit data volume constraints and power on, command uplink and data transfer time periods. To aid in the initial stages of science planning we have created an orbit classification scheme based on downlink availability and significant science events. Different types of challenges arise in the management of science data driven by orbital geometry and operational constraints, and this scheme attempts to identify the patterns that emerge.

  2. The Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (SNPP): Continuing NASA Research and Applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Butler, James; Gleason, James; Jedlovec, Gary; Coronado, Patrick

    2015-01-01

    The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) satellite was successfully launched into a polar orbit on October 28, 2011 carrying 5 remote sensing instruments designed to provide data to improve weather forecasts and to increase understanding of long-term climate change. SNPP provides operational continuity of satellite-based observations for NOAA's Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) and continues the long-term record of climate quality observations established by NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS) satellites. In the 2003 to 2011 pre-launch timeframe, NASA's SNPP Science Team assessed the adequacy of the operational Raw Data Records (RDRs), Sensor Data Records (SDRs), and Environmental Data Records (EDRs) from the SNPP instruments for use in NASA Earth Science research, examined the operational algorithms used to produce those data records, and proposed a path forward for the production of climate quality products from SNPP. In order to perform these tasks, a distributed data system, the NASA Science Data Segment (SDS), ingested RDRs, SDRs, and EDRs from the NOAA Archive and Distribution and Interface Data Processing Segments, ADS and IDPS, respectively. The SDS also obtained operational algorithms for evaluation purposes from the NOAA Government Resource for Algorithm Verification, Independent Testing and Evaluation (GRAVITE). Within the NASA SDS, five Product Evaluation and Test Elements (PEATEs) received, ingested, and stored data and performed NASA's data processing, evaluation, and analysis activities. The distributed nature of this data distribution system was established by physically housing each PEATE within one of five Climate Analysis Research Systems (CARS) located at either at a NASA or a university institution. The CARS were organized around 5 key EDRs directly in support of the following NASA Earth Science focus areas: atmospheric sounding, ocean, land, ozone, and atmospheric composition products. The PEATES provided

  3. A Sampling Based Approach to Spacecraft Autonomous Maneuvering with Safety Specifications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Starek, Joseph A.; Barbee, Brent W.; Pavone, Marco

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents a methods for safe spacecraft autonomous maneuvering that leverages robotic motion-planning techniques to spacecraft control. Specifically the scenario we consider is an in-plan rendezvous of a chaser spacecraft in proximity to a target spacecraft at the origin of the Clohessy Wiltshire Hill frame. The trajectory for the chaser spacecraft is generated in a receding horizon fashion by executing a sampling based robotic motion planning algorithm name Fast Marching Trees (FMT) which efficiently grows a tree of trajectories over a set of probabillistically drawn samples in the state space. To enforce safety the tree is only grown over actively safe samples for which there exists a one-burn collision avoidance maneuver that circularizes the spacecraft orbit along a collision-free coasting arc and that can be executed under potential thrusters failures. The overall approach establishes a provably correct framework for the systematic encoding of safety specifications into the spacecraft trajectory generations process and appears amenable to real time implementation on orbit. Simulation results are presented for a two-fault tolerant spacecraft during autonomous approach to a single client in Low Earth Orbit.

  4. Thermal elastic shock and its effect on TOPEX spacecraft attitude control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zimbelman, Darrell F.

    1991-01-01

    Thermal elastic shock (TES) is a twice per orbit impulsive disturbance torque experienced by low-Earth orbiting spacecraft. The fundamental equations used to model the TES disturbance torque for typical spacecraft appendages (e.g., solar arrays and antenna booms) are derived in detail. In particular, the attitude-pointing performance of the TOPEX spacecraft, when subjected to the TES disturbance, is analyzed using a three-axis nonlinear time-domain simulation. Results indicate that the TOPEX spacecraft could exceed its roll-axis attitude-control requirement during penumbral transitions, and remain in violation for approximately 150 sec each orbit until the umbra collapses. A localized active-control system is proposed as a solution to minimize and/or eliminate the degrading effects of the TES disturbance.

  5. Attitude control for on-orbit servicing spacecraft using hybrid actuator

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Yunhua; Han, Feng; Zheng, Mohong; He, Mengjie; Chen, Zhiming; Hua, Bing; Wang, Feng

    2018-03-01

    On-orbit servicing is one of the research hotspots of space missions. A small satellite equipped with multiple robotic manipulators is expected to carry out device replacement task for target large spacecraft. Attitude hyperstable control of a small satellite platform under rotations of the manipulators is a challenging problem. A hybrid momentum exchanging actuator consists of Control Moment Gyro (CMG) and Reaction Wheel (RW) is proposed to tackle the above issue, due to its huge amount of momentum storage capacity of the CMG and high control accuracy of the RW, in which the CMG produces large command torque while the RW offers additional control degrees. The constructed dynamic model of the servicing satellite advises that it's feasible for attitude hyperstable control of the platform with arbitrary manipulators through compensating the disturbance generated by rapid rotation of the manipulators. Then, null motion between the CMG and RW is exploited to drive the system to the expected target with favorable performance, and to overcome the CMG inherent geometric singularity and RW saturation. Simulations with different initial situations, including CMG hyperbolic and elliptic singularities and RW saturation, are executed. Compared to the scenarios where the CMG or RW fails stabilizing the platform, large control torque, precise control effect and escape of singularity are guaranteed by the introduced hybrid actuator, CMGRW (CMGRW refers to the hybrid momentum exchanging devices in this paper, consisting of 4 CMGs in classical pyramid cluster and 3 RWs in an orthogonal group (specific description can been found in Section 4)). The feasible performance of the satellite, CMG and RW under large disturbance demonstrates that the control architecture proposed is capable of attitude control for on-orbit servicing satellite with multiple robotic manipulators.

  6. KEPLER-63b: A GIANT PLANET IN A POLAR ORBIT AROUND A YOUNG SUN-LIKE STAR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sanchis-Ojeda, Roberto; Winn, Joshua N.; Albrecht, Simon; Marcy, Geoffrey W.; Isaacson, Howard; Howard, Andrew W.; Johnson, John Asher; Torres, Guillermo; Carter, Joshua A.; Dawson, Rebekah I.; Geary, John C.; Campante, Tiago L.; Chaplin, William J.; Davies, Guy R.; Lund, Mikkel N.; Buchhave, Lars A.; Everett, Mark E.; Fischer, Debra A.; Gilliland, Ronald L.; Horch, Elliott P.

    2013-01-01

    We present the discovery and characterization of a giant planet orbiting the young Sun-like star Kepler-63 (KOI-63, m Kp = 11.6, T eff = 5576 K, M * = 0.98 M ☉ ). The planet transits every 9.43 days, with apparent depth variations and brightening anomalies caused by large starspots. The planet's radius is 6.1 ± 0.2 R ⊕ , based on the transit light curve and the estimated stellar parameters. The planet's mass could not be measured with the existing radial-velocity data, due to the high level of stellar activity, but if we assume a circular orbit, then we can place a rough upper bound of 120 M ⊕ (3σ). The host star has a high obliquity (ψ = 104°), based on the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect and an analysis of starspot-crossing events. This result is valuable because almost all previous obliquity measurements are for stars with more massive planets and shorter-period orbits. In addition, the polar orbit of the planet combined with an analysis of spot-crossing events reveals a large and persistent polar starspot. Such spots have previously been inferred using Doppler tomography, and predicted in simulations of magnetic activity of young Sun-like stars

  7. KEPLER-63b: A GIANT PLANET IN A POLAR ORBIT AROUND A YOUNG SUN-LIKE STAR

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sanchis-Ojeda, Roberto; Winn, Joshua N.; Albrecht, Simon [Department of Physics, and Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Marcy, Geoffrey W.; Isaacson, Howard [Astronomy Department, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States); Howard, Andrew W. [Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, 2680 Woodlawn Drive, Honolulu, HI 96822 (United States); Johnson, John Asher [Department of Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E. California Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States); Torres, Guillermo; Carter, Joshua A.; Dawson, Rebekah I.; Geary, John C. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); Campante, Tiago L.; Chaplin, William J.; Davies, Guy R. [School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT (United Kingdom); Lund, Mikkel N. [Stellar Astrophysics Centre (SAC), Department of Physics and Astronomy, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 120, DK-8000 Aarhus C (Denmark); Buchhave, Lars A. [Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Juliane Maries vej 30, DK-2100 Copenhagen (Denmark); Everett, Mark E. [National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 N. Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85719 (United States); Fischer, Debra A. [Astronomy Department, Yale University, New Haven, CT (United States); Gilliland, Ronald L. [Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, The Pennsylvania State University, 525 Davey Lab, University Park, PA 16802 (United States); Horch, Elliott P. [Southern Connecticut State University, New Haven, CT 06515 (United States); and others

    2013-09-20

    We present the discovery and characterization of a giant planet orbiting the young Sun-like star Kepler-63 (KOI-63, m{sub Kp} = 11.6, T{sub eff} = 5576 K, M{sub *} = 0.98 M{sub ☉}). The planet transits every 9.43 days, with apparent depth variations and brightening anomalies caused by large starspots. The planet's radius is 6.1 ± 0.2 R{sub ⊕}, based on the transit light curve and the estimated stellar parameters. The planet's mass could not be measured with the existing radial-velocity data, due to the high level of stellar activity, but if we assume a circular orbit, then we can place a rough upper bound of 120 M{sub ⊕} (3σ). The host star has a high obliquity (ψ = 104°), based on the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect and an analysis of starspot-crossing events. This result is valuable because almost all previous obliquity measurements are for stars with more massive planets and shorter-period orbits. In addition, the polar orbit of the planet combined with an analysis of spot-crossing events reveals a large and persistent polar starspot. Such spots have previously been inferred using Doppler tomography, and predicted in simulations of magnetic activity of young Sun-like stars.

  8. Summary of the Orbiter mechanical systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kiker, J.; Hinson, K.

    1979-01-01

    Major mechanical systems of the Orbiter space vehicle are summarized with respect to general design details, manner of operation, expected performance, and, where applicable, unique features. A synopsis of data obtained during the five atmospheric flight tests of spacecraft OV-101 and status of the systems for the first orbital spacecraft STS-1 are presented.

  9. Investigating fundamental physics and space environment with a dedicated Earth-orbiting spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peron, Roberto

    -year requirement and thus they need specific arrangements for deorbiting at the end of life or they can simply rely on mother nature for reentry. The goal of this proposed approach is to utilize existing technology developed for acceleration measurement in space and state-of-the-art satellite tracking to precisely determine the orbit of a satellite with well-defined geometrical and mass characteristics (i.e., (A/m) ratio), at the same time accurately measuring over a long period of time the drag deceleration (as well as others non-gravitational effects) acting on the satellite. This will result in a virtually drag-free object that can be exploited to: 1. perform fundamental physics tests by verifying the equation of motion of a test mass in the general relativistic context and placing limits to alternative theories of gravitation; 2. improve the knowledge of selected tidal terms; 3. map, through acceleration measurements, the atmospheric density in the orbital region of interest. In its preliminary incarnation, the satellite would be cylindrical in shape and spinning about its cylinder axis that would be also orthogonal to the orbital plane. The satellite should be placed on a dawn-dusk, sun-synchronous, elliptical orbit spanning the orbital altitudes of interest (e.g., between 500 and 1200 km of altitude). The satellite should be equipped with a 3-axis accelerometer package with an acceleration resolution better than (10^{-11} g) (with (g) the acceleration at the Earth's surface). The expected measurement range is (10^{-8} - 10^{-11} g) considering estimates of drag forces at minimum and maximum solar activity conditions in the altitude range of interest and a preliminary estimate of the satellite (A/m) ratio. The overall concept of the mission will be discussed, concentrating on the fundamental aspects and main scientific return. The main instrumentation to be hosted on-board the spacecraft will be then reviewed, with a focus on current and projected capabilities.

  10. Definition of the topological structure of the automatic control system of spacecrafts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    KrasnoyarskiyRabochiy prospect, Krasnoyarsk, 660014 (Russian Federation))" data-affiliation=" (Siberian State Aerospace University named after Academician M.F.Reshetnev 31 KrasnoyarskiyRabochiy prospect, Krasnoyarsk, 660014 (Russian Federation))" >Zelenkov, P V; KrasnoyarskiyRabochiy prospect, Krasnoyarsk, 660014 (Russian Federation))" data-affiliation=" (Siberian State Aerospace University named after Academician M.F.Reshetnev 31 KrasnoyarskiyRabochiy prospect, Krasnoyarsk, 660014 (Russian Federation))" >Karaseva, M V; KrasnoyarskiyRabochiy prospect, Krasnoyarsk, 660014 (Russian Federation))" data-affiliation=" (Siberian State Aerospace University named after Academician M.F.Reshetnev 31 KrasnoyarskiyRabochiy prospect, Krasnoyarsk, 660014 (Russian Federation))" >Tsareva, E A; Tsarev, R Y

    2015-01-01

    The paper considers the problem of selection the topological structure of the automated control system of spacecrafts. The integer linear model of mathematical programming designed to define the optimal topological structure for spacecraft control is proposed. To solve the determination problem of topological structure of the control system of spacecrafts developed the procedure of the directed search of some structure variants according to the scheme 'Branch and bound'. The example of the automated control system of spacecraft development included the combination of ground control stations, managing the spacecraft of three classes with a geosynchronous orbit with constant orbital periods is presented

  11. Orbit-attitude coupled motion around small bodies: Sun-synchronous orbits with Sun-tracking attitude motion

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kikuchi, Shota; Howell, Kathleen C.; Tsuda, Yuichi; Kawaguchi, Jun'ichiro

    2017-11-01

    The motion of a spacecraft in proximity to a small body is significantly perturbed due to its irregular gravity field and solar radiation pressure. In such a strongly perturbed environment, the coupling effect of the orbital and attitude motions exerts a large influence that cannot be neglected. However, natural orbit-attitude coupled dynamics around small bodies that are stationary in both orbital and attitude motions have yet to be observed. The present study therefore investigates natural coupled motion that involves both a Sun-synchronous orbit and Sun-tracking attitude motion. This orbit-attitude coupled motion enables a spacecraft to maintain its orbital geometry and attitude state with respect to the Sun without requiring active control. Therefore, the proposed method can reduce the use of an orbit and attitude control system. This paper first presents analytical conditions to achieve Sun-synchronous orbits and Sun-tracking attitude motion. These analytical solutions are then numerically propagated based on non-linear coupled orbit-attitude equations of motion. Consequently, the possibility of implementing Sun-synchronous orbits with Sun-tracking attitude motion is demonstrated.

  12. Topography of the Lunar Poles and Application to Geodesy with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mazarico, Erwan; Neumann, Gregory A.; Rowlands, David D.; Smith, David E.; Zuber, Maria T.

    2012-01-01

    The Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) [1] onboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) [2] has been operating continuously since July 2009 [3], accumulating approx.5.4 billion measurements from 2 billion on-orbit laser shots. LRO s near-polar orbit results in very high data density in the immediate vicinity of the lunar poles, which are each sampled every 2h. With more than 10,000 orbits, high-resolution maps can be constructed [4] and studied [5]. However, this requires careful processing of the raw data, as subtle errors in the spacecraft position and pointing can lead to visible artifacts in the final map. In other locations on the Moon, ground tracks are subparallel and longitudinal separations are typically a few hundred meters. Near the poles, the track intersection angles can be large and the inter-track spacing is small (above 80 latitude, the effective resolution is better than 50m). Precision Orbit Determination (POD) of the LRO spacecraft [6] was performed to satisfy the LOLA and LRO mission requirements, which lead to a significant improvement in the orbit position knowledge over the short-release navigation products. However, with pixel resolutions of 10 to 25 meters, artifacts due to orbit reconstruction still exist. Here, we show how the complete LOLA dataset at both poles can be adjusted geometrically to produce a high-accuracy, high-resolution maps with minimal track artifacts. We also describe how those maps can then feedback to the POD work, by providing topographic base maps with which individual LOLA altimetric measurements can be contributing to orbit changes. These direct altimetry constraints improve accuracy and can be used more simply than the altimetric crossovers [6].

  13. The fluxgate magnetometer of the BepiColombo Mercury Planetary Orbiter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glassmeier, K.-H.; Auster, H.-U.; Heyner, D.; Okrafka, K.; Carr, C.; Berghofer, G.; Anderson, B. J.; Balogh, A.; Baumjohann, W.; Cargill, P.; Christensen, U.; Delva, M.; Dougherty, M.; Fornaçon, K.-H.; Horbury, T. S.; Lucek, E. A.; Magnes, W.; Mandea, M.; Matsuoka, A.; Matsushima, M.; Motschmann, U.; Nakamura, R.; Narita, Y.; O'Brien, H.; Richter, I.; Schwingenschuh, K.; Shibuya, H.; Slavin, J. A.; Sotin, C.; Stoll, B.; Tsunakawa, H.; Vennerstrom, S.; Vogt, J.; Zhang, T.

    2010-01-01

    The magnetometer (MAG) on the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) of the joint European-Japanese BepiColombo mission to planet Mercury is a low-noise, tri-axial, dual-sensor, digital fluxgate instrument with its sensors mounted on a 2.8-m-long boom. The primary MPO/MAG science objectives are to determine the spatial and temporal structure of the magnetic field in the Hermean system, in particular the structure and origin of the intrinsic magnetic field of Mercury. MPO/MAG has a dynamic measurement range of ±2000nT with a resolution of 2 pT during operation along the near-polar orbit of the MPO spacecraft around Mercury. MPO/MAG is designed to provide measurements with rates between 0.5 and 128 vectors/s. In cooperation with its sister magnetometer instrument, MMO/MGF on board the BepiColombo Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO), MPO/MAG will be able to distinguish between temporal and spatial magnetic field variations in the magnetically closely coupled Hermean system.

  14. Effects of Space Weather on Geosynchronous Electromagnetic Spacecraft Perturbations Using Statistical Fluxes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hughes, J.; Schaub, H.

    2017-12-01

    Spacecraft can charge to very negative voltages at GEO due to interactions with the space plasma. This can cause arcing which can damage spacecraft electronics or solar panels. Recently, it has been suggested that spacecraft charging may lead to orbital perturbations which change the orbits of lightweight uncontrolled debris orbits significantly. The motions of High Area to Mass Ratio objects are not well explained with just perturbations from Solar Radiation Pressure (SRP) and earth, moon, and sun gravity. A charged spacecraft will experience a Lorentz force as the spacecraft moves relative to Earth's magnetic field, as well as a Lorentz torque and eddy current torques if the object is rotating. Prior work assuming a constant "worst case" voltage has shown that Lorentz and eddy torques can cause quite large orbital changes by rotating the object to experience more or less SRP. For some objects, including or neglecting these electromagnetic torques can lead to differences of thousands of kilometers after only two orbits. This paper will further investigate the effects of electromagnetic perturbations by using a charging model that uses measured flux distributions to better simulate natural charging. This differs from prior work which used a constant voltage or Maxwellian distributions. This is done to a calm space weather case of Kp = 2 and a stormy case where Kp = 8. Preliminary analysis suggests that electrostatics will still cause large orbital changes even with the more realistic charging model.

  15. Spacecraft Environmental Interactions Technology, 1983

    Science.gov (United States)

    1985-01-01

    State of the art of environment interactions dealing with low-Earth-orbit plasmas; high-voltage systems; spacecraft charging; materials effects; and direction of future programs are contained in over 50 papers.

  16. Testing programs for the Multimission Modular Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greenwell, T. J.

    1978-01-01

    The Multimission Modular Spacecraft (MMS) provides a standard spacecraft bus to a user for a variety of space missions ranging from near-earth to synchronous orbits. The present paper describes the philosophy behind the MMS module test program and discusses the implementation of the test program. It is concluded that the MMS module test program provides an effective and comprehensive customer buy-off at the subsystem contractor's plant, is an optimum approach for checkout of the subsystems prior to use for on-orbit servicing in the Shuttle Cargo Bay, and is a cost-effective technique for environmental testing.

  17. Magnetic-field fluctuations from 0 to 26 Hz observed from a polar-orbiting satellite

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Erlandson, R.E.; Zanetti, L.J.; Potemra, T.A.

    1989-01-01

    The polar orbit of the Viking satellite provides a unique opportunity to obtain observations of magnetic fluctuations at mid-altitudes on the dayside of the magnetosphere and in the polar-cusp region. One type of magnetic-field fluctuation, observed in the dayside magnetosphere, was Pc 1 waves. Pc 1 waves are in the electromagnetic ion-cyclotron mode and are generated by anisotropies in energetic ion distributions. The waves are thought to be generated near the equator and to propagate large distances along magnetic-field lines. Most observations of Pc 1 waves have been obtained near the equator using geosynchronous satellites and on the surface of the earth. The Viking observations provide an opportunity to observe Pc 1 waves at mid-latitudes above the ionosphere and to determine the spectral structure and polarization of the waves. ULF/ELF broadband noise represents a second type of magnetic fluctuation acquired by Viking. This type of magnetic fluctuation was observed at high latitudes near the polar cusp and may be useful in the identification of polar-cusp boundaries. Thirdly, electromagnetic ion-cyclotron waves have also been observed in the polar-cusp region. These waves occur only during an unusually high level of magnetic activity and appear to be generated locally

  18. Four Years on Orbit at the Moon with LOLA

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, D. E.; Zuber, M. T.; Neumann, G. A.; Mazarico, E.; Torrence, M. H.; Lemoine, F. G.

    2013-12-01

    After four years of near-continuous operation at the Moon, the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) continues to collect altimetry, surface roughness, slope and normal reflectance data. Although the instrument is beginning to show the effects of tens of thousands of thermal cycles and the natural process of the aging of the laser transmitters, LOLA continues to acquire data on the sunlit portion of every orbit on all 5 laser beams when below 100-km altitude. LOLA has acquired over 6x10^9 altimeter measurements, all geodetically controlled to the center-of-mass of the Moon with a radial precision of around 10 cm and an accuracy of about 1 meter. The position of the measurements on the lunar surface is primarily limited by the knowledge of the position of the spacecraft in orbit; in the last year the LRO orbit accuracy has improved significantly as a result of the availability of an accurate gravity model of the Moon from the GRAIL Discovery mission. Our present estimate of positional accuracy is less than 10 m rms but is only achievable with a GRAIL gravity model to at least degree and order 600 because of the perturbing gravitational effect of the Moon's surface features. Significant improvements in the global shape and topography have assisted the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) stereo mapping program, and the identification of potential lunar landing sites for ESA and Russia, particularly in the high-latitude polar regions where 5- and 10-meter average horizontal resolution has been obtained. LOLA's detailed mapping of the polar regions has improved the delineation of permanently-shadowed areas and assisted in the understanding of the LEND neutron data and its relationship to surface slopes. Recently, a global, calibrated LOLA normal albedo dataset at 1064 nm has been developed and is being combined with analysis and modeling by the Diviner team for the identification of the coldest locations in the polar regions.

  19. The Coupled Orbit-Attitude Dynamics and Control of Electric Sail in Displaced Solar Orbits

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mingying Huo

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Displaced solar orbits for spacecraft propelled by electric sails are investigated. Since the propulsive thrust is induced by the sail attitude, the orbital and attitude dynamics of electric-sail-based spacecraft are coupled and required to be investigated together. However, the coupled dynamics and control of electric sails have not been discussed in most published literatures. In this paper, the equilibrium point of the coupled dynamical system in displaced orbit is obtained, and its stability is analyzed through a linearization. The results of stability analysis show that only some of the orbits are marginally stable. For unstable displaced orbits, linear quadratic regulator is employed to control the coupled attitude-orbit system. Numerical simulations show that the proposed strategy can control the coupled system and a small torque can stabilize both the attitude and orbit. In order to generate the control force and torque, the voltage distribution problem is studied in an optimal framework. The numerical results show that the control force and torque of electric sail can be realized by adjusting the voltage distribution of charged tethers.

  20. Viking orbiter and its Mariner inheritance

    Science.gov (United States)

    1984-01-01

    Improvements to the design of the Mariner spacecraft resulted in the Viking spacecraft. The Viking spacecraft would consist of two major systems - an orbiter and a lander, while the lander would provide the means for safely delivering the scientific instruments to the surface, house, and provide the necessary power source and communication links for those experiments, the orbiter would transport the lander to Mars, rovide a platform for the Viking imaging system so that proposed landing sites could be surveyed and certified, relay lander science information back to Earth, and conduct scientific observations in its own right.

  1. Dynamics and control of Lorentz-augmented spacecraft relative motion

    CERN Document Server

    Yan, Ye; Yang, Yueneng

    2017-01-01

    This book develops a dynamical model of the orbital motion of Lorentz spacecraft in both unperturbed and J2-perturbed environments. It explicitly discusses three kinds of typical space missions involving relative orbital control: spacecraft hovering, rendezvous, and formation flying. Subsequently, it puts forward designs for both open-loop and closed-loop control schemes propelled or augmented by the geomagnetic Lorentz force. These control schemes are entirely novel and represent a significantly departure from previous approaches.

  2. Environmental Satellites. Polar-orbiting Satellite Acquisition Faces Delays; Decisions Needed on Whether and How to Ensure Climate Data Continuity

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    2008-01-01

    The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) is a triagency acquisition managed by the Department of Commerce's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA...

  3. Spacecraft electrical power subsystem: Failure behavior, reliability, and multi-state failure analyses

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, So Young; Castet, Jean-Francois; Saleh, Joseph H.

    2012-01-01

    This article investigates the degradation and failure behavior of spacecraft electrical power subsystem (EPS) on orbit. First, this work provides updated statistical reliability and multi-state failure analyses of spacecraft EPS and its different constituents, namely the batteries, the power distribution, and the solar arrays. The EPS is shown to suffer from infant mortality and to be a major driver of spacecraft unreliability. Over 25% of all spacecraft failures are the result of EPS failures. As a result, satellite manufacturers may wish to pursue targeted improvement to this subsystem, either through better testing or burn-in procedures, better design or parts selection, or additional redundancy. Second, this work investigates potential differences in the EPS degradation and failure behavior for spacecraft in low earth orbits (LEO) and geosynchronous orbits (GEO). This analysis was motivated by the recognition that the power/load cycles and the space environment are significantly different in LEO and GEO, and as such, they may result in different failure behavior for the EPS in these two types of orbits. The results indicate, and quantify the extent to which, the EPS fails differently in LEO and GEO, both in terms of frequency and severity of failure events. A casual summary of the findings can be stated as follows: the EPS fails less frequently but harder (with fatal consequences to the spacecraft) in LEO than in GEO.

  4. Temperature Condition and Spherical Shell Shape Variation of Space Gauge-Alignment Spacecraft

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. S. Zarubin

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available A high precision spherical shell is one of the geometrical shape embodiments of a gaugealignment spacecraft to determine and control a radar channel energy potential of the ground-based complex for the traffic control of space objects. Passive relays of signals and some types of smallsized instrumentation standard reflectors used for radar gauge and alignment have the same shape. Orbits of the considered spacecraft can be either circular with a height of about 1000 km, including those close to the polar, or elliptical with an apogee of up to 2200 km.In case there is no thermal control system in spacecrafts of these types the solar radiation is a major factor to define the thermal state of a spherical shell in the illuminated orbit area. With the shell in fixed position with respect to direction towards the Sun an arising uneven temperature distribution over its surface leads to variation of the spherically ideal shell shape, which may affect the functional characteristics of the spacecraft. The shell rotation about an axis perpendicular to the direction towards the Sun may reduce an unevenness degree of the temperature distribution.The uneven temperature distribution over the spherical shell surface in conditions of the lowEarth space and this unevenness impact on the shell shape variation against its spherical shape can be quantively estimated by the appropriate methods of mathematical modeling using modification of a previously developed mathematical model to describe steady temperature state of such shell on the low-Earth orbit. The paper considers the shell made from a polymeric composite material. Its original spherical shape is defined by rather low internal pressure. It is assumed that equipment in the shell, if any, is quite small-sized. This allows us to ignore its impact on the radiative transfer in the shell cavity. Along with defining the steady temperature distribution over the shell surface at its fixed orientation with respect to

  5. Environmental Satellites: Polar-orbiting Satellite Acquisition Faces Delays; Decisions Needed on Whether and How to Ensure Climate Data Continuity

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    2008-01-01

    The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) is a triagency acquisition managed by the Department of Commerce s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA...

  6. Pursuit/evasion in orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kelley, H. J.; Cliff, E. M.; Lutze, F. H.

    1981-01-01

    Maneuvers available to a spacecraft having sufficient propellant to escape an antisatellite satellite (ASAT) attack are examined. The ASAT and the evading spacecraft are regarded as being in circular orbits, and equations of motion are developed for the ASAT to commence a two-impulse maneuver sequence. The ASAT employs thrust impulses which yield a minimum-time-to-rendezvous, considering available fuel. Optimal evasion is shown to involve only in-plane maneuvers, and begins as soon as the ASAT launch information is gathered and thrust activation can be initiated. A closest approach, along with a maximum evasion by the target spacecraft, is calculated to be 14,400 ft. Further research to account for ASATs in parking orbit and for generalization of a continuous control-modeled differential game is indicated.

  7. Propulsion Trade Studies for Spacecraft Swarm Mission Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dono, Andres; Plice, Laura; Mueting, Joel; Conn, Tracie; Ho, Michael

    2018-01-01

    Spacecraft swarms constitute a challenge from an orbital mechanics standpoint. Traditional mission design involves the application of methodical processes where predefined maneuvers for an individual spacecraft are planned in advance. This approach does not scale to spacecraft swarms consisting of many satellites orbiting in close proximity; non-deterministic maneuvers cannot be preplanned due to the large number of units and the uncertainties associated with their differential deployment and orbital motion. For autonomous small sat swarms in LEO, we investigate two approaches for controlling the relative motion of a swarm. The first method involves modified miniature phasing maneuvers, where maneuvers are prescribed that cancel the differential delta V of each CubeSat's deployment vector. The second method relies on artificial potential functions (APFs) to contain the spacecraft within a volumetric boundary and avoid collisions. Performance results and required delta V budgets are summarized, indicating that each method has advantages and drawbacks for particular applications. The mini phasing maneuvers are more predictable and sustainable. The APF approach provides a more responsive and distributed performance, but at considerable propellant cost. After considering current state of the art CubeSat propulsion systems, we conclude that the first approach is feasible, but the modified APF method of requires too much control authority to be enabled by current propulsion systems.

  8. A geometric model of a V-slit Sun sensor correcting for spacecraft wobble

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mcmartin, W. P.; Gambhir, S. S.

    1994-01-01

    A V-Slit sun sensor is body-mounted on a spin-stabilized spacecraft. During injection from a parking or transfer orbit to some final orbit, the spacecraft may not be dynamically balanced. This may result in wobble about the spacecraft spin axis as the spin axis may not be aligned with the spacecraft's axis of symmetry. While the widely used models in Spacecraft Attitude Determination and Control, edited by Wertz, correct for separation, elevation, and azimuthal mounting biases, spacecraft wobble is not taken into consideration. A geometric approach is used to develop a method for measurement of the sun angle which corrects for the magnitude and phase of spacecraft wobble. The algorithm was implemented using a set of standard mathematical routines for spherical geometry on a unit sphere.

  9. Ejectile polarization and nuclear orbitals

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohnishi, A.; Maruyama, T.; Horiuchi, H.

    1992-01-01

    Ejectile polarization phenomena are studied by the use of 'Quantum Molecular Dynamics plus external mean field' model. It is shown that the far-side contribution increases as the incident energy increases or the target charge decreases. The incident energy and the target dependence of ejectile polarization data is reproduced qualitatively. The near- and far-side contributions themselves are calculated to be almost monotone functions of ejectile momentum as is predicted in a simple projectile fragmentation scheme without the assumption that the linear and angular momentum transfers are negligible, and their statistical average results in various shapes in ejectile polarization

  10. Charging in the environment of large spacecraft

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lai, S.T.

    1993-01-01

    This paper discusses some potential problems of spacecraft charging as a result of interactions between a large spacecraft, such as the Space Station, and its environment. Induced electric field, due to VXB effect, may be important for large spacecraft at low earth orbits. Differential charging, due to different properties of surface materials, may be significant when the spacecraft is partly in sunshine and partly in shadow. Triple-root potential jump condition may occur because of differential charging. Sudden onset of severe differential charging may occur when an electron or ion beam is emitted from the spacecraft. The beam may partially return to the ''hot spots'' on the spacecraft. Wake effects, due to blocking of ambient ion trajectories, may result in an undesirable negative potential region in the vicinity of a large spacecraft. Outgassing and exhaust may form a significant spacecraft induced environment; ionization may occur. Spacecraft charging and discharging may affect the electronic components on board

  11. Ulysses' rapid crossing of the polar coronal hole boundary

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McComas, D.J.; Riley, P.; Gosling, J.T.; Balogh, A.; Forsyth, R.

    1998-01-01

    The Ulysses spacecraft crossed from the slow dense solar wind characteristic of the solar streamer belt into the fast, less dense flow from the northern polar coronal hole over a very short interval (several days) in late March 1995. The spacecraft, which was at 1.35 AU and ∼19 degree north heliographic latitude, moving northward in its orbit, remained in the fast solar wind from then through summer 1996. This boundary crossing is unique in that the combination of the spacecraft motion and rotation of the structure past the spacecraft caused Ulysses to move smoothly and completely from one regime into the other. In this study we examine this crossing in detail. The crossing is marked by a region of enhanced pressure, typical of stream interaction regions, which extends ∼2x10 7 km across. We find that the transition between the slow and fast regimes occurs on several temporal, and hence spatial, scales. On the shortest scale ( 4 km) the stream interface is a tangential discontinuity where the proton and core electron densities and ion and electron pressures all drop while the magnetic pressure jumps to maintain a rough pressure balance. The alpha to proton ratio also jumps across the stream interface to reach the comparatively constant polar hole value of ∼4.3%. On larger scales (a few x10 6 km) the proton and alpha temperatures rise to their high-speed wind values. Finally, on the largest scale (∼10 8 km) the solar wind speed ramps up from ∼400kms -1 to ∼750kms -1 , typical of polar hole flows. While it seems likely that the stream interface maps back to a sharp boundary near the Sun, the large region of increasing flow speed suggests that there is also an extended gradient in solar wind source speed close to the Sun. copyright 1998 American Geophysical Union

  12. Stability of orbits around planetary satellites considering a disturbing body in an elliptical orbit: Applications to Europa and Ganymede

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cardoso dos Santos, Josué; Carvalho, Jean Paulo; Vilhena de Moraes, Rodolpho

    Europa and Ganymede are two of the four Jupiter’s moons which compose the Galilean satellite. These ones are planetary satellites of greater interest at the present moment among the scientific community. There are some missions being planned to visit them and and the Jovian system. One of them is the cooperation between NASA and ESA for the Europa Jupiter System Mission (EJSM). In this mission are planned the insertion of the spacecrafts JEO (Jupiter Europa Orbiter) and JGO (Jupiter Ganymede Orbiter) into Europa and Ganymede’s orbit. Thus, there is a great necessity for having a better comprehension of the dynamics of the orbits around this planetary satellite. This comprehension is essential for the success of this type of mission. In this context, this work aims to perform a search for low-altitude orbits around these planetary satellites. An emphasis is given in polar orbits. These orbits can be useful in the planning of aerospace activities to be conducted around this planetary satellite, with respect to the stability of orbits of artificial satellites. The study considers orbits of an artificial satellite around Europa and Ganymede under the influence of the third-body perturbation (the gravitational attraction of Jupiter) and the polygenic perturbations. These last ones occur due to forces such as the non-uniform distribution of mass (J2 and J3) of the main (central) body. A simplified dynamic model for polygenic perturbations is used. A new model for the third-body disturbance is presented considering it in an elliptical orbit. The Lagrange planetary equations, which compose a system of nonlinear differential equations, are used to describe the orbital motion of the artificial satellite around Ganymede. The equations showed here are developed in closed form to avoid expansions in inclination and eccentricity.

  13. LDEF materials results for spacecraft applications: Executive summary

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whitaker, A. F.; Dooling, D.

    1995-03-01

    To address the challenges of space environmental effects, NASA designed the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) for an 18-month mission to expose thousands of samples of candidate materials that might be used on a space station or other orbital spacecraft. LDEF was launched in April 1984 and was to have been returned to Earth in 1985. Changes in mission schedules postponed retrieval until January 1990, after 69 months in orbit. Analyses of the samples recovered from LDEF have provided spacecraft designers and managers with the most extensive data base on space materials phenomena. Many LDEF samples were greatly changed by extended space exposure. Among even the most radially altered samples, NASA and its science teams are finding a wealth of surprising conclusions and tantalizing clues about the effects of space on materials. Many were discussed at the first two LDEF results conferences and subsequent professional papers. The LDEF Materials Results for Spacecraft Applications Conference was convened in Huntsville to discuss implications for spacecraft design. Already, paint and thermal blanket selections for space station and other spacecraft have been affected by LDEF data. This volume synopsizes those results.

  14. Orbital debris: a technical assessment

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Committee on Space Debris, National Research Council

    ..., and other debris created as a byproduct of space operations. Orbital Debris examines the methods we can use to characterize orbital debris, estimates the magnitude of the debris population, and assesses the hazard that this population poses to spacecraft...

  15. Spacecraft Thermal Management

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hurlbert, Kathryn Miller

    2009-01-01

    In the 21st century, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Russian Federal Space Agency, the National Space Agency of Ukraine, the China National Space Administration, and many other organizations representing spacefaring nations shall continue or newly implement robust space programs. Additionally, business corporations are pursuing commercialization of space for enabling space tourism and capital business ventures. Future space missions are likely to include orbiting satellites, orbiting platforms, space stations, interplanetary vehicles, planetary surface missions, and planetary research probes. Many of these missions will include humans to conduct research for scientific and terrestrial benefits and for space tourism, and this century will therefore establish a permanent human presence beyond Earth s confines. Other missions will not include humans, but will be autonomous (e.g., satellites, robotic exploration), and will also serve to support the goals of exploring space and providing benefits to Earth s populace. This section focuses on thermal management systems for human space exploration, although the guiding principles can be applied to unmanned space vehicles as well. All spacecraft require a thermal management system to maintain a tolerable thermal environment for the spacecraft crew and/or equipment. The requirements for human rating and the specified controlled temperature range (approximately 275 K - 310 K) for crewed spacecraft are unique, and key design criteria stem from overall vehicle and operational/programatic considerations. These criteria include high reliability, low mass, minimal power requirements, low development and operational costs, and high confidence for mission success and safety. This section describes the four major subsystems for crewed spacecraft thermal management systems, and design considerations for each. Additionally, some examples of specialized or advanced thermal system technologies are presented

  16. Special Semaphore Scheme for UHF Spacecraft Communications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Butman, Stanley; Satorius, Edgar; Ilott, Peter

    2006-01-01

    A semaphore scheme has been devised to satisfy a requirement to enable ultrahigh- frequency (UHF) radio communication between a spacecraft descending from orbit to a landing on Mars and a spacecraft, in orbit about Mars, that relays communications between Earth and the lander spacecraft. There are also two subsidiary requirements: (1) to use UHF transceivers, built and qualified for operation aboard the spacecraft that operate with residual-carrier binary phase-shift-keying (BPSK) modulation at a selectable data rate of 8, 32, 128, or 256 kb/s; and (2) to enable low-rate signaling even when received signals become so weak as to prevent communication at the minimum BPSK rate of 8 kHz. The scheme involves exploitation of Manchester encoding, which is used in conjunction with residual-carrier modulation to aid the carrier-tracking loop. By choosing various sequences of 1s, 0s, or 1s alternating with 0s to be fed to the residual-carrier modulator, one would cause the modulator to generate sidebands at a fundamental frequency of 4 or 8 kHz and harmonics thereof. These sidebands would constitute the desired semaphores. In reception, the semaphores would be detected by a software demodulator.

  17. A comparison between ion characteristics observed by the POLAR and DMSP spacecraft in the high-latitude magnetosphere

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. J. Stubbs

    2004-03-01

    Full Text Available We study here the injection and transport of ions in the convection-dominated region of the Earth's magnetosphere. The total ion counts from the CAMMICE MICS instrument aboard the POLAR spacecraft are used to generate occurrence probability distributions of magnetospheric ion populations. MICS ion spectra are characterised by both the peak in the differential energy flux, and the average energy of ions striking the detector. The former permits a comparison with the Stubbs et al. (2001 survey of He2+ ions of solar wind origin within the magnetosphere. The latter can address the occurrences of various classifications of precipitating particle fluxes observed in the topside ionosphere by DMSP satellites (Newell and Meng, 1992. The peak energy occurrences are consistent with our earlier work, including the dawn-dusk asymmetry with enhanced occurrences on the dawn flank at low energies, switching to the dusk flank at higher energies. The differences in the ion energies observed in these two studies can be explained by drift orbit effects and acceleration processes at the magnetopause, and in the tail current sheet. Near noon at average ion energies of ≈1keV, the cusp and open LLBL occur further poleward here than in the Newell and Meng survey, probably due to convection- related time-of-flight effects. An important new result is that the pre-noon bias previously observed in the LLBL is most likely due to the component of this population on closed field lines, formed largely by low energy ions drifting earthward from the tail. There is no evidence here of mass and momentum transfer from the solar wind to the LLBL by non-reconnection coupling. At higher energies ≈2–20keV, we observe ions mapping to the auroral oval and can distinguish between the boundary and central plasma sheets. We show that ions at these energies relate to a transition from dawnward to duskward dominated flow, this is evidence of how ion drift orbits in the tail influence

  18. A comparison between ion characteristics observed by the POLAR and DMSP spacecraft in the high-latitude magnetosphere

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. J. Stubbs

    2004-03-01

    Full Text Available We study here the injection and transport of ions in the convection-dominated region of the Earth's magnetosphere. The total ion counts from the CAMMICE MICS instrument aboard the POLAR spacecraft are used to generate occurrence probability distributions of magnetospheric ion populations. MICS ion spectra are characterised by both the peak in the differential energy flux, and the average energy of ions striking the detector. The former permits a comparison with the Stubbs et al. (2001 survey of He2+ ions of solar wind origin within the magnetosphere. The latter can address the occurrences of various classifications of precipitating particle fluxes observed in the topside ionosphere by DMSP satellites (Newell and Meng, 1992. The peak energy occurrences are consistent with our earlier work, including the dawn-dusk asymmetry with enhanced occurrences on the dawn flank at low energies, switching to the dusk flank at higher energies. The differences in the ion energies observed in these two studies can be explained by drift orbit effects and acceleration processes at the magnetopause, and in the tail current sheet. Near noon at average ion energies of ≈1keV, the cusp and open LLBL occur further poleward here than in the Newell and Meng survey, probably due to convection- related time-of-flight effects. An important new result is that the pre-noon bias previously observed in the LLBL is most likely due to the component of this population on closed field lines, formed largely by low energy ions drifting earthward from the tail. There is no evidence here of mass and momentum transfer from the solar wind to the LLBL by non-reconnection coupling. At higher energies ≈2–20keV, we observe ions mapping to the auroral oval and can distinguish between the boundary and central plasma sheets. We show that ions at these energies relate to a transition from dawnward to duskward dominated flow, this is evidence of how ion drift orbits in the

  19. Lifetime of a spacecraft around a synchronous system of asteroids using a dipole model

    Science.gov (United States)

    dos Santos, Leonardo Barbosa Torres; de Almeida Prado, Antonio F. Bertachini; Sanchez, Diogo Merguizo

    2017-11-01

    Space missions allow us to expand our knowledge about the origin of the solar system. It is believed that asteroids and comets preserve the physical characteristics from the time that the solar system was created. For this reason, there was an increase of missions to asteroids in the past few years. To send spacecraft to asteroids or comets is challenging, since these objects have their own characteristics in several aspects, such as size, shape, physical properties, etc., which are often only discovered after the approach and even after the landing of the spacecraft. These missions must be developed with sufficient flexibility to adjust to these parameters, which are better determined only when the spacecraft reaches the system. Therefore, conducting a dynamic investigation of a spacecraft around a multiple asteroid system offers an extremely rich environment. Extracting accurate information through analytical approaches is quite challenging and requires a significant number of restrictive assumptions. For this reason, a numerical approach to the dynamics of a spacecraft in the vicinity of a binary asteroid system is offered in this paper. In the present work, the equations of the Restricted Synchronous Four-Body Problem (RSFBP) are used to model a binary asteroid system. The main objective of this work is to construct grids of initial conditions, which relates semi-major axis and eccentricity, in order to quantify the lifetime of a spacecraft when released close to the less massive body of the binary system (modeled as a rotating mass dipole). We performed an analysis of the lifetime of the spacecraft considering several mass ratios of a binary system of asteroids and investigating the behavior of a spacecraft in the vicinity of this system. We analyze direct and retrograde orbits. This study investigated orbits that survive for at least 500 orbital periods of the system (which is approximately one year), then not colliding or escaping from the system during this

  20. Energy spectrum, the spin polarization, and the optical selection rules of the Kronig-Penney superlattice model with spin-orbit coupling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Rui

    2018-02-01

    The Kronig-Penney model, an exactly solvable one-dimensional model of crystal in solid physics, shows how the allowed and forbidden bands are formed in solids. In this paper, we study this model in the presence of both strong spin-orbit coupling and the Zeeman field. We analytically obtain four transcendental equations that represent an implicit relation between the energy and the Bloch wave vector. Solving these four transcendental equations, we obtain the spin-orbital bands exactly. In addition to the usual band gap opened at the boundary of the Brillouin zone, a much larger spin-orbital band gap is also opened at some special sites inside the Brillouin zone. The x component of the spin-polarization vector is an even function of the Bloch wave vector, while the z component of the spin-polarization vector is an odd function of the Bloch wave vector. At the band edges, the optical transition rates between adjacent bands are nonzero.

  1. Perfect tuning of spin-polarization in a ring-shaped multiple-quantum-dot nanostructure in the presence of Rashba spin–orbit coupling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Eslami, L., E-mail: Leslami@iust.ac.ir; Chaghari, Z.; Faizabadi, E.

    2013-09-02

    Spin-dependent electronic transport through an open multiple-quantum-dot ring threaded by a magnetic flux is theoretically investigated by using the single particle Green's function method. By introducing local Rashba spin–orbit interaction on an individual quantum dot and local magnetic moments on two of other quantum dots, we calculate the spin-polarization in the output lead. We find the spin-polarization can be tuned by manipulating magnetic moments, adjusting magnetic flux and setting the Rashba spin–orbit strength. It is also shown the system can operate as an efficient spin-inverter when the structure is adjusted properly. The analysis can be utilized in designing optimized nanodevices.

  2. Formation flying for electric sails in displaced orbits. Part I: Geometrical analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Wei; Mengali, Giovanni; Quarta, Alessandro A.; Yuan, Jianping

    2017-09-01

    We present a geometrical methodology for analyzing the formation flying of electric solar wind sail based spacecraft that operate in heliocentric, elliptic, displaced orbits. The spacecraft orbit is maintained by adjusting its propulsive acceleration modulus, whose value is estimated using a thrust model that takes into account a variation of the propulsive performance with the sail attitude. The properties of the relative motion of the spacecraft are studied in detail and a geometrical solution is obtained in terms of relative displaced orbital elements, assumed to be small quantities. In particular, for the small eccentricity case (i.e. for a near-circular displaced orbit), the bounds characterized by the extreme values of relative distances are analytically calculated, thus providing an useful mathematical tool for preliminary design of the spacecraft formation structure.

  3. Mars Molniya Orbit Atmospheric Resource Mining

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mueller, Robert P.; Braun, Robert D.; Sibille, Laurent; Sforzo, Brandon; Gonyea, Keir; Ali, Hisham

    2016-01-01

    This NIAC (NASA Advanced Innovative Concepts) work will focus on Mars and will build on previous efforts at analyzing atmospheric mining at Earth and the outer solar system. Spacecraft systems concepts will be evaluated and traded, to assess feasibility. However the study will primarily examine the architecture and associated missions to explore the closure, constraints and critical parameters through sensitivity studies. The Mars atmosphere consists of 95.5 percent CO2 gas which can be converted to methane fuel (CH4) and Oxidizer (O2) for chemical rocket propulsion, if hydrogen is transported from electrolyzed water on the Mars surface or from Earth. By using a highly elliptical Mars Molniya style orbit, the CO2 atmosphere can be scooped, ram-compressed and stored while the spacecraft dips into the Mars atmosphere at periapsis. Successive orbits result in additional scooping of CO2 gas, which also serves to aerobrake the spacecraft, resulting in a decaying Molniya orbit.

  4. QSAT: The Satellite for Polar Plasma Observation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsuruda, Yoshihiro; Fujimoto, Akiko; Kurahara, Naomi; Hanada, Toshiya; Yumoto, Kiyohumi; Cho, Mengu

    2009-04-01

    This paper introduces QSAT, the satellite for polar plasma observation. The QSAT project began in 2006 as an initiative by graduate students of Kyushu University, and has the potential to contribute greatly to IHY (International Heliophysical Year) by showing to the world the beauty, importance, and relevance of space science. The primary objectives of the QSAT mission are (1) to investigate plasma physics in the Earth’s aurora zone in order to better understand spacecraft charging, and (2) to conduct a comparison of the field-aligned current observed in orbit with ground-based observations. The QSAT project can provide education and research opportunities for students in an activity combining space sciences and satellite engineering. The QSAT satellite is designed to be launched in a piggyback fashion with the Japanese launch vehicle H-IIA. The spacecraft bus is being developed at the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics of Kyushu University with collaboration of Fukuoka Institute of Technology. Regarding the payload instruments, the Space Environment Research Center of Kyushu University is developing the magnetometers, whereas the Laboratory of Spacecraft Environment Interaction Engineering of Kyushu Institute of Technology is developing the plasma probes. We aim to be ready for launch in 2009 or later.

  5. A New Model of Jupiter's Magnetic Field from Juno's First Nine Orbits

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Connerney, J. E. P.; Kotsiaros, S.; Oliversen, R. J.

    2018-01-01

    A spherical harmonic model of the magnetic field of Jupiter is obtained from vector magnetic field observations acquired by the Juno spacecraft during its first nine polar orbits about the planet. Observations acquired during eight of these orbits provide the first truly global coverage of Jupiter......'s magnetic field with a coarse longitudinal separation of ~45° between perijoves. The magnetic field is represented with a degree 20 spherical harmonic model for the planetary (“internal”) field, combined with a simple model of the magnetodisc for the field (“external”) due to distributed magnetospheric...... currents. Partial solution of the underdetermined inverse problem using generalized inverse techniques yields a model (“Juno Reference Model through Perijove 9”) of the planetary magnetic field with spherical harmonic coefficients well determined through degree and order 10, providing the first detailed...

  6. A New Model of Jupiter's Magnetic Field From Juno's First Nine Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Connerney, J. E. P.; Kotsiaros, S.; Oliversen, R. J.; Espley, J. R.; Joergensen, J. L.; Joergensen, P. S.; Merayo, J. M. G.; Herceg, M.; Bloxham, J.; Moore, K. M.; Bolton, S. J.; Levin, S. M.

    2018-03-01

    A spherical harmonic model of the magnetic field of Jupiter is obtained from vector magnetic field observations acquired by the Juno spacecraft during its first nine polar orbits about the planet. Observations acquired during eight of these orbits provide the first truly global coverage of Jupiter's magnetic field with a coarse longitudinal separation of 45° between perijoves. The magnetic field is represented with a degree 20 spherical harmonic model for the planetary ("internal") field, combined with a simple model of the magnetodisc for the field ("external") due to distributed magnetospheric currents. Partial solution of the underdetermined inverse problem using generalized inverse techniques yields a model ("Juno Reference Model through Perijove 9") of the planetary magnetic field with spherical harmonic coefficients well determined through degree and order 10, providing the first detailed view of a planetary dynamo beyond Earth.

  7. The case for a modern multiwavelength, polarization-sensitive LIDAR in orbit around Mars

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brown, Adrian J.; Michaels, Timothy I.; Byrne, Shane; Sun, Wenbo; Titus, Timothy N.; Colaprete, Anthony; Wolff, Michael J.; Videen, Gorden; Grund, Christian J.

    2015-01-01

    We present the scientific case to build a multiple-wavelength, active, near-infrared (NIR) instrument to measure the reflected intensity and polarization characteristics of backscattered radiation from planetary surfaces and atmospheres. We focus on the ability of such an instrument to enhance, potentially revolutionize, our understanding of climate, volatiles and astrobiological potential of modern-day Mars. Such an instrument will address the following three major science themes, which we address in this paper: Science Theme 1. Surface. This would include global, night and day mapping of H 2 O and CO 2 surface ice properties. Science Theme 2. Ice Clouds. This would including unambiguous discrimination and seasonal mapping of CO 2 and H 2 O ice clouds. Science Theme 3. Dust Aerosols. This theme would include multiwavelength polarization measurements to infer dust grain shapes and size distributions. - Highlights: • We present the scientific rationale for a multi-wavelength, polarization sensitive lidar to be placed in orbit around Mars. • Scientific questions focus on the Martian climate and modern-day interactions between surface, ice clouds and dust aerosols. • What we would learn about volatile transport and deposition has implications for past, present and future life on Mars

  8. Gravity Probe B spacecraft description

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bennett, Norman R; Burns, Kevin; Katz, Russell; Kirschenbaum, Jon; Mason, Gary; Shehata, Shawky

    2015-01-01

    The Gravity Probe B spacecraft, developed, integrated, and tested by Lockheed Missiles and Space Company and later Lockheed Martin Corporation, consisted of structures, mechanisms, command and data handling, attitude and translation control, electrical power, thermal control, flight software, and communications. When integrated with the payload elements, the integrated system became the space vehicle. Key requirements shaping the design of the spacecraft were: (1) the tight mission timeline (17 months, 9 days of on-orbit operation), (2) precise attitude and translational control, (3) thermal protection of science hardware, (4) minimizing aerodynamic, magnetic, and eddy current effects, and (5) the need to provide a robust, low risk spacecraft. The spacecraft met all mission requirements, as demonstrated by dewar lifetime meeting specification, positive power and thermal margins, precision attitude control and drag-free performance, reliable communications, and the collection of more than 97% of the available science data. (paper)

  9. Project Overview of the Naval Postgraduate School Spacecraft Architecture and Technology Demonstration Experiment

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Reuer, Charles

    2001-01-01

    The Naval Postgraduate School's current attempt at getting another spacecraft into orbit is focusing on Naval Postgraduate School Spacecraft Architecture and Technology Demonstration Experiment (NPSAT1...

  10. A Shaftless Magnetically Levitated Multifunctional Spacecraft Flywheel Storage System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stevens, Ken; Thornton, Richard; Clark, Tracy; Beaman, Bob G.; Dennehy, Neil; Day, John H. (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    Presently many types of spacecraft use a Spacecraft Attitude Control System (ACS) with momentum wheels for steering and electrochemical batteries to provide electrical power for the eclipse period of the spacecraft orbit. Future spacecraft will use Flywheels for combined use in ACS and Energy Storage. This can be done by using multiple wheels and varying the differential speed for ACS and varying the average speed for energy storage and recovery. Technology in these areas has improved since the 1990s so it is now feasible for flywheel systems to emerge from the laboratory for spacecraft use. This paper describes a new flywheel system that can be used for both ACS and energy storage. Some of the possible advantages of a flywheel system are: lower total mass and volume, higher efficiency, less thermal impact, improved satellite integration schedule and complexity, simplified satellite orbital operations, longer life with lower risk, less pointing jitter, and greater capability for high-rate slews. In short, they have the potential to enable new types of missions and provide lower cost. Two basic types of flywheel configurations are the Flywheel Energy Storage System (FESS) and the Integrated Power and Attitude Control System (IPACS).

  11. Tunable ferroelectric polarization and its interplay with spin-orbit coupling in tin iodide perovskites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stroppa, Alessandro; di Sante, Domenico; Barone, Paolo; Bokdam, Menno; Kresse, Georg; Franchini, Cesare; Whangbo, Myung-Hwan; Picozzi, Silvia

    2014-12-01

    Ferroelectricity is a potentially crucial issue in halide perovskites, breakthrough materials in photovoltaic research. Using density functional theory simulations and symmetry analysis, we show that the lead-free perovskite iodide (FA)SnI3, containing the planar formamidinium cation FA, (NH2CHNH2)+, is ferroelectric. In fact, the perpendicular arrangement of FA planes, leading to a ‘weak’ polarization, is energetically more stable than parallel arrangements of FA planes, being either antiferroelectric or ‘strong’ ferroelectric. Moreover, we show that the ‘weak’ and ‘strong’ ferroelectric states with the polar axis along different crystallographic directions are energetically competing. Therefore, at least at low temperatures, an electric field could stabilize different states with the polarization rotated by π/4, resulting in a highly tunable ferroelectricity appealing for multistate logic. Intriguingly, the relatively strong spin-orbit coupling in noncentrosymmetric (FA)SnI3 gives rise to a co-existence of Rashba and Dresselhaus effects and to a spin texture that can be induced, tuned and switched by an electric field controlling the ferroelectric state.

  12. An algorithm for enhanced formation flying of satellites in low earth orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Folta, David C.; Quinn, David A.

    1998-01-01

    With scientific objectives for Earth observation programs becoming more ambitious and spacecraft becoming more autonomous, the need for innovative technical approaches on the feasibility of achieving and maintaining formations of spacecraft has come to the forefront. The trend to develop small low-cost spacecraft has led many scientists to recognize the advantage of flying several spacecraft in formation to achieve the correlated instrument measurements formerly possible only by flying many instruments on a single large platform. Yet, formation flying imposes additional complications on orbit maintenance, especially when each spacecraft has its own orbit requirements. However, advances in automation and technology proposed by the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) allow more of the burden in maneuver planning and execution to be placed onboard the spacecraft, mitigating some of the associated operational concerns. The purpose of this paper is to present GSFC's Guidance, Navigation, and Control Center's (GNCC) algorithm for Formation Flying of the low earth orbiting spacecraft that is part of the New Millennium Program (NMP). This system will be implemented as a close-loop flight code onboard the NMP Earth Orbiter-1 (EO-1) spacecraft. Results of this development can be used to determine the appropriateness of formation flying for a particular case as well as operational impacts. Simulation results using this algorithm integrated in an autonomous `fuzzy logic' control system called AutoCon™ are presented.

  13. Spacecraft attitude determination using the earth's magnetic field

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simpson, David G.

    1989-01-01

    A method is presented by which the attitude of a low-Earth orbiting spacecraft may be determined using a vector magnetometer, a digital Sun sensor, and a mathematical model of the Earth's magnetic field. The method is currently being implemented for the Solar Maximum Mission spacecraft (as a backup for the failing star trackers) as a way to determine roll gyro drift.

  14. The Effect of Air Drag in Optimal Power-Limited Rendezvous Between Coplanar Low-Earth Orbits

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gil-Young Maeng

    1998-06-01

    Full Text Available The effect of air drag was researched when a low-earth orbit spacecraft using power-limited thruster rendezvoused another low-earth orbit spacecraft. The air density was assumed to decrease exponentially. The radius of parking orbit was 6655.935 km and that of target orbit was 7321.529 km. From the trajectories of active vehicles, the fuel consumption and the magnitude of thrust acceleration, we could conclude that the effect of air drag had to be considered in fuel optimal rendezvous problem between low-earth orbit spacecrafts. In multiple-revolution rendezvous case, the air drag was more effective.

  15. The effects of Rashba spin-orbit coupling on spin-polarized transport in hexagonal graphene nano-rings and flakes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laghaei, M.; Heidari Semiromi, E.

    2018-03-01

    Quantum transport properties and spin polarization in hexagonal graphene nanostructures with zigzag edges and different sizes were investigated in the presence of Rashba spin-orbit interaction (RSOI). The nanostructure was considered as a channel to which two semi-infinite armchair graphene nanoribbons were coupled as input and output leads. Spin transmission and spin polarization in x, y, and z directions were calculated through applying Landauer-Buttiker formalism with tight binding model and the Green's function to the system. In these quantum structures it is shown that changing the size of system, induce and control the spin polarized currents. In short, these graphene systems are typical candidates for electrical spintronic devices as spin filtering.

  16. Orbital Express fluid transfer demonstration system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rotenberger, Scott; SooHoo, David; Abraham, Gabriel

    2008-04-01

    Propellant resupply of orbiting spacecraft is no longer in the realm of high risk development. The recently concluded Orbital Express (OE) mission included a fluid transfer demonstration that operated the hardware and control logic in space, bringing the Technology Readiness Level to a solid TRL 7 (demonstration of a system prototype in an operational environment). Orbital Express (funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, DARPA) was launched aboard an Atlas-V rocket on March 9th, 2007. The mission had the objective of demonstrating technologies needed for routine servicing of spacecraft, namely autonomous rendezvous and docking, propellant resupply, and orbital replacement unit transfer. The demonstration system used two spacecraft. A servicing vehicle (ASTRO) performed multiple dockings with the client (NextSat) spacecraft, and performed a variety of propellant transfers in addition to exchanges of a battery and computer. The fluid transfer and propulsion system onboard ASTRO, in addition to providing the six degree-of-freedom (6 DOF) thruster system for rendezvous and docking, demonstrated autonomous transfer of monopropellant hydrazine to or from the NextSat spacecraft 15 times while on orbit. The fluid transfer system aboard the NextSat vehicle was designed to simulate a variety of client systems, including both blowdown pressurization and pressure regulated propulsion systems. The fluid transfer demonstrations started with a low level of autonomy, where ground controllers were allowed to review the status of the demonstration at numerous points before authorizing the next steps to be performed. The final transfers were performed at a full autonomy level where the ground authorized the start of a transfer sequence and then monitored data as the transfer proceeded. The major steps of a fluid transfer included the following: mate of the coupling, leak check of the coupling, venting of the coupling, priming of the coupling, fluid transfer, gauging

  17. Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling induced spin-polarization and resonance-split in n-well semiconductor superlattices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ye Chengzhi; Xue Rui; Nie, Y.-H.; Liang, J.-Q.

    2009-01-01

    Using the transfer matrix method, we investigate the electron transmission over multiple-well semiconductor superlattices with Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling in the potential-well regions. The superlattice structure enhances the effect of spin polarization in the transmission spectrum. The minibands of multiple-well superlattices for electrons with different spin can be completely separated at the low incident energy, leading to the 100% spin polarization in a broad energy windows, which may be an effective scheme for realizing spin filtering. Moreover, for the transmission over n-quantum-well, it is observed that the resonance peaks in the minibands split into n-folds or (n-1)-folds depending on the well-width and barrier-thickness, which is different from the case of tunneling through n-barrier structure

  18. Displaced Electric Sail Orbits Design and Transition Trajectory Optimization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Naiming Qi

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Displaced orbits for spacecraft propelled by electric sails are investigated as an alternative to the use of solar sails. The orbital dynamics of electric sails based spacecraft are studied within a spherical coordinate system, which permits finding the solutions of displaced electric sail orbits and optimize transfer trajectory. Transfer trajectories from Earth's orbit to displaced orbit are also studied in an optimal framework, by using genetic algorithm and Gauss pseudospectral method. The initial guesses for the state and control histories used in the Gauss pseudospectral method are interpolated from the best solution of a genetic algorithm. Numerical simulations show that the electric sail is able to perform the transfer from Earth’s orbit to displaced orbit in acceptable time, and the hybrid optimization method has the capability to search the feasible and optimal solution without any initial value guess.

  19. Spacecraft Charging Modeling -- Nascap-2k 2014 Annual Report

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-09-19

    appears to work similarly in Internet Explorer, FireFox , and Opera, but fails in Safari and Chrome. Note that the SEE Spacecraft Charging Handbook is... Characteristics of Spacecraft Charging in Low Earth Orbit, J Geophys Res. 11 7, doi: 10.1029/20 11JA016875, 2012. 2 M. Cho, K. Saito, T. Hamanaga, Data

  20. Mercury Orbiter: Report of the Science Working Team

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belcher, John W.; Slavin, James A.; Armstrong, Thomas P.; Farquhar, Robert W.; Akasofu, Syun I.; Baker, Daniel N.; Cattell, Cynthia A.; Cheng, Andrew F.; Chupp, Edward L.; Clark, Pamela E.

    1991-01-01

    The results are presented of the Mercury Orbiter Science Working Team which held three workshops in 1988 to 1989 under the auspices of the Space Physics and Planetary Exploration Divisions of NASA Headquarters. Spacecraft engineering and mission design studies at the Jet Propulsion Lab were conducted in parallel with this effort and are detailed elsewhere. The findings of the engineering study, summarized herein, indicate that spin stabilized spacecraft carrying comprehensive particles and fields experiments and key planetology instruments in high elliptical orbits can survive and function in Mercury orbit without costly sun shields and active cooling systems.

  1. Evaluation of spacecraft technology programs (effects on communication satellite business ventures), volume 1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greenburg, J. S.; Gaelick, C.; Kaplan, M.; Fishman, J.; Hopkins, C.

    1985-01-01

    Commercial organizations as well as government agencies invest in spacecraft (S/C) technology programs that are aimed at increasing the performance of communications satellites. The value of these programs must be measured in terms of their impacts on the financial performane of the business ventures that may ultimately utilize the communications satellites. An economic evaluation and planning capability was developed and used to assess the impact of NASA on-orbit propulsion and space power programs on typical fixed satellite service (FSS) and direct broadcast service (DBS) communications satellite business ventures. Typical FSS and DBS spin and three-axis stabilized spacecraft were configured in the absence of NASA technology programs. These spacecraft were reconfigured taking into account the anticipated results of NASA specified on-orbit propulsion and space power programs. In general, the NASA technology programs resulted in spacecraft with increased capability. The developed methodology for assessing the value of spacecraft technology programs in terms of their impact on the financial performance of communication satellite business ventures is described. Results of the assessment of NASA specified on-orbit propulsion and space power technology programs are presented for typical FSS and DBS business ventures.

  2. On the atmospheric drag in orbit determination for low Earth orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Jingshi; Liu, Lin; Miao, Manqian

    2012-07-01

    The atmosphere model is always a major limitation for low Earth orbit (LEO) in orbit prediction and determination. The accelerometer can work around the non-gravitational perturbations in orbit determination, but it helps little to improve the atmosphere model or to predict the orbit. For certain satellites, there may be some specific software to handle the orbit problem. This solution can improve the orbit accuracy for both prediction and determination, yet it always contains empirical terms and is exclusive for certain satellites. This report introduces a simple way to handle the atmosphere drag for LEO, which does not depend on instantaneous atmosphere conditions and improves accuracy of predicted orbit. This approach, which is based on mean atmospheric density, is supported by two reasons. One is that although instantaneous atmospheric density is very complicated with time and height, the major pattern is determined by the exponential variation caused by hydrostatic equilibrium and periodic variation caused by solar radiation. The mean density can include the major variations while neglect other minor details. The other reason is that the predicted orbit is mathematically the result from integral and the really determinant factor is the mean density instead of instantaneous density for every time and spot. Using the mean atmospheric density, which is mainly determined by F10.7 solar flux and geomagnetic index, can be combined into an overall parameter B^{*} = C_{D}(S/m)ρ_{p_{0}}. The combined parameter contains several less accurate parameters and can be corrected during orbit determination. This approach has been confirmed in various LEO computations and an example is given below using Tiangong-1 spacecraft. Precise orbit determination (POD) is done using one-day GPS positioning data without any accurate a-priori knowledge on spacecraft or atmosphere conditions. Using the corrected initial state vector of the spacecraft and the parameter B^* from POD, the

  3. REQUIREMENTS FOR IMAGE QUALITY OF EMERGENCY SPACECRAFTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. I. Altukhov

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available The paper deals with the method for formation of quality requirements to the images of emergency spacecrafts. The images are obtained by means of remote sensing of near-earth space orbital deployment in the visible range. of electromagnetic radiation. The method is based on a joint taking into account conditions of space survey, characteristics of surveillance equipment, main design features of the observed spacecrafts and orbital inspection tasks. Method. Quality score is the predicted linear resolution image that gives the possibility to create a complete view of pictorial properties of the space image obtained by electro-optical system from the observing satellite. Formulation of requirements to the numerical value of this indicator is proposed to perform based on the properties of remote sensing system, forming images in the conditions of outer space, and the properties of the observed emergency spacecraft: dimensions, platform construction of the satellite, on-board equipment placement. For method implementation the authors have developed a predictive model of requirements to a linear resolution for images of emergency spacecrafts, making it possible to select the intervals of space shooting and get the satellite images required for quality interpretation. Main results. To verify the proposed model functionality we have carried out calculations of the numerical values for the linear resolution of the image, ensuring the successful task of determining the gross structural damage of the spacecrafts and identifying changes in their spatial orientation. As input data were used with dimensions and geometric primitives corresponding to the shape of deemed inspected spacecrafts: Resurs-P", "Canopus-B", "Electro-L". Numerical values of the linear resolution images have been obtained, ensuring the successful task solution for determining the gross structural damage of spacecrafts.

  4. Earth to Orbit Beamed Energy Experiment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Les; Montgomery, Edward E.

    2017-01-01

    As a means of primary propulsion, beamed energy propulsion offers the benefit of offloading much of the propulsion system mass from the vehicle, increasing its potential performance and freeing it from the constraints of the rocket equation. For interstellar missions, beamed energy propulsion is arguably the most viable in the near- to mid-term. A near-term demonstration showing the feasibility of beamed energy propulsion is necessary and, fortunately, feasible using existing technologies. Key enabling technologies are large area, low mass spacecraft and efficient and safe high power laser systems capable of long distance propagation. NASA is currently developing the spacecraft technology through the Near Earth Asteroid Scout solar sail mission and has signed agreements with the Planetary Society to study the feasibility of precursor laser propulsion experiments using their LightSail-2 solar sail spacecraft. The capabilities of Space Situational Awareness assets and the advanced analytical tools available for fine resolution orbit determination now make it possible to investigate the practicalities of an Earth-to-orbit Beamed Energy eXperiment (EBEX) - a demonstration at delivered power levels that only illuminate a spacecraft without causing damage to it. The degree to which this can be expected to produce a measurable change in the orbit of a low ballistic coefficient spacecraft is investigated. Key system characteristics and estimated performance are derived for a near term mission opportunity involving the LightSail-2 spacecraft and laser power levels modest in comparison to those proposed previously. While the technology demonstrated by such an experiment is not sufficient to enable an interstellar precursor mission, if approved, then it would be the next step toward that goal.

  5. ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter provides atmospheric data during Aerobraking into its final orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Svedhem, Hakan; Vago, Jorge L.; Bruinsma, Sean; Müller-Wodarg, Ingo; ExoMars 2016 Team

    2017-10-01

    After the arrival of the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) at Mars on 19 October 2016 a number of initial orbit change manoeuvres were executed and the spacecraft was put in an orbit with a 24 hour period and 74 degrees inclination. The spacecraft and its four instruments were thoroughly checked out after arrival and a few measurements and images were taken in November 2016 and in Feb-March 2017. The solar occultation observations have however not yet been possible due to lack of the proper geometry.On 15 March a long period of aerobraking to reach the final 400km semi-circular frozen orbit (370x430km, with a fixed pericentre latitude). This orbit is optimised for the payload observations and for the communication relay with the ExoMars Rover, due to arrive in 2021.The aerobraking is proceeding well and the final orbit is expected to be reached in April 2018. A large data set is being acquired for the upper atmosphere of Mars, from the limit of the sensitivity of the accelerometer, down to lowest altitude of the aerobraking at about 105km. Initial analysis has shown a highly variable atmosphere with a slightly lower density then predicted by existing models. Until the time of the abstract writing no dust storms have been observed.The ExoMars programme is a joint activity by the European Space Agency(ESA) and ROSCOSMOS, Russia. ESA is providing the TGO spacecraft and Schiaparelli (EDM) and two of the TGO instruments and ROSCOSMOS is providing the Proton launcher and the other two TGO instruments. After the arrival of the ExoMars 2020 mission, consisting of a Rover and a Surface platform also launched by a Proton rocket, the TGO will handle the communication between the Earth and the Rover and Surface Platform through its (NASA provided) UHF communication system.

  6. System concepts and design examples for optical communication with planetary spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lesh, James R.

    Systems concepts for optical communication with future deep-space (planetary) spacecraft are described. These include not only the optical transceiver package aboard the distant spacecraft, but the earth-vicinity optical-communications receiving station as well. Both ground-based, and earth-orbiting receivers are considered. Design examples for a number of proposed or potential deep-space missions are then presented. These include an orbital mission to Saturn, a Lander and Rover mission to Mars, and an astronomical mission to a distance of 1000 astronomical units.

  7. Short rendezvous missions for advanced Russian human spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murtazin, Rafail F.; Budylov, Sergey G.

    2010-10-01

    The two-day stay of crew in a limited inhabited volume of the Soyuz-TMA spacecraft till docking to ISS is one of the most stressful parts of space flight. In this paper a number of possible ways to reduce the duration of the free flight phase are considered. The duration is defined by phasing strategy that is necessary for reduction of the phase angle between the chaser and target spacecraft. Some short phasing strategies could be developed. The use of such strategies creates more comfortable flight conditions for crew thanks to short duration and additionally it allows saving spacecraft's life support resources. The transition from the methods of direct spacecraft rendezvous using one orbit phasing (first flights of " Vostok" and " Soyuz" vehicles) to the currently used methods of two-day rendezvous mission can be observed in the history of Soviet manned space program. For an advanced Russian human rated spacecraft the short phasing strategy is recommended, which can be considered as a combination between the direct and two-day rendezvous missions. The following state of the art technologies are assumed available: onboard accurate navigation; onboard computations of phasing maneuvers; launch vehicle with high accuracy injection orbit, etc. Some operational requirements and constraints for the strategies are briefly discussed. In order to provide acceptable phase angles for possible launch dates the experience of the ISS altitude profile control can be used. As examples of the short phasing strategies, the following rendezvous missions are considered: direct ascent, short mission with the phasing during 3-7 orbits depending on the launch date (nominal or backup). For each option statistical modeling of the rendezvous mission is fulfilled, as well as an admissible phase angle range, accuracy of target state vector and addition fuel consumption coming out of emergency is defined. In this paper an estimation of pros and cons of all options is conducted.

  8. Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Spacecraft Lithium Ion Battery Micro-Cycling Investigation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dakermanji, George; Lee, Leonine; Spitzer, Thomas

    2016-01-01

    The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) spacecraft was jointly developed by NASA and JAXA. It is a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) spacecraft launched on February 27, 2014. The power system is a Direct Energy Transfer (DET) system designed to support 1950 watts orbit average power. The batteries use SONY 18650HC cells and consist of three 8s by 84p batteries operated in parallel as a single battery. During instrument integration with the spacecraft, large current transients were observed in the battery. Investigation into the matter traced the cause to the Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) phased array radar which generates cyclical high rate current transients on the spacecraft power bus. The power system electronics interaction with these transients resulted in the current transients in the battery. An accelerated test program was developed to bound the effect, and to assess the impact to the mission.

  9. Return to Venus of AKATSUKI, the Japanese Venus Orbiter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakamura, M.; Iwagami, N.; Satoh, T.; Taguchi, M.; Watanabe, S.; Takahashi, Y.; Imamura, T.; Suzuki, M.; Ueno, M.; Yamazaki, A.; Fukuhara, T.; Yamada, M.; Ishii, N.; Ogohara, K.

    2011-12-01

    Japanese Venus Climate Orbiter 'AKATSUKI' (PLANET-C) was proposed in 2001 with strong support by international Venus science community and approved as an ISAS mission soon after the proposal. AKATSUKI and ESA's Venus Express complement each other in Venus climate study. Various coordinated observations using the two spacecraft have been planned. Also participating scientists from US have been selected. Its science target is to understand the climate of Venus. The mission life we expected was more than 2 Earth years in Venus orbit. AKATSUKI was successfully launched at 06:58:22JST on May 21, by H-IIA F17. After the separation from H-IIA, the telemetry from AKATSUKI was normally detected by DSN Goldstone station (10:00JST) and the solar cell paddles' expansion was confirmed. AKATSUKI was put into the 3-axis stabilized mode in the initial operation from Uchinoura station and the critical operation was finished at 20:00JST on the same day. The malfunction, which happened during the Venus Orbit Insertion (VOI) on7 Dec, 2010 is as follows. We set all commands on Dec. 5. Attitude control for Venus orbit insertion (VOI) was automatically done on Dec. 6. Orbital maneuver engine (OME) was fired 08:49 JST on Dec. 7. 1min. after firing the spacecraft went into the occultation region and we had no telemetry, but we expected to continuous firing for 12min. Recording on the spacecraft told us later that, unfortunately the firing continued just 152sec. and stopped. The reason of the malfunction of the OME was the blocking of check valve of the gas pressure line to push the fuel to the engine. We failed to make the spacecraft the Venus orbiter, and it is rotating the sun with the orbital period of 203 days. As the Venus orbit the sun with the period of 225 days, AKATSUKI has a chance to meet Venus again in 5 or 6 years depending on the orbit correction plan. Let us summarize the present situation of AKATSUKI. Most of the fuel still remains. But the condition of the propulsion

  10. Detection of gravitational radiation by the Doppler tracking of spacecraft

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mashhoon, B.

    1979-01-01

    It has been suggested that the residual Doppler shift in the precision electromagnetic tracking of spacecraft be used to search for gravitational radiation that may be incident on the Earth-spacecraft system. The influence of a gravitational wave on the Doppler shift is calculated, and it is found that the residual shift is dominated by two terms: one is due to the passage of electromagnetic waves through the gravitational radiation field, and the other depends on the change in the relative velocity of the Earth and the spacecraft caused by the external wave. A detailed analysis is given of the influence of gravitational radiation on a binary system with an orbital size small compared to the wavelength of the incident radiation. It is shown that, as a consequence of the interaction with the external wave, the system makes a transition from one Keplerian orbit into another which, in general, has a different energy and angular momentum. It is therefore proposed to search for such effects in the solar system. Observations of the orbit of an artificial Earth satellite, the lunar orbit, and especially the planetary orbits offer exciting possibilities for the detection of gravitational waves of various wavelengths. From the results of the lunar laser ranging experiment and the range measurement to Mars, certain interesting limits may be established on the frequency of incidence of gravitational waves of a given flux on the Earth-Moon and the Earth-Mars systems. This is followed by a brief and preliminary analysis of the possibility of detecting gravitational radiation by measuring a residual secular Doppler shift in the satellite-to-satellite Doppler tracking of two counterorbiting drag-free spacecraft around the Earth as in the Van Patten-Everitt experiment

  11. POLARIZED BEAMS: 2 - Partial Siberian Snake rescues polarized protons at Brookhaven

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang, Haixin

    1994-01-01

    To boost the level of beam polarization (spin orientation), a partial 'Siberian Snake' was recently used to overcome imperfection depolarizing resonances in the Brookhaven Alternating Gradient Synchrotron (AGS). This 9-degree spin rotator recently permitted acceleration with no noticeable polarization loss. The intrinsic AGS depolarizing resonances (which degrade the polarization content) had been eliminated by betatron tune jumps, but the imperfection resonances were compensated by means of harmonic orbit corrections. However, at high energies these orbit corrections are difficult and tedious and a Siberian Snake became an attractive alternative

  12. Effects of DeOrbitSail as applied to Lifetime predictions of Low Earth Orbit Satellites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Afful, Andoh; Opperman, Ben; Steyn, Herman

    2016-07-01

    Orbit lifetime prediction is an important component of satellite mission design and post-launch space operations. Throughout its lifetime in space, a spacecraft is exposed to risk of collision with orbital debris or operational satellites. This risk is especially high within the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) region where the highest density of space debris is accumulated. This paper investigates orbital decay of some LEO micro-satellites and accelerating orbit decay by using a deorbitsail. The Semi-Analytical Liu Theory (SALT) and the Satellite Toolkit was employed to determine the mean elements and expressions for the time rates of change. Test cases of observed decayed satellites (Iridium-85 and Starshine-1) are used to evaluate the predicted theory. Results for the test cases indicated that the theory fitted observational data well within acceptable limits. Orbit decay progress of the SUNSAT micro-satellite was analysed using relevant orbital parameters derived from historic Two Line Element (TLE) sets and comparing with decay and lifetime prediction models. This paper also explored the deorbit date and time for a 1U CubeSat (ZACUBE-01). The use of solar sails as devices to speed up the deorbiting of LEO satellites is considered. In a drag sail mode, the deorbitsail technique significantly increases the effective cross-sectional area of a satellite, subsequently increasing atmospheric drag and accelerating orbit decay. The concept proposed in this study introduced a very useful technique of orbit decay as well as deorbiting of spacecraft.

  13. Present status of the Japanese Venus climate orbiter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakamura, M.; Imamura, T.; Abe, T.; Ishii, N.

    The code name of 24th science spacecraft of ISAS/JAXA is Planet-C. It is the first Venus Climate Orbiter (VCO) of Japan. The ministry of finance of Japan finally agreed to start phase B study of VCO from this April, 2004. We plan 1-2 years phase B study followed by 2 years of flight model integration. The spacecraft will be launched between 2009 and 2010. After arriving Venus, 2 years of operation is expected. VCO will complemet the ESA's Venus Express mission which have several spectrometers and will reveal the composition of the Venusian atmosphere. On the other hand, VCO is designed to reveal the details of the atmospheric motion on Venus and approach the dynamics of the Venusian climate. Cooperation between Japanese VCO and ESA's Venus Express, in the colaboration framework of U.S., Europian, and Japanese scienctist is very important. To elucidate the driving mechanism of the 4-days super-rotation is one of our main targets. We have 4 cameras to take snap shots of the planets in different wave lengths. They are the IR1 camera (1 micron-meter), the IR2 camera (2.4 micron-meter), the LIR camera (10-12 micron-meter), and the UVI camera (340nm). They are attached to the side panel of the 3-axis stabilized spacecraft, and are directed to Venus with the spacecraft's attitude control. Snap shots are expected to be taken every 2 hours. The spacecraft has an orbit of 300km x 13Rv (Venusian radii) with 172 degrees inclination. Orbital period is 30 hours. The angular position of the spacecraft on this orbit is synchronized for 20 hours at its apoapsis with the global atmospheric circulation at the altitude of 50km, thus the snap shots of every 2 hours will be the images of the same side of the atmosphere. In addition to these 4 cameras, we have a Lightning and Airglow camera (LAC) in visible range. This will be operated when the orbiter is close to the planet.

  14. GOES-R active vibration damping controller design, implementation, and on-orbit performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clapp, Brian R.; Weigl, Harald J.; Goodzeit, Neil E.; Carter, Delano R.; Rood, Timothy J.

    2018-01-01

    GOES-R series spacecraft feature a number of flexible appendages with modal frequencies below 3.0 Hz which, if excited by spacecraft disturbances, can be sources of undesirable jitter perturbing spacecraft pointing. To meet GOES-R pointing stability requirements, the spacecraft flight software implements an Active Vibration Damping (AVD) rate control law which acts in parallel with the nadir point attitude control law. The AVD controller commands spacecraft reaction wheel actuators based upon Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) inputs to provide additional damping for spacecraft structural modes below 3.0 Hz which vary with solar wing angle. A GOES-R spacecraft dynamics and attitude control system identified model is constructed from pseudo-random reaction wheel torque commands and IMU angular rate response measurements occurring over a single orbit during spacecraft post-deployment activities. The identified Fourier model is computed on the ground, uplinked to the spacecraft flight computer, and the AVD controller filter coefficients are periodically computed on-board from the Fourier model. Consequently, the AVD controller formulation is based not upon pre-launch simulation model estimates but upon on-orbit nadir point attitude control and time-varying spacecraft dynamics. GOES-R high-fidelity time domain simulation results herein demonstrate the accuracy of the AVD identified Fourier model relative to the pre-launch spacecraft dynamics and control truth model. The AVD controller on-board the GOES-16 spacecraft achieves more than a ten-fold increase in structural mode damping for the fundamental solar wing mode while maintaining controller stability margins and ensuring that the nadir point attitude control bandwidth does not fall below 0.02 Hz. On-orbit GOES-16 spacecraft appendage modal frequencies and damping ratios are quantified based upon the AVD system identification, and the increase in modal damping provided by the AVD controller for each structural mode is

  15. Spacecraft Software Maintenance: An Effective Approach to Reducing Costs and Increasing Science Return

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shell, Elaine M.; Lue, Yvonne; Chu, Martha I.

    1999-01-01

    Flight software is a mission critical element of spacecraft functionality and performance. When ground operations personnel interface to a spacecraft, they are typically dealing almost entirely with the capabilities of onboard software. This software, even more than critical ground/flight communications systems, is expected to perform perfectly during all phases of spacecraft life. Due to the fact that it can be reprogrammed on-orbit to accommodate degradations or failures in flight hardware, new insights into spacecraft characteristics, new control options which permit enhanced science options, etc., the on- orbit flight software maintenance team is usually significantly responsible for the long term success of a science mission. Failure of flight software to perform as needed can result in very expensive operations work-around costs and lost science opportunities. There are three basic approaches to maintaining spacecraft software--namely using the original developers, using the mission operations personnel, or assembling a center of excellence for multi-spacecraft software maintenance. Not planning properly for flight software maintenance can lead to unnecessarily high on-orbit costs and/or unacceptably long delays, or errors, in patch installations. A common approach for flight software maintenance is to access the original development staff. The argument for utilizing the development staff is that the people who developed the software will be the best people to modify the software on-orbit. However, it can quickly becomes a challenge to obtain the services of these key people. They may no longer be available to the organization. They may have a more urgent job to perform, quite likely on another project under different project management. If they havn't worked on the software for a long time, they may need precious time for refamiliarization to the software, testbeds and tools. Further, a lack of insight into issues related to flight software in its on-orbit

  16. Overview of SDCM - The Spacecraft Design and Cost Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferebee, Melvin J.; Farmer, Jeffery T.; Andersen, Gregory C.; Flamm, Jeffery D.; Badi, Deborah M.

    1988-01-01

    The Spacecraft Design and Cost Model (SDCM) is a computer-aided design and analysis tool for synthesizing spacecraft configurations, integrating their subsystems, and generating information concerning on-orbit servicing and costs. SDCM uses a bottom-up method in which the cost and performance parameters for subsystem components are first calculated; the model then sums the contributions from individual components in order to obtain an estimate of sizes and costs for each candidate configuration within a selected spacecraft system. An optimum spacraft configuration can then be selected.

  17. The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission: 10 Years of Exploration from Mars Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnston, M. Daniel; Zurek, Richard W.

    2016-01-01

    The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter ( MRO ) entered Mars orbit on March 10, 2006. After five months of aerobraking, a series of propulsive maneuvers were used to establish the desired low -altitude science orbit. The spacecraft has been on station in its 255 x 320 k m, sun -synchronous (approximately 3 am -pm ), primary science orbit since September 2006 performing both scientific and Mars programmatic support functions. This paper will provide a summary of the major achievements of the mission to date and the major flight activities planned for the remainder of its third Extended Mission (EM3). Some of the major flight challenges the flight team has faced are also discussed.

  18. Fundamentals of the orbit and response for TianQin

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hu, Xin-Chun; Li, Xiao-Hong; Wang, Yan; Feng, Wen-Fan; Zhou, Ming-Yue; Hu, Yi-Ming; Hu, Shou-Cun; Mei, Jian-Wei; Shao, Cheng-Gang

    2018-05-01

    TianQin is a space-based laser interferometric gravitational wave detector aimed at detecting gravitational waves at low frequencies (0.1 mHz–1 Hz). It is formed by three identical drag-free spacecrafts in an equilateral triangular constellation orbiting around the Earth. The distance between each pair of spacecrafts is approximately 1.7 × 105 ~km . The spacecrafts are interconnected by infrared laser beams forming up to three Michelson-type interferometers. The detailed mission design and the study of science objectives for the TianQin project depend crucially on the orbit and the response of the detector. In this paper, we provide the analytic expressions for the coordinates of the orbit for each spacecraft in the heliocentric-ecliptic coordinate system to the leading orders. This enables a sufficiently accurate study of science objectives and data analysis, and serves as a first step to further orbit design and optimization. We calculate the response of a single Michelson detector to plane gravitational waves in arbitrary waveform which is valid in the full range of the sensitive frequencies. It is then used to generate the more realistic sensitivity curve of TianQin. We apply this model on a reference white-dwarf binary as a proof of principle.

  19. Magnus Effect on a Spinning Satellite in Low Earth Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramjatan, Sahadeo; Fitz-Coy, Norman; Yew, Alvin Garwai

    2016-01-01

    A spinning body in a flow field generates an aerodynamic lift or Magnus effect that displaces the body in a direction normal to the freestream flow. Earth orbiting satellites with substantial body rotation in appreciable atmospheric densities may generate a Magnus force to perturb orbital dynamics. We investigate the feasibility of using this effect for spacecraft at a perigee of 80km using the Systems Tool Kit (STK). Results show that for a satellite of reasonable properties, the Magnus effect doubles the amount of time in orbit. Orbital decay was greatly mitigated for satellites spinning at 10000 and 15000RPM. This study demonstrates that the Magnus effect has the potential to sustain a spacecraft's orbit at a low perigee altitude and could also serve as an orbital maneuver capability.

  20. Polar-Orbiting Satellite (POES) Images

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Visible and Infrared satellite imagery taken from camera systems or radiometer instruments on satellites in orbit around the poles. Satellite campaigns include...

  1. A Wide Field Auroral Imager (WFAI for low Earth orbit missions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. P. Bannister

    2007-03-01

    Full Text Available A comprehensive understanding of the solar wind interaction with Earth's coupled magnetosphere-ionosphere system requires an ability to observe the charged particle environment and auroral activity from the same platform, generating particle and photon image data which are matched in time and location. While unambiguous identification of the particles giving rise to the aurora requires a Low Earth Orbit satellite, obtaining adequate spatial coverage of aurorae with the relatively limited field of view of current space bourne auroral imaging systems requires much higher orbits. A goal for future satellite missions, therefore, is the development of compact, wide field-of-view optics permitting high spatial and temporal resolution ultraviolet imaging of the aurora from small spacecraft in low polar orbit. Microchannel plate optics offer a method of achieving the required performance. We describe a new, compact instrument design which can observe a wide field-of-view with the required spatial resolution. We report the focusing of 121.6 nm radiation using a spherically-slumped, square-pore microchannel plate with a focal length of 32 mm and an F number of 0.7. Measurements are compared with detailed ray-trace simulations of imaging performance. The angular resolution is 2.7±0.2° for the prototype, corresponding to a footprint ~33 km in diameter for an aurora altitude of 110 km and a spacecraft altitude of 800 km. In preliminary analysis, a more recent optic has demonstrated a full width at half maximum of 5.0±0.3 arcminutes, corresponding to a footprint of ~1 km from the same spacecraft altitude. We further report the imaging properties of a convex microchannel plate detector with planar resistive anode readout; this detector, whose active surface has a radius of curvature of only 100 mm, is shown to meet the spatial resolution and sensitivity requirements of the new wide field auroral imager (WFAI.

  2. Useful lower limits to polarization contributions to intermolecular interactions using a minimal basis of localized orthogonal orbitals: theory and analysis of the water dimer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Azar, R Julian; Horn, Paul Richard; Sundstrom, Eric Jon; Head-Gordon, Martin

    2013-02-28

    The problem of describing the energy-lowering associated with polarization of interacting molecules is considered in the overlapping regime for self-consistent field wavefunctions. The existing approach of solving for absolutely localized molecular orbital (ALMO) coefficients that are block-diagonal in the fragments is shown based on formal grounds and practical calculations to often overestimate the strength of polarization effects. A new approach using a minimal basis of polarized orthogonal local MOs (polMOs) is developed as an alternative. The polMO basis is minimal in the sense that one polarization function is provided for each unpolarized orbital that is occupied; such an approach is exact in second-order perturbation theory. Based on formal grounds and practical calculations, the polMO approach is shown to underestimate the strength of polarization effects. In contrast to the ALMO method, however, the polMO approach yields results that are very stable to improvements in the underlying AO basis expansion. Combining the ALMO and polMO approaches allows an estimate of the range of energy-lowering due to polarization. Extensive numerical calculations on the water dimer using a large range of basis sets with Hartree-Fock theory and a variety of different density functionals illustrate the key considerations. Results are also presented for the polarization-dominated Na(+)CH4 complex. Implications for energy decomposition analysis of intermolecular interactions are discussed.

  3. Link Analysis of High Throughput Spacecraft Communication Systems for Future Science Missions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simons, Rainee N.

    2015-01-01

    NASA's plan to launch several spacecrafts into low Earth Orbit (LEO) to support science missions in the next ten years and beyond requires down link throughput on the order of several terabits per day. The ability to handle such a large volume of data far exceeds the capabilities of current systems. This paper proposes two solutions, first, a high data rate link between the LEO spacecraft and ground via relay satellites in geostationary orbit (GEO). Second, a high data rate direct to ground link from LEO. Next, the paper presents results from computer simulations carried out for both types of links taking into consideration spacecraft transmitter frequency, EIRP, and waveform; elevation angle dependent path loss through Earths atmosphere, and ground station receiver GT.

  4. Spin-orbit beams for optical chirality measurement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Samlan, C. T.; Suna, Rashmi Ranjan; Naik, Dinesh N.; Viswanathan, Nirmal K.

    2018-01-01

    Accurate measurement of chirality is essential for the advancement of natural and pharmaceutical sciences. We report here a method to measure chirality using non-separable states of light with geometric phase-gradient in the circular polarization basis, which we refer to as spin-orbit beams. A modified polarization Sagnac interferometer is used to generate spin-orbit beams wherein the spin and orbital angular momentum of the input Gaussian beam are coupled. The out-of-phase interference between counter-propagating Gaussian beams with orthogonal spin states and lateral-shear or/and linear-phase difference between them results in spin-orbit beams with linear and azimuthal phase gradient. The spin-orbit beams interact efficiently with the chiral medium, inducing a measurable change in the center-of-mass of the beam, using the polarization rotation angle and hence the chirality of the medium are accurately calculated. Tunable dynamic range of measurement and flexibility to introduce large values of orbital angular momentum for the spin-orbit beam, to improve the measurement sensitivity, highlight the techniques' versatility.

  5. Multipoint spacecraft observations of long-lasting poloidal Pc4 pulsations in the dayside magnetosphere on 1–2 May 2014

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    G. Korotova

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available We use magnetic field and plasma observations from the Van Allen Probes, Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS and Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite system (GOES spacecraft to study the spatial and temporal characteristics of long-lasting poloidal Pc4 pulsations in the dayside magnetosphere. The pulsations were observed after the main phase of a moderate storm during low geomagnetic activity. The pulsations occurred during various interplanetary conditions and the solar wind parameters do not seem to control the occurrence of the pulsations. The most striking feature of the Pc4 magnetic field pulsations was their occurrence at similar locations during three of four successive orbits. We used this information to study the latitudinal nodal structure of the pulsations and demonstrated that the latitudinal extent of the magnetic field pulsations did not exceed 2 Earth radii (RE. A phase shift between the azimuthal and radial components of the electric and magnetic fields was observed from ZSM  =  0.30 RE to ZSM  =  −0.16 RE. We used magnetic and electric field data from Van Allen Probes to determine the structure of ULF waves. We showed that the Pc4 magnetic field pulsations were radially polarized and are the second-mode harmonic waves. We suggest that the spacecraft were near a magnetic field null during the second orbit when they failed to observe the magnetic field pulsations at the local times where pulsations were observed on previous and successive orbits. We investigated the spectral structure of the Pc4 pulsations. Each spacecraft observed a decrease of the dominant period as it moved to a smaller L shell (stronger magnetic field strength. We demonstrated that higher frequencies occurred at times and locations where Alfvén velocities were greater, i.e., on Orbit 1. There is some evidence that the periods of the pulsations increased during the plasmasphere refilling

  6. Mission operations for unmanned nuclear electric propulsion outer planet exploration with a thermionic reactor spacecraft.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spera, R. J.; Prickett, W. Z.; Garate, J. A.; Firth, W. L.

    1971-01-01

    Mission operations are presented for comet rendezvous and outer planet exploration NEP spacecraft employing in-core thermionic reactors for electric power generation. The selected reference missions are the Comet Halley rendezvous and a Jupiter orbiter at 5.9 planet radii, the orbit of the moon Io. The characteristics of the baseline multi-mission NEP spacecraft are presented and its performance in other outer planet missions, such as Saturn and Uranus orbiters and a Neptune flyby, are discussed. Candidate mission operations are defined from spacecraft assembly to mission completion. Pre-launch operations are identified. Shuttle launch and subsequent injection to earth escape by the Centaur D-1T are discussed, as well as power plant startup and the heliocentric mission phases. The sequence and type of operations are basically identical for all missions investigated.

  7. High Gain Antenna Calibration on Three Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hashmall, Joseph A.

    2011-01-01

    This paper describes the alignment calibration of spacecraft High Gain Antennas (HGAs) for three missions. For two of the missions (the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Solar Dynamics Observatory) the calibration was performed on orbit. For the third mission (the Global Precipitation Measurement core satellite) ground simulation of the calibration was performed in a calibration feasibility study. These three satellites provide a range of calibration situations-Lunar orbit transmitting to a ground antenna for LRO, geosynchronous orbit transmitting to a ground antenna fer SDO, and low Earth orbit transmitting to TDRS satellites for GPM The calibration results depend strongly on the quality and quantity of calibration data. With insufficient data the calibration Junction may give erroneous solutions. Manual intervention in the calibration allowed reliable parameters to be generated for all three missions.

  8. Spatiotemporal polarization gradients in phase-bearing light

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lembessis, V. E.; Babiker, M.

    2010-01-01

    It is shown how the interference of two circularly polarized laser beams endowed with orbital angular momentum can give rise to spatial and temporal polarization gradients, displaying axial as well as angular symmetry properties. Illustrations are given with reference to circularly polarized Laguerre-Gaussian beams as typical light beams carrying orbital angular momentum.

  9. Drag De-Orbit Device: A New Standard Re-Entry Actuator for CubeSats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guglielmo, David; Omar, Sanny R.; Bevilacqua, Riccardo

    2017-01-01

    With the advent of CubeSats, research in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) becomes possible for universities and small research groups. Only a handful of launch sites can be used, due to geographical and political restrictions. As a result, common orbits in LEO are becoming crowded due to the additional launches made possible by low-cost access to space. CubeSat design principles require a maximum of a 25-year orbital lifetime in an effort to reduce the total number of spacecraft in orbit at any time. Additionally, since debris may survive re-entry, it is ideal to de-orbit spacecraft over unpopulated areas to prevent casualties. The Drag Deorbit Device (D3) is a self-contained targeted re-entry subsystem intended for CubeSats. By varying the cross-wind area, the atmospheric drag can be varied in such a way as to produce desired maneuvers. The D3 is intended to be used to remove spacecraft from orbit to reach a desired target interface point. Additionally, attitude stabilization is performed by the D3 prior to deployment and can replace a traditional ADACS on many missions.This paper presents the hardware used in the D3 and operation details. Four stepper-driven, repeatedly retractable booms are used to modify the cross-wind area of the D3 and attached spacecraft. Five magnetorquers (solenoids) over three axes are used to damp rotational velocity. This system is expected to be used to improve mission flexibility and allow additional launches by reducing the orbital lifetime of spacecraft.The D3 can be used to effect a re-entry to any target interface point, with the orbital inclination limiting the maximum latitude. In the chance that the main spacecraft fails, a timer will automatically deploy the booms fully, ensuring the spacecraft will at the minimum reenter the atmosphere in the minimum possible time, although not necessarily at the desired target interface point. Although this does not reduce the risk of casualties, the 25-year lifetime limit is still respected, allowing

  10. Indirect evidences for a gas/dust torus along the Phobos orbit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dubinin, E.M.; Lundin, R.; Pissarenko, N.F.; Barabash, S.V.; Zakharov, A.V.; Koskinen, H.; Schwingenshuh, K.; Yeroshenko, Ye.G.

    1990-01-01

    Observations from the PHOBOS-2 space-craft of plasma and magnetic field effects in the solar wind near Mars suggest that a neutral gas (dust?)torus/ring resides along the orbit of the Martian satellite Phobos. Magnetic cavities (strong decreases of the magnetic field strength) coincident with strong plasma density increases (up to a factor of ten) are observed during the first elliptic transition orbits when the spacecraft approached the Phobos orbits. The characteristic transverse dimension of the structures along the spacecraft orbit is in the range 100-1,000 km. Torus effects also have characteristics similar to the formation of a bow shock with increases of plasma density and ion temperature, and a characteristic deflection of the ion flow. This suggests a rather strong interaction between the solar wind plasma and plasma near Phobos orbit. The interaction appears quite similar to that of the solar wind with a comet. The outgassing of matter from Phobos (and Deimos) is also suggested by plasma observations in the wake/tail of the Martian satellites. Altogether, the authors observations imply that a neutral gas cloud - possibly also associated with a faint dust ring - exists along the Phobos orbit

  11. Streamlined Modeling for Characterizing Spacecraft Anomalous Behavior

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klem, B.; Swann, D.

    2011-09-01

    Anomalous behavior of on-orbit spacecraft can often be detected using passive, remote sensors which measure electro-optical signatures that vary in time and spectral content. Analysts responsible for assessing spacecraft operational status and detecting detrimental anomalies using non-resolved imaging sensors are often presented with various sensing and identification issues. Modeling and measuring spacecraft self emission and reflected radiant intensity when the radiation patterns exhibit a time varying reflective glint superimposed on an underlying diffuse signal contribute to assessment of spacecraft behavior in two ways: (1) providing information on body component orientation and attitude; and, (2) detecting changes in surface material properties due to the space environment. Simple convex and cube-shaped spacecraft, designed to operate without protruding solar panel appendages, may require an enhanced level of preflight characterization to support interpretation of the various physical effects observed during on-orbit monitoring. This paper describes selected portions of the signature database generated using streamlined signature modeling and simulations of basic geometry shapes apparent to non-imaging sensors. With this database, summarization of key observable features for such shapes as spheres, cylinders, flat plates, cones, and cubes in specific spectral bands that include the visible, mid wave, and long wave infrared provide the analyst with input to the decision process algorithms contained in the overall sensing and identification architectures. The models typically utilize baseline materials such as Kapton, paints, aluminum surface end plates, and radiators, along with solar cell representations covering the cylindrical and side portions of the spacecraft. Multiple space and ground-based sensors are assumed to be located at key locations to describe the comprehensive multi-viewing aspect scenarios that can result in significant specular reflection

  12. Preliminary thermal design of the COLD-SAT spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arif, Hugh

    1991-01-01

    The COLD-SAT free-flying spacecraft was to perform experiments with LH2 in the cryogenic fluid management technologies of storage, supply and transfer in reduced gravity. The Phase A preliminary design of the Thermal Control Subsystem (TCS) for the spacecraft exterior and interior surfaces and components of the bus subsystems is described. The TCS was composed of passive elements which were augmented with heaters. Trade studies to minimize the parasitic heat leakage into the cryogen storage tanks are described. Selection procedure for the thermally optimum on-orbit spacecraft attitude was defined. TRASYS-2 and SINDA'85 verification analysis was performed on the design and the results are presented.

  13. Orbital parameters of extrasolar planets derived from polarimetry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fluri, D. M.; Berdyugina, S. V.

    2010-03-01

    Context. Polarimetry of extrasolar planets becomes a new tool for their investigation, which requires the development of diagnostic techniques and parameter case studies. Aims: Our goal is to develop a theoretical model which can be applied to interpret polarimetric observations of extrasolar planets. Here we present a theoretical parameter study that shows the influence of the various involved parameters on the polarization curves. Furthermore, we investigate the robustness of the fitting procedure. We focus on the diagnostics of orbital parameters and the estimation of the scattering radius of the planet. Methods: We employ the physics of Rayleigh scattering to obtain polarization curves of an unresolved extrasolar planet. Calculations are made for two cases: (i) assuming an angular distribution for the intensity of the scattered light as from a Lambert sphere and for polarization as from a Rayleigh-type scatterer; and (ii) assuming that both the intensity and polarization of the scattered light are distributed according to the Rayleigh law. We show that the difference between these two cases is negligible for the shapes of the polarization curves. In addition, we take the size of the host star into account, which is relevant for hot Jupiters orbiting giant stars. Results: We discuss the influence of the inclination of the planetary orbit, the position angle of the ascending node, and the eccentricity on the linearly polarized light curves both in Stokes Q/I and U/I. We also analyze errors that arise from the assumption of a point-like star in numerical modeling of polarization as compared to consistent calculations accounting for the finite size of the host star. We find that errors due to the point-like star approximation are reduced with the size of the orbit, but still amount to about 5% for known hot Jupiters. Recovering orbital parameters from simulated data is shown to be very robust even for very noisy data because the polarization curves react

  14. A Preliminary Formation Flying Orbit Dynamics Analysis for Leonardo-BRDF

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hughes, Steven P.; Mailhe, Laurie M.

    2001-01-01

    Leonardo-BRDF is a NASA mission concept proposed to allow the investigation of radiative transfer and its effect on the Earth's climate and atmospheric phenomenon. Enabled by the recent developments in small-satellite and formation flying technology, the mission is envisioned to be composed of an array of spacecraft in carefully designed orbits. The different perspectives provided by a distributed array of spacecraft offer a unique advantage to study the Earth's albedo. This paper presents the orbit dynamics analysis performed in the context of the Leonardo-BRDF science requirements. First, the albedo integral is investigated and the effect of viewing geometry on science return is studied. The method used in this paper, based on Gauss quadrature, provides the optimal formation geometry to ensure that the value of the integral is accurately approximated. An orbit design approach is presented to achieve specific relative orbit geometries while simultaneously satisfying orbit dynamics constraints to reduce formation-keeping fuel expenditure. The relative geometry afforded by the design is discussed in terms of mission requirements. An optimal two-burn initialization scheme is presented with the required delta-V to distribute all spacecraft from a common parking orbit into their appropriate orbits in the formation. Finally, formation-keeping strategies are developed and the associated delta-V's are calculated to maintain the formation in the presence of perturbations.

  15. Estimating spacecraft attitude based on in-orbit sensor measurements

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jakobsen, Britt; Lyn-Knudsen, Kevin; Mølgaard, Mathias

    2014-01-01

    of 2014/15. To better evaluate the performance of the payload, it is desirable to couple the payload data with the satellite's orientation. With AAUSAT3 already in orbit it is possible to collect data directly from space in order to evaluate the performance of the attitude estimation. An extended kalman...... filter (EKF) is used for quaternion-based attitude estimation. A Simulink simulation environment developed for AAUSAT3, containing a "truth model" of the satellite and the orbit environment, is used to test the performance The performance is tested using different sensor noise parameters obtained both...... from a controlled environment on Earth as well as in-orbit. By using sensor noise parameters obtained on Earth as the expected parameters in the attitude estimation, and simulating the environment using the sensor noise parameters from space, it is possible to assess whether the EKF can be designed...

  16. Envisioning a 21st Century, National, Spacecraft Servicing and Protection Infrastructure and Demand Potential: A Logical Development of the Earth Orbit Economy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Horsham, Gary A.

    2003-01-01

    The modern world is extremely dependent on thin strings of several hundred civil, military, and commercial spacecraft/satellites currently stationed in space. They provide a steady stream of commerce, defense, and knowledge data. This dependency will in all likelihood increase significantly during this century. A major disruption of any kind in these essential systems and networks could be socially, economically, and politically catastrophic, on a global scale. The development of a space-based, robotic services economy could be useful in mitigating this growing risk, from an efficiency and security standpoint. This paper attempts to suggest what makes sense to invest in next for the logical, economic development of Earth orbit i.e., after ISS completion. It expands on the results of an advanced market research and analysis study that sampled the opinions of several satellite industry executives and presents these results within a broad policy context. The concept of a spacecraft carrier that serves as the nucleus of a national, space-based or on-orbit, robotic services infrastructure is introduced as the next logical step for United States leadership in space. This is viewed as a reasonable and appropriate followon to the development of ELVs and satellites in the 1950s and 1960s, the Space Shuttle/PRLV in the 1970s and 1980s, and the International Space Station (ISS) in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. Large-scale experience in LEO-to-GEO spacecraft/satellite servicing and protection by robotic means is assumed to be an indispensable prerequisite or stepping-stone toward the development and preservation of the large scientific exploration facilities that are envisioned by NASA for operation beyond GEO. A balanced, return on national investment (RONI) strategy for space, focused on the provision of enhanced national/homeland security for increased protection, national economic/industrial expansion for increased revenue, and national scientific exploration for increased

  17. Spacecraft navigation at Mars using earth-based and in situ radio tracking techniques

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thurman, S. W.; Edwards, C. D.; Kahn, R. D.; Vijayaraghavan, A.; Hastrup, R. C.; Cesarone, R. J.

    1992-08-01

    A survey of earth-based and in situ radiometric data types and results from a number of studies investigating potential radio navigation performance for spacecraft approaching/orbiting Mars and for landed spacecraft and rovers on the surface of Mars are presented. The performance of Doppler, ranging and interferometry earth-based data types involving single or multiple spacecraft is addressed. This evaluation is conducted with that of in situ data types, such as Doppler and ranging measurements between two spacecraft near Mars, or between a spacecraft and one or more surface radio beacons.

  18. Orbital Maneuvers for Spacecrafts Travelling to/from the Lagrangian Points

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bertachini, A.

    The well-known Lagrangian points that appear in the planar restricted three-body problem (Szebehely, 1967) are very important for astronautical applications. They are five points of equilibrium in the equations of motion, what means that a particle located at one of those points with zero velocity will remain there indefinitely. The collinear points (L1, L2 and L3) are always unstable and the triangular points (L4 and L5) are stable in the present case studied (Sun-Earth system). They are all very good points to locate a space-station, since they require a small amount of V (and fuel), the control to be used for station-keeping. The triangular points are specially good for this purpose, since they are stable equilibrium points. In this paper, the planar restricted three-body problem is regularized (using Lemaître regularization) and combined with numerical integration and gradient methods to solve the two point boundary value problem (the Lambert's three-body problem). This combination is applied to the search of families of transfer orbits between the Lagrangian points and the Earth, in the Sun-Earth system, with the minimum possible cost of the control used. So, the final goal of this paper is to find the magnitude and direction of the two impulses to be applied in the spacecraft to complete the transfer: the first one when leaving/arriving at the Lagrangian point and the second one when arriving/living at the Earth. This paper is a continuation of two previous papers that studied transfers in the Earth-Moon system: Broucke (1979), that studied transfer orbits between the Lagrangian points and the Moon and Prado (1996), that studied transfer orbits between the Lagrangian points and the Earth. So, the equations of motion are: whereis the pseudo-potential given by: To solve the TPBVP in the regularized variables the following steps are used: i) Guess a initial velocity Vi, so together with the initial prescribed position ri the complete initial state is known; ii

  19. A multi-satellite study of accelerated ionospheric ion beams above the polar cap

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. Maggiolo

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a study of nearly field-aligned outflowing ion beams observed on the Cluster satellites over the polar cap. Data are taken at geocentric radial distances of the order of 5–9 RE. The distinction is made between ion beams originating from the polar cusp/cleft and beams accelerated almost along the magnetic field line passing by the spacecraft. Polar cusp beams are characterized by nearly field-aligned proton and oxygen ions with an energy ratio EO+ / EH+, of the order of 3 to 4, due to the ion energy repartition inside the source and to the latitudinal extension of the source. Rapid variations in the outflowing ion energy are linked with pulses/modifications of the convection electric field. Cluster data allow one to show that these perturbations of the convection velocity and the associated ion structures propagate at the convection velocity. In contrast, polar cap local ion beams are characterized by field-aligned proton and oxygen ions with similar energies. These beams show the typical inverted V structures usually observed in the auroral zone and are associated with a quasi-static converging electric field indicative of a field-aligned electric field. The field-aligned potential drop fits well the ion energy profile. The simultaneous observation of precipitating electrons and upflowing ions of similar energies at the Cluster orbit indicates that the spacecraft are crossing the mid-altitude part of the acceleration region. In the polar cap, the parallel electric field can thus extend to altitudes higher than 5 Earth radii. A detailed analysis of the distribution functions shows that the ions are heated during their parallel acceleration and that energy is exchanged between H+ and O+. Furthermore, intense electrostatic waves are observed simultaneously. These observations could be due to an ion-ion two-stream instability.

  20. Autonomous orbit determination and its error analysis for deep space using X-ray pulsar

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Feng, Dongzhu; Yuan, Xiaoguang; Guo, Hehe; Wang, Xin

    2014-01-01

    Autonomous orbit determination (OD) is a complex process using filtering method to integrate observation and orbit dynamic model effectively and estimate the position and velocity of a spacecraft. As a novel technology for autonomous interplanetary OD, X-ray pulsar holds great promise for deep space exploration. The position and velocity of spacecraft should be estimated accurately during the OD process. However, under the same condition, the accuracy of OD can be greatly reduced by the error of the initial orbit value and the orbit mutation. To resolve this problem, we propose a novel OD method, which is based on the X-ray pulsar measurement and Adaptive Unscented Kalman Filter (AUKF). The accuracy of OD can be improved obviously because the AUKF estimates the orbit of spacecraft using measurement residual. During the simulation, the orbit of Phoenix Mars Lander, Deep Impact Probe, and Voyager 1 are selected. Compared with Unscented Kalman Filter (UKF) and Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), the simulation results demonstrate that the proposed OD method based on AUKF can accurately determinate the velocity and position and effectively decrease the orbit estimated errors which is caused by the orbit mutation and orbit initial errors. (authors)

  1. ULF Narrowband Emissions Analysis in the Terrestrial Polar Cusps

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grison, B.; Pisa, D.

    2013-05-01

    Polar cusps are known to be a key region for transfer of mass and momentum between the adjacent magnetosheath and the magnetosphere. The 4 spacecraft of the Cluster ESA mission crossed the polar cusps in their most distant part to the Earth in the early years of the mission (2000-2004) because of their highly eccentric orbit. The ULF wave activity in the cusp region has been linked with the magnetosheath plasma penetration since HEOS observations (D'Angelo et al., 1974). Wave and particle interaction play an important role in this colisionless plasma. The observed wave activity certainly results from both distant and local generation mechanisms. From Cluster case studies we propose to focus on one aspect for each of this place of generation. Concerning the distant generation, the possibility of a wave generation at the magnetopause itself is investigated. For this purpose we compare the propagation of the emissions on each side of the magnetopasue, i.e. in the cusp and in the magnetosheath. Concerning the local generation, the presence of locally generated waves above the local proton gyrofrequency that display a left hand polarization has been reported in Polar and Cluster studies (Le et al., 2001; Nykyri et al., 2003 ). The Doppler shift was not large enough to explain the observed frequency. We propose here to combine various techniques (k-filtering analysis, WHAMP simulations) to achieve a precise wave vector estimation and to explain these observations. References: D'Angelo, N., A. Bahnsen, and H. Rosenbauer (1974), Wave and particle measurements at the polar cusp, J. Geophys. Res., 79( 22), 3129-3134, doi:10.1029/JA079i022p03129. Le, G., X. Blanco-Cano, C. T. Russell, X.-W. Zhou, F. Mozer, K. J. Trattner, S. A. Fuselier, and B. J. Anderson (2001), Electromagnetic ion cyclotron waves in the high-altitude cusp: Polar observations, J. Geophys. Res., 106(A9), 19067-19079, doi:10.1029/2000JA900163. Nykyri, K., P. J. Cargill, E. A. Lucek, T. S. Horbury, A. Balogh

  2. Analysis on coverage ability of BeiDou navigation satellite system for manned spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Sihao; Yao, Zheng; Zhuang, Xuebin; Lu, Mingquan

    2014-12-01

    To investigate the service ability of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) for manned spacecraft, both the current regional and the future-planned global constellations of BDS are introduced and simulated. The orbital parameters of the International Space Station and China's Tiangong-1 spacelab are used to create the simulation scenario and evaluate the performance of the BDS constellations. The number of visible satellites and the position dilution (PDOP) of precision at the spacecraft-based receiver are evaluated. Simulation and analysis show quantitative results on the coverage ability and time percentages of both the current BDS regional and future global constellations for manned-space orbits which can be a guideline to the applications and mission design of BDS receivers on manned spacecraft.

  3. Lifetime predictions for the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) and San Marco spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, E. A.; Ward, D. T.; Schmitt, M. W.; Phenneger, M. C.; Vaughn, F. J.; Lupisella, M. L.

    1989-01-01

    Lifetime prediction techniques developed by the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Flight Dynamics Division (FDD) are described. These techniques were developed to predict the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM) spacecraft orbit, which is decaying due to atmospheric drag, with reentry predicted to occur before the end of 1989. Lifetime predictions were also performed for the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF), which was deployed on the 1984 SMM repair mission and is scheduled for retrieval on another Space Transportation System (STS) mission later this year. Concepts used in the lifetime predictions were tested on the San Marco spacecraft, which reentered the Earth's atmosphere on December 6, 1988. Ephemerides predicting the orbit evolution of the San Marco spacecraft until reentry were generated over the final 90 days of the mission when the altitude was less than 380 kilometers. The errors in the predicted ephemerides are due to errors in the prediction of atmospheric density variations over the lifetime of the satellite. To model the time dependence of the atmospheric densities, predictions of the solar flux at the 10.7-centimeter wavelength were used in conjunction with Harris-Priester (HP) atmospheric density tables. Orbital state vectors, together with the spacecraft mass and area, are used as input to the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS). Propagations proceed in monthly segments, with the nominal atmospheric drag model scaled for each month according to the predicted monthly average value of F10.7. Calibration propagations are performed over a period of known orbital decay to obtain the effective ballistic coefficient. Progagations using plus or minus 2 sigma solar flux predictions are also generated to estimate the despersion in expected reentry dates. Definitive orbits are compared with these predictions as time expases. As updated vectors are received, these are also propagated to reentryto continually update the lifetime predictions.

  4. Automated Spacecraft Conjunction Assessment at Mars and the Moon

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berry, David; Guinn, Joseph; Tarzi, Zahi; Demcak, Stuart

    2012-01-01

    Conjunction assessment and collision avoidance are areas of current high interest in space operations. Most current conjunction assessment activity focuses on the Earth orbital environment. Several of the world's space agencies have satellites in orbit at Mars and the Moon, and avoiding collisions there is important too. Smaller number of assets than Earth, and smaller number of organizations involved, but consequences similar to Earth scenarios.This presentation will examine conjunction assessment processes implemented at JPL for spacecraft in orbit at Mars and the Moon.

  5. Spacecraft formation control using analytical finite-duration approaches

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ben Larbi, Mohamed Khalil; Stoll, Enrico

    2018-03-01

    This paper derives a control concept for formation flight (FF) applications assuming circular reference orbits. The paper focuses on a general impulsive control concept for FF which is then extended to the more realistic case of non-impulsive thrust maneuvers. The control concept uses a description of the FF in relative orbital elements (ROE) instead of the classical Cartesian description since the ROE provide a direct insight into key aspects of the relative motion and are particularly suitable for relative orbit control purposes and collision avoidance analysis. Although Gauss' variational equations have been first derived to offer a mathematical tool for processing orbit perturbations, they are suitable for several different applications. If the perturbation acceleration is due to a control thrust, Gauss' variational equations show the effect of such a control thrust on the Keplerian orbital elements. Integrating the Gauss' variational equations offers a direct relation between velocity increments in the local vertical local horizontal frame and the subsequent change of Keplerian orbital elements. For proximity operations, these equations can be generalized from describing the motion of single spacecraft to the description of the relative motion of two spacecraft. This will be shown for impulsive and finite-duration maneuvers. Based on that, an analytical tool to estimate the error induced through impulsive maneuver planning is presented. The resulting control schemes are simple and effective and thus also suitable for on-board implementation. Simulations show that the proposed concept improves the timing of the thrust maneuver executions and thus reduces the residual error of the formation control.

  6. Conductance and spin polarization for a quantum wire with the competition of Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fu Xi; Chen Zeshun; Zhong Feng; Zhou Guanghui

    2010-01-01

    We investigate theoretically the spin transport of a quantum wire (QW) with weak Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling (SOC) nonadiabatically connected to two normal leads. Using scattering matrix method and Landauer-Buettiker formula within effective free-electron approximation, we have calculated spin-dependent conductances G ↑ and G ↓ , total conductance G and spin polarization P z for a hard-wall potential confined QW. It is demonstrated that, the SOCs induce the splitting of G ↑ and G ↓ and form spin polarization P z . Moreover, the conductances present quantized plateaus, the plateaus and P z show oscillation structures near the subband edges. Furthermore, with the increase of QW width a strong spin polarization (P z ∼1) gradually becomes weak, which can be used to realize a spin filter. When the two SOCs coexist, the total conductance presents an isotropy transport due to the Rashba and Dresselhaus Hamiltonians being fixed, and the alteration of two SOCs strength ratio changes the sign of spin polarization. This may provide a way of realizing the expression of unit information by tuning gate voltage.

  7. Deadly Sunflower Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamilton, Douglas P.

    2018-04-01

    Solar radiation pressure is usually very effective at removing hazardous millimeter-sized debris from distant orbits around asteroidsand other small solar system bodies (Hamilton and Burns 1992). Theprimary loss mechanism, driven by the azimuthal component of radiationpressure, is eccentricity growth followed by a forced collision withthe central body. One large class of orbits, however, neatly sidestepsthis fate. Orbits oriented nearly perpendicular to the solar directioncan maintain their face-on geometry, oscillating slowly around a stableequilibrium orbit. These orbits, designated sunflower orbits, arerelated to terminator orbits studied by spacecraft mission designers(Broschart etal. 2014).Destabilization of sunflower orbits occurs only for particles smallenough that radiation pressure is some tens of percent the strength ofthe central body's direct gravity. This greatly enhanced stability,which follows from the inability of radiation incident normal to theorbit to efficiently drive eccentricities, presents a threat tospacecraft missions, as numerous dangerous projectiles are potentiallyretained in orbit. We have investigated sunflower orbits insupport of the New Horizons, Aida, and Lucy missions and find thatthese orbits are stable for hazardous particle sizes at asteroids,comets, and Kuiper belt objects of differing dimensions. Weinvestigate the sources and sinks for debris that might populate suchorbits, estimate timescales and equilibrium populations, and willreport on our findings.

  8. North Polar Cap

    Science.gov (United States)

    2004-01-01

    [figure removed for brevity, see original site] This week we will be looking at five examples of laminar wind flow on the north polar cap. On Earth, gravity-driven south polar cap winds are termed 'catabatic' winds. Catabatic winds begin over the smooth expanse of the cap interior due to temperature differences between the atmosphere and the surface. Once begun, the winds sweep outward along the surface of the polar cap toward the sea. As the polar surface slopes down toward sealevel, the wind speeds increase. Catabatic wind speeds in the Antartic can reach several hundreds of miles per hour. In the images of the Martian north polar cap we can see these same type of winds. Notice the streamers of dust moving downslope over the darker trough sides, these streamers show the laminar flow regime coming off the cap. Within the trough we see turbulent clouds of dust, kicked up at the trough base as the winds slow down and enter a chaotic flow regime. The horizontal lines in these images are due to framelet overlap and lighting conditions over the bright polar cap. Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 86.5, Longitude 64.5 East (295.5 West). 40 meter/pixel resolution. Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen

  9. Differential Evolution Optimization for Targeting Spacecraft Maneuver Plans

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mattern, Daniel

    2016-01-01

    Previous analysis identified specific orbital parameters as being safer for conjunction avoidance for the TDRS fleet. With TDRS-9 being considered an at-risk spacecraft, a potential conjunction concern was raised should TDRS-9 fail while at a longitude of 12W. This document summarizes the analysis performed to identify if these specific orbital parameters could be targeted using the remaining drift-termination maneuvers for the relocation of TDRS-9 from 41W longitude to 12W longitude.

  10. Dynamics and control of robotic spacecrafts for the transportation of flexible elements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wen, Hao; Chen, Ti; Yu, Bensong; Jin, Dongping

    2016-01-01

    The technology of robotic spacecrafts has been identified as one of the most appealing solutions to the on-orbit construction of large space structures in future space missions. As a prerequisite of a successful on-orbit construction, it is needed to use small autonomous spacecrafts for the transportation of flexible elements. To this end, the paper presents an energy-based scheme to control a couple of robotic spacecrafts carrying a flexible slender structure to its desired position. The flexible structure is modelled as a long beam based on the formulation of absolute nodal coordinates to account for the geometrical nonlinearity due to large displacement. Meanwhile, the robotic spacecrafts are actuated on their rigid-body degrees of freedom and modelled as two rigid bodies attached to the flexible beam. The energy-based controller is designed using the technique of energy shaping and damping injection such that translational and rotational maneuvers can be achieved with the suppression of the flexible vibrations of the beam. Finally, numerical case studies are performed to demonstrate the proposed schemes. (paper)

  11. Low-frequency synthesis array in earth orbit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jones, D.L.; Preston, R.A.; Kuiper, T.B.H.

    1987-01-01

    The scientific objectives and design concept of a space-based VLBI array for high-resolution astronomical observations at 1-30 MHz are discussed. The types of investigations calling for such an array include radio spectroscopy of individual objects, measurement of the effects of scattering and refraction by the interplanetary medium (IPM) and the ISM, mapping the distribution of low-energy cosmic-ray electrons, and determining the extent of the Galactic halo. Consideration is given to the limitations imposed on an LF VLBI array by the ionosphere, the IPM, and the ISM; the calibration advantages offered by circular polar orbits of slightly differing ascending-node longitude for the array satellites; and collection of the IF data streams from the array satellites by one master satellite prior to transmission to the ground. It is shown that determination of the three-dimensional array geometry by means of intersatellite radio links is feasible if there are at least seven spacecraft in the array

  12. Multi-spacecraft observations of ICMEs propagating beyond Earth orbit during MSL/RAD flight and surface phases

    Science.gov (United States)

    von Forstner, J.; Guo, J.; Wimmer-Schweingruber, R. F.; Hassler, D.; Temmer, M.; Vrsnak, B.; Čalogović, J.; Dumbovic, M.; Lohf, H.; Appel, J. K.; Heber, B.; Steigies, C. T.; Zeitlin, C.; Ehresmann, B.; Jian, L. K.; Boehm, E.; Boettcher, S. I.; Burmeister, S.; Martin-Garcia, C.; Brinza, D. E.; Posner, A.; Reitz, G.; Matthiae, D.; Rafkin, S. C.; weigle, G., II; Cucinotta, F.

    2017-12-01

    The propagation of interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs) between Earth's orbit (1 AU) and Mars ( 1.5 AU) has been studied with their propagation speed estimated from both measurements and simulations. The enhancement of the magnetic fields related to ICMEs and their shock fronts cause so-called Forbush decreases, which can be detected as a reduction of galactic cosmic rays measured on-ground or on a spacecraft. We have used galactic cosmic ray (GCR) data from in-situ measurements at Earth, from both STEREO A and B as well as the GCR measurement by the Radiation Assessment Detector (RAD) instrument onboard Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) on the surface of Mars as well as during its flight to Mars in 2011-2012. A set of ICME events has been selected during the periods when Earth (or STEREO A or B) and MSL locations were nearly aligned on the same side of the Sun in the ecliptic plane (so-called opposition phase). Such lineups allow us to estimate the ICMEs' transit times between 1 AU and the MSL location by estimating the delay time of the corresponding Forbush decreases measured at each location. We investigate the evolution of their propagation speeds after passing Earth's orbit and find that the deceleration of ICMEs due to their interaction with the ambient solar wind continues beyond 1 AU. The results are compared to simulation data obtained from two CME propagation models, namely the Drag-Based Model (DBM) and the WSA-ENLIL plus cone model.

  13. Preliminary Assessment of Suomi-NPP VIIRS On-orbit Radiometric Performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oudrari, Hassan; DeLuccia, Frank; McIntire, Jeff; Moyer, David; Chiang, Vincent; Xiong, Xiao-xiong; Butler, James

    2012-01-01

    The Visible-Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) is a key instrument on-board the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (NPP) spacecraft that was launched on October 28th 2011. VIIRS was designed to provide moderate and imaging resolution of most of the globe twice daily. It is a wide-swath (3,040 km) cross-track scanning radiometer with spatial resolutions of 370.and 740 m at nadir for imaging and moderate bands, respectively. It has 22 spectral bands covering the spectrum between 0.412 11m and 12.01 11m, including 14 reflective solar bands (RSB), 7 thermal emissive bands (TEB), and 1 day-night band (ON B). VIIRS observations are used to generate 22 environmental data products (EORs). This paper will briefly describe NPP VIIRS calibration strategies performed by the independent government team, for the initial on-orbit Intensive Calibration and Validation (ICV) activities. In addition, this paper will provide an early assessment of the sensor on-orbit radiometric performance, such as the sensor signal to noise ratios (SNRs), dual gain transition verification, dynamic range and linearity, reflective bands calibration based on the solar diffuser (SO) and solar diffuser stability monitor (SOSM), and emissive bands calibration based on the on-board blackbody calibration (OBC). A comprehensive set of performance metrics generated during the pre-launch testing program will be compared to VIIRS on-orbit early performance, and a plan for future cal/val activities and performance enhancements will be presented.

  14. Mid-Latitude versus Polar-Latitude Transitional Impact Craters: Geometric Properties from Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) Observations and Viking Images

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matias, A.; Garvin, J. B.; Sakimoto, S. E. H.

    1998-01-01

    One intriguing aspect of martian impact crater morphology is the change of crater cavity and ejecta characteristics from the mid-latitudes to the polar regions. This is thought to reflect differences in target properties such as an increasing presence of ice in the polar regions. Previous image-based efforts concerning martian crater morphology has documented some aspects of this, but has been hampered by the lack of adequate topography data. Recent Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) topographic profiles provide a quantitative perspective for interpreting the detailed morphologies of martian crater cavities and ejecta morphology. This study is a preliminary effort to quantify the latitude-dependent differences in morphology with the goal of identifying target-dependent and crater modification effects from the combined of images and MOLA topography. We combine the available MOLA profiles and the corresponding Viking Mars Digital Image Mosaics (MDIMS), and high resolution Viking Orbiter images to focus on two transitional craters; one on the mid-latitudes, and one in the North Polar region. One MOLA pass (MGS Orbit 34) traverses the center of a 15.9 km diameter fresh complex crater located at 12.8degN 83.8degE on the Hesperian ridge plains unit (Hvr). Viking images, as well as MOLA data, show that this crater has well developed wall terraces and a central peak with 429 m of relative relief. Three MOLA passes have been acquired for a second impact crater, which is located at 69.5degN 41degE on the Vastitas Borealis Formation. This fresh rampart crater lacks terraces and central peak structures and it has a depth af 579 m. Correlation between images and MOLA topographic profiles allows us to construct basic facies maps of the craters. Eight main units were identified, four of which are common on both craters.

  15. Detecting Canopy Water Status Using Shortwave Infrared Reflectance Data From Polar Orbiting and Geostationary Platforms

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fensholt, Rasmus; Huber Gharib, Silvia; Proud, Simon Richard

    2010-01-01

    -based canopy water status detection from geostationary Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI) data as compared to polar orbiting environmental satellite (POES)-based moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) data. The EO-based SWIR water stress index...... (SIWSI) is evaluated against in situ measured canopy water content indicators at a semi-arid grassland savanna site in Senegal 2008. Daily SIWSI from both MODIS and SEVIRI data show an overall inverse relation to Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) throughout the growing season. SIWSI...... for SWIR-based canopy water status and stress monitoring in a semi-arid environment....

  16. ATS-6 engineering performance report. Volume 2: Orbit and attitude controls

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wales, R. O. (Editor)

    1981-01-01

    Attitude control is reviewed, encompassing the attitude control subsystem, spacecraft attitude precision pointing and slewing adaptive control experiment, and RF interferometer experiment. The spacecraft propulsion system (SPS) is discussed, including subsystem, SPS design description and validation, orbital operations and performance, in-orbit anomalies and contingency operations, and the cesium bombardment ion engine experiment. Thruster failure due to plugging of the propellant feed passages, a major cause for mission termination, are considered among the critical generic failures on the satellite.

  17. A Survey of LIDAR Technology and Its Use in Spacecraft Relative Navigation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Christian, John A.; Cryan, Scott P.

    2013-01-01

    This paper provides a survey of modern LIght Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) sensors from a perspective of how they can be used for spacecraft relative navigation. In addition to LIDAR technology commonly used in space applications today (e.g. scanning, flash), this paper reviews emerging LIDAR technologies gaining traction in other non-aerospace fields. The discussion will include an overview of sensor operating principles and specific pros/cons for each type of LIDAR. This paper provides a comprehensive review of LIDAR technology as applied specifically to spacecraft relative navigation. HE problem of orbital rendezvous and docking has been a consistent challenge for complex space missions since before the Gemini 8 spacecraft performed the first successful on-orbit docking of two spacecraft in 1966. Over the years, a great deal of effort has been devoted to advancing technology associated with all aspects of the rendezvous, proximity operations, and docking (RPOD) flight phase. After years of perfecting the art of crewed rendezvous with the Gemini, Apollo, and Space Shuttle programs, NASA began investigating the problem of autonomous rendezvous and docking (AR&D) to support a host of different mission applications. Some of these applications include autonomous resupply of the International Space Station (ISS), robotic servicing/refueling of existing orbital assets, and on-orbit assembly.1 The push towards a robust AR&D capability has led to an intensified interest in a number of different sensors capable of providing insight into the relative state of two spacecraft. The present work focuses on exploring the state-of-the-art in one of these sensors - LIght Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) sensors. It should be noted that the military community frequently uses the acronym LADAR (LAser Detection And Ranging) to refer to what this paper calls LIDARs. A LIDAR is an active remote sensing device that is typically used in space applications to obtain the range to one or more

  18. NASA's New Orbital Debris Engineering Model, ORDEM2010

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krisko, Paula H.

    2010-01-01

    This paper describes the functionality and use of ORDEM2010, which replaces ORDEM2000, as the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office (ODPO) debris engineering model. Like its predecessor, ORDEM2010 serves the ODPO mission of providing spacecraft designers/operators and debris observers with a publicly available model to calculate orbital debris flux by current-state-of-knowledge methods. The key advance in ORDEM2010 is the input file structure of the yearly debris populations from 1995-2035 of sizes 10 micron - 1 m. These files include debris from low-Earth orbits (LEO) through geosynchronous orbits (GEO). Stable orbital elements (i.e., those that do not randomize on a sub-year timescale) are included in the files as are debris size, debris number, material density, random error and population error. Material density is implemented from ground-test data into the NASA breakup model and assigned to debris fragments accordingly. The random and population errors are due to machine error and uncertainties in debris sizes. These high-fidelity population files call for a much higher-level model analysis than what was possible with the populations of ORDEM2000. Population analysis in the ORDEM2010 model consists of mapping matrices that convert the debris population elements to debris fluxes. One output mode results in a spacecraft encompassing 3-D igloo of debris flux, compartmentalized by debris size, velocity, pitch, and yaw with respect to spacecraft ram direction. The second output mode provides debris flux through an Earth-based telescope/radar beam from LEO through GEO. This paper compares the new ORDEM2010 with ORDEM2000 in terms of processes and results with examples of specific orbits.

  19. Comprehensive evaluation of attitude and orbit estimation using real earth magnetic field data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deutschmann, Julie; Bar-Itzhack, Itzhack

    1997-01-01

    A single, augmented extended Kalman filter (EKF) which simultaneously and autonomously estimates spacecraft attitude and orbit was developed and tested with simulated and real magnetometer and rate data. Since the earth's magnetic field is a function of time and position, and since time is accurately known, the differences between the computed and measured magnetic field components, as measured by the magnetometers throughout the entire spacecraft's orbit, are a function of orbit and attitude errors. These differences can be used to estimate the orbit and attitude. The test results of the EKF with magnetometer and gyro data from three NASA satellites are presented and evaluated.

  20. Optically induced rotation of Rayleigh particles by vortex beams with different states of polarization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, Manman; Yan, Shaohui; Yao, Baoli; Liang, Yansheng; Lei, Ming; Yang, Yanlong

    2016-01-01

    Optical vortex beams carry optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) and can induce an orbital motion of trapped particles in optical trapping. We show that the state of polarization (SOP) of vortex beams will affect the details of this optically induced orbital motion to some extent. Numerical results demonstrate that focusing the vortex beams with circular, radial or azimuthal polarizations can induce a uniform orbital motion on a trapped Rayleigh particle, while in the focal field of the vortex beam with linear polarization the particle experiences a non-uniform orbital motion. Among the formers, the vortex beam with circular polarization induces a maximum optical torque on the particle. Furthermore, by varying the topological charge of the vortex beams, the vortex beam with circular polarization gives rise to an optimum torque superior to those given by the other three vortex beams. These facts suggest that the circularly polarized vortex beam is more suitable for rotating particles. - Highlights: • States of polarization of vortex beams affect the optically induced orbital motion of particles. • The dependences of the force and orbital torque on the topological charge, the size and the absorptivity of particles were calculated. • Focused vortex beams with circular, radial or azimuthal polarizations induce a uniform orbital motion on particles. • Particles experience a non-uniform orbital motion in the focused linearly polarized vortex beam. • The circularly polarized vortex beam is a superior candidate for rotating particles.

  1. STS-49 Endeavour, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 105, Orbit Team O1 in MCC Bldg 30 FCR

    Science.gov (United States)

    1992-01-01

    STS-49 Endeavour, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 105, Orbit Team 1 (O1) poses in front of large display screens in JSC's Mission Control Center (MCC) Bldg 30 Flight Control Room (FCR) for group portrait. Lead Flight Director (FD) Granvil A. Pennington stands next to a model of the James Cook's ship, the Endeavour (left). Astronaut and Spacecraft Communicator (CAPCOM) John H. Casper stands at the right of the model.

  2. Robust Spacecraft Component Detection in Point Clouds

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Quanmao Wei

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Automatic component detection of spacecraft can assist in on-orbit operation and space situational awareness. Spacecraft are generally composed of solar panels and cuboidal or cylindrical modules. These components can be simply represented by geometric primitives like plane, cuboid and cylinder. Based on this prior, we propose a robust automatic detection scheme to automatically detect such basic components of spacecraft in three-dimensional (3D point clouds. In the proposed scheme, cylinders are first detected in the iteration of the energy-based geometric model fitting and cylinder parameter estimation. Then, planes are detected by Hough transform and further described as bounded patches with their minimum bounding rectangles. Finally, the cuboids are detected with pair-wise geometry relations from the detected patches. After successive detection of cylinders, planar patches and cuboids, a mid-level geometry representation of the spacecraft can be delivered. We tested the proposed component detection scheme on spacecraft 3D point clouds synthesized by computer-aided design (CAD models and those recovered by image-based reconstruction, respectively. Experimental results illustrate that the proposed scheme can detect the basic geometric components effectively and has fine robustness against noise and point distribution density.

  3. Robust Spacecraft Component Detection in Point Clouds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wei, Quanmao; Jiang, Zhiguo; Zhang, Haopeng

    2018-03-21

    Automatic component detection of spacecraft can assist in on-orbit operation and space situational awareness. Spacecraft are generally composed of solar panels and cuboidal or cylindrical modules. These components can be simply represented by geometric primitives like plane, cuboid and cylinder. Based on this prior, we propose a robust automatic detection scheme to automatically detect such basic components of spacecraft in three-dimensional (3D) point clouds. In the proposed scheme, cylinders are first detected in the iteration of the energy-based geometric model fitting and cylinder parameter estimation. Then, planes are detected by Hough transform and further described as bounded patches with their minimum bounding rectangles. Finally, the cuboids are detected with pair-wise geometry relations from the detected patches. After successive detection of cylinders, planar patches and cuboids, a mid-level geometry representation of the spacecraft can be delivered. We tested the proposed component detection scheme on spacecraft 3D point clouds synthesized by computer-aided design (CAD) models and those recovered by image-based reconstruction, respectively. Experimental results illustrate that the proposed scheme can detect the basic geometric components effectively and has fine robustness against noise and point distribution density.

  4. Characteristic of the radiation field in low earth orbit and in deep space

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Reitz, Guenther

    2008-01-01

    The radiation exposure in space by cosmic radiation can be reduced through careful mission planning and constructive measures as example the provision of a radiation shelter, but it cannot be completely avoided. The reason for that are the extreme high energies of particles in this field and the herewith connected high penetration depth in matter. For missions outside the magnetosphere ionizing radiation is recognized as the key factor through its impact on crew health and performance. In absence of sporadic solar particle events the radiation exposure in Low Earth orbit (LEO) inside Spacecraft is determined by the galactic cosmic radiation (protons and heavier ions) and by the protons inside the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), an area where the radiation belt comes closer to the earth surface due to a displacement of the magnetic dipole axes from the Earth's center. In addition there is an albedo source of neutrons produced as interaction products of the primary galactic particles with the atoms of the earth atmosphere. Outside the spacecraft the dose is dominated by the electrons of the horns of the radiation belt located at about 60 latitude in Polar Regions. The radiation field has spatial and temporal variations in dependence of the Earth magnetic field and the solar cycle. The complexity of the radiation field inside a spacecraft is further increased through the interaction of the high energy components with the spacecraft shielding material and with the body of the astronauts. In interplanetary missions the radiation belt will be crossed in a couple of minutes and therefore its contribution to their radiation exposure is quite small, but subsequently the protection by the Earth magnetic field is lost, leaving only shielding measures as exposure reduction means. The report intends to describe the radiation field in space, the interaction of the particles with the magnetic field and shielding material and give some numbers on the radiation exposure in low earth

  5. Characteristic of the radiation field in low Earth orbit and in deep space.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reitz, Guenther

    2008-01-01

    The radiation exposure in space by cosmic radiation can be reduced through careful mission planning and constructive measures as example the provision of a radiation shelter, but it cannot be completely avoided. The reason for that are the extreme high energies of particles in this field and the herewith connected high penetration depth in matter. For missions outside the magnetosphere ionizing radiation is recognized as the key factor through its impact on crew health and performance. In absence of sporadic solar particle events the radiation exposure in Low Earth orbit (LEO) inside Spacecraft is determined by the galactic cosmic radiation (protons and heavier ions) and by the protons inside the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), an area where the radiation belt comes closer to the earth surface due to a displacement of the magnetic dipole axes from the Earth's center. In addition there is an albedo source of neutrons produced as interaction products of the primary galactic particles with the atoms of the earth atmosphere. Outside the spacecraft the dose is dominated by the electrons of the horns of the radiation belt located at about 60" latitude in Polar Regions. The radiation field has spatial and temporal variations in dependence of the Earth magnetic field and the solar cycle. The complexity of the radiation field inside a spacecraft is further increased through the interaction of the high energy components with the spacecraft shielding material and with the body of the astronauts. In interplanetary missions the radiation belt will be crossed in a couple of minutes and therefore its contribution to their radiation exposure is quite small, but subsequently the protection by the Earth magnetic field is lost, leaving only shielding measures as exposure reduction means. The report intends to describe the radiation field in space, the interaction of the particles with the magnetic field and shielding material and give some numbers on the radiation exposure in low earth

  6. Spin tune dependence on closed orbit in RHIC

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ptitsyn, V.; Bai, M.; Roser, T.

    2010-01-01

    Polarized proton beams are accelerated in RHIC to 250 GeV energy with the help of Siberian Snakes. The pair of Siberian Snakes in each RHIC ring holds the design spin tune at 1/2 to avoid polarization loss during acceleration. However, in the presence of closed orbit errors, the actual spin tune can be shifted away from the exact 1/2 value. It leads to a corresponding shift of locations of higher-order ('snake') resonances and limits the available betatron tune space. The largest closed orbit effect on the spin tune comes from the horizontal orbit angle between the two snakes. During RHIC Run in 2009 dedicated measurements with polarized proton beams were taken to verify the dependence of the spin tune on the local orbits at the Snakes. The experimental results are presented along with the comparison with analytical predictions.

  7. Investigation of electrodynamic stabilization and control of long orbiting tethers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colombo, G.; Arnold, D.

    1984-01-01

    The state-of-the-art in tether modelling among participants in the Tethered Satellite System (TSS) Program, the slack tether and its behavior, and certain advanced applications of the tether to problems in orbital mechanics are identified. The features and applications of the TSS software set are reviewed. Modelling the slack tether analytically with as many as 50 mass points and the application of this new model to a study of the behavior of a broken tether near the Shuttle are described. A reel control algorithm developed by SAO and examples of its use are described, including an example which also demonstrates the use of the tether in transferring a heavy payload from a low-orbiting Shuttle to a high circular orbit. Capture of a low-orbiting payload by a Space Station in high circular orbit is described. Energy transfer within a dumbbell-type spacecraft by cyclical reeling operations or gravitational effects on the natural elasticity of the connecting tether, it is shown, can circularize the orbit of the spacecraft.

  8. Spacecraft Tests of General Relativity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anderson, John D.

    1997-01-01

    Current spacecraft tests of general relativity depend on coherent radio tracking referred to atomic frequency standards at the ground stations. This paper addresses the possibility of improved tests using essentially the current system, but with the added possibility of a space-borne atomic clock. Outside of the obvious measurement of the gravitational frequency shift of the spacecraft clock, a successor to the suborbital flight of a Scout D rocket in 1976 (GP-A Project), other metric tests would benefit most directly by a possible improved sensitivity for the reduced coherent data. For purposes of illustration, two possible missions are discussed. The first is a highly eccentric Earth orbiter, and the second a solar-conjunction experiment to measure the Shapiro time delay using coherent Doppler data instead of the conventional ranging modulation.

  9. Differential roles of polar orbital prefrontal cortex and parietal lobes in logical reasoning with neutral and negative emotional content.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eimontaite, Iveta; Goel, Vinod; Raymont, Vanessa; Krueger, Frank; Schindler, Igor; Grafman, Jordan

    2018-05-14

    To answer the question of how brain pathology affects reasoning about negative emotional content, we administered a disjunctive logical reasoning task involving arguments with neutral content (e.g. Either there are tigers or women in NYC, but not both; There are no tigers in NYC; There are women in NYC) and emotionally laden content (e.g. Either there are pedophiles or politicians in Texas, but not both; There are politicians in Texas; There are no pedophiles in Texas) to 92 neurological patients with focal lesions to various parts of the brain. A Voxel Lesion Symptom Mapping (VLSM) analysis identified 16 patients, all with lesions to the orbital polar prefrontal cortex (BA 10 & 11), as being selectively impaired in the emotional reasoning condition. Another 17 patients, all with lesions to the parietal cortex, were identified as being impaired in the neutral content condition. The reasoning scores of these two patient groups, along with 23 matched normal controls, underwent additional analysis to explore the effect of belief bias. This analysis revealed that the differences identified above were largely driven by trials where there was an incongruency between the believability of the conclusion and the validity of the argument (i.e. valid argument /false conclusion or invalid argument /true conclusion). Patients with lesions to polar orbital prefrontal cortex underperformed in incongruent emotional content trials and over performed in incongruent neutral content trials (compared to both normal controls and patients with parietal lobe lesions). Patients with lesions to parietal lobes underperformed normal controls (at a trend level) in neutral trials where there was a congruency between the believability of the conclusion and the validity of the argument (i.e. valid argument/true conclusion or invalid argument/false conclusion). We conclude that lesions to the polar orbital prefrontal cortex (i) prevent these patients from enjoying any emotionally induced cognitive

  10. Prospective Ukrainian lunar orbiter mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shkuratov, Y.; Litvinenko, L.; Shulga, V.; Yatskiv, Y.; Kislyuk, V.

    Ukraine has launch vehicles that are able to deliver about 300 kg to the lunar orbit. Future Ukrainian lunar program may propose a polar orbiter. This orbiter should fill principal information gaps in our knowledge about the Moon after Clementine and Lunar Prospector missions and the future missions, like Smart-1, Lunar-A, and Selene. We consider that this can be provided by radar studies of the Moon with supporting optical polarimetric observations from lunar polar orbit. These experiments allow one to better understand global structure of the lunar surface in a wide range of scales, from microns to kilometers. We propose three instruments for the prospective lunar orbiter. They are: a synthetic aperture imaging radar (SAR), ground-penetrating radar (GPR), and imaging polarimeter (IP). The main purpose of SAR is to study with high resolution (50 m) the permanently shadowed sites in the lunar polar regions. These sites are cold traps for volatiles, and have a potential of resource utilization. Possible presence of water ice in the regolith in the sites makes them interesting for permanent manned bases on the Moon. Radar imaging and mapping of other interesting regions could be also planned. Multi-frequencies multi-polarization soun d ing of the lunar surface with GPR can provide information about internal structure of the lunar surface from meters to several hundred meters deep. GPR can be used for measuring the megaregolith layer properties, detection of cryptomaria, and studies of internal structure of the largest craters. IP will be a CCD camera with an additional suite of polarizers. Modest spatial resolution (100 m) should provide a total coverage or a large portion of the lunar surface in oblique viewing basically at large phase angles. Polarization degree at large (>90°) phase angles bears information about characteristic size of the regolith particles. Additional radiophysical experiments are considered with the use of the SAR system, e.g., bistatic radar

  11. Stability Analysis of Spacecraft Motion in the Vicinity of Asteroids

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The objective of my proposal is to determine the stability of a spacecraft when in the vicinity of an asteroid. Orbiting an asteroid is a difficult task. The unique...

  12. ROGER a potential orbital space debris removal system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Starke, Juergen; Bischof, Bernd; Foth, W.-O.; -J., J.; Günther

    The previous activities in the field of On Orbit Servicing studied in the 1990's included in partic-ular the capability of vehicles in GEO to capture and support satellites (mainly communication satellites) to enable repair and continuation of operations, and finally the controlled transfer the target into a permanent graveyard orbit. The specific capture tools for these applications were mostly based on robotic systems to capture and fix the target under specific dynamic constraints (e.g. slowly tumbling target) without damage, and to allow the stabilization, re-orientation and potential repair of the target and subsequent release or transport to the final disposal orbit. Due to the drastically increasing number of debris particularly in the Low Earth Orbits (SSO) the active debris removal is now necessary to counteract to the predicted debris production cascade (Kessler Syndrome), which means the pollution of the total sphere in low earth orbit and not only the SSO area. In most of the debris congresses it was recommended to start removal with the still integrated systems as soon as possible. In the case of large debris objects, the soft capture system can be replaced by a simpler and robust system able to operate from a safe distance to the target and flexible enough to capture and hold different types of targets such as deactivated and/or defective satellites, upper stages and big fragments. These nominally non -cooperative targets might be partially destroyed by the capture process, but the production of additional debris shall be avoided. A major argument for the commercial applications is a multi-target mission potential, which is possible at GEO because the transfer propellant requirement to the disposal orbit and the return to the orbit of the next potential target is relative low (orbits with similar inclination and altitude). The proposed ROGER system is designed as a spacecraft with rendezvous capabilities including inspection in the vicinity of the

  13. Determination of Eros Physical Parameters for Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous Orbit Phase Navigation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miller, J. K.; Antreasian, P. J.; Georgini, J.; Owen, W. M.; Williams, B. G.; Yeomans, D. K.

    1995-01-01

    Navigation of the orbit phase of the Near Earth steroid Rendezvous (NEAR) mission will re,quire determination of certain physical parameters describing the size, shape, gravity field, attitude and inertial properties of Eros. Prior to launch, little was known about Eros except for its orbit which could be determined with high precision from ground based telescope observations. Radar bounce and light curve data provided a rough estimate of Eros shape and a fairly good estimate of the pole, prime meridian and spin rate. However, the determination of the NEAR spacecraft orbit requires a high precision model of Eros's physical parameters and the ground based data provides only marginal a priori information. Eros is the principal source of perturbations of the spacecraft's trajectory and the principal source of data for determining the orbit. The initial orbit determination strategy is therefore concerned with developing a precise model of Eros. The original plan for Eros orbital operations was to execute a series of rendezvous burns beginning on December 20,1998 and insert into a close Eros orbit in January 1999. As a result of an unplanned termination of the rendezvous burn on December 20, 1998, the NEAR spacecraft continued on its high velocity approach trajectory and passed within 3900 km of Eros on December 23, 1998. The planned rendezvous burn was delayed until January 3, 1999 which resulted in the spacecraft being placed on a trajectory that slowly returns to Eros with a subsequent delay of close Eros orbital operations until February 2001. The flyby of Eros provided a brief glimpse and allowed for a crude estimate of the pole, prime meridian and mass of Eros. More importantly for navigation, orbit determination software was executed in the landmark tracking mode to determine the spacecraft orbit and a preliminary shape and landmark data base has been obtained. The flyby also provided an opportunity to test orbit determination operational procedures that will be

  14. Method and associated apparatus for capturing, servicing, and de-orbiting earth satellites using robotics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cepollina, Frank J. (Inventor); Burns, Richard D. (Inventor); Holz, Jill M. (Inventor); Corbo, James E. (Inventor); Jedhrich, Nicholas M. (Inventor)

    2009-01-01

    This invention is a method and supporting apparatus for autonomously capturing, servicing and de-orbiting a free-flying spacecraft, such as a satellite, using robotics. The capture of the spacecraft includes the steps of optically seeking and ranging the satellite using LIDAR; and matching tumble rates, rendezvousing and berthing with the satellite. Servicing of the spacecraft may be done using supervised autonomy, which is allowing a robot to execute a sequence of instructions without intervention from a remote human-occupied location. These instructions may be packaged at the remote station in a script and uplinked to the robot for execution upon remote command giving authority to proceed. Alternately, the instructions may be generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI) logic onboard the robot. In either case, the remote operator maintains the ability to abort an instruction or script at any time, as well as the ability to intervene using manual override to teleoperate the robot.In one embodiment, a vehicle used for carrying out the method of this invention comprises an ejection module, which includes the robot, and a de-orbit module. Once servicing is completed by the robot, the ejection module separates from the de-orbit module, leaving the de-orbit module attached to the satellite for de-orbiting the same at a future time. Upon separation, the ejection module can either de-orbit itself or rendezvous with another satellite for servicing. The ability to de-orbit a spacecraft further allows the opportunity to direct the landing of the spent satellite in a safe location away from population centers, such as the ocean.

  15. Solar Illumination Control of the Polar Wind

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maes, L.; Maggiolo, R.; De Keyser, J.; André, M.; Eriksson, A. I.; Haaland, S.; Li, K.; Poedts, S.

    2017-11-01

    Polar wind outflow is an important process through which the ionosphere supplies plasma to the magnetosphere. The main source of energy driving the polar wind is solar illumination of the ionosphere. As a result, many studies have found a relation between polar wind flux densities and solar EUV intensity, but less is known about their relation to the solar zenith angle at the ionospheric origin, certainly at higher altitudes. The low energy of the outflowing particles and spacecraft charging means it is very difficult to measure the polar wind at high altitudes. We take advantage of an alternative method that allows estimations of the polar wind flux densities far in the lobes. We analyze measurements made by the Cluster spacecraft at altitudes from 4 up to 20 RE. We observe a strong dependence on the solar zenith angle in the ion flux density and see that both the ion velocity and density exhibit a solar zenith angle dependence as well. We also find a seasonal variation of the flux density.

  16. Operational factors affecting microgravity levels in orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Olsen, R. E.; Mockovciak, J., Jr.

    1980-01-01

    Microgravity levels desired for proposed materials processing payloads are fundamental considerations in the design of future space platforms. Disturbance sources, such as aerodynamic drag, attitude control torques, crew motion and orbital dynamics, influence the microgravity levels attainable in orbit. The nature of these effects are assessed relative to platform design parameters such as orbital altitude and configuration geometry, and examples are presented for a representative spacecraft configuration. The possible applications of control techniques to provide extremely low acceleration levels are also discussed.

  17. On the Mitigation of Solar Index Variability for High Precision Orbit Determination in Low Earth Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    2016-09-16

    spacecraft state, or solve for an orbit using a Kalman Filter -Smoother (KFS) or Weighted Least Squares Orbit Determination (WLS-OD) process. Early...1 Researchers at the NRL developed the NRLMSISE-00 model in 2002 to better calculate at- mospheric temperature and density profiles for a number of...spectrometer and incoherent scatter data MSIS, 1. N2 density and temperature ,” Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 82, No. 16, 1977, pp. 2139–2147

  18. Climatic changes on orbital and sub-orbital time scale recorded by the Guliya ice core in Tibetan Plateau

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    姚檀栋; 徐柏青; 蒲健辰

    2001-01-01

    Based on ice core records in the Tibetan Plateau and Greenland, the features and possible causes of climatic changes on orbital and sub-orbital time scale were discussed. Orbital time scale climatic change recorded in ice core from the Tibetan Plateau is typically ahead of that from polar regions, which indicates that climatic change in the Tibetan Plateau might be earlier than polar regions. The solar radiation change is a major factor that dominates the climatic change on orbital time scale. However, climatic events on sub-orbital time scale occurred later in the Tibetan Plateau than in the Arctic Region, indicating a different mechanism. For example, the Younger Dryas and Heinrich events took place earlier in Greenland ice core record than in Guliya ice core record. It is reasonable to propose the hypothesis that these climatic events were affected possibly by the Laurentide Ice Sheet. Therefore, ice sheet is critically important to climatic change on sub-orbital time scale in some ice ages.

  19. Multiple spacecraft configuration designs for coordinated flight missions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fumenti, Federico; Theil, Stephan

    2018-06-01

    Coordinated flight allows the replacement of a single monolithic spacecraft with multiple smaller ones, based on the principle of distributed systems. According to the mission objectives and to ensure a safe relative motion, constraints on the relative distances need to be satisfied. Initially, differential perturbations are limited by proper orbit design. Then, the induced differential drifts can be properly handled through corrective maneuvers. In this work, several designs are surveyed, defining the initial configuration of a group of spacecraft while counteracting the differential perturbations. For each of the investigated designs, focus is placed upon the number of deployable spacecraft and on the possibility to ensure safe relative motion through station keeping of the initial configuration, with particular attention to the required Δ V budget and the constraints violations.

  20. Stability and evolution of orbits around the binary asteroid 175706 (1996 FG3): Implications for the MarcoPolo-R mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hussmann, Hauke; Oberst, Jürgen; Wickhusen, Kai; Shi, Xian; Damme, Friedrich; Lüdicke, Fabian; Lupovka, Valery; Bauer, Sven

    2012-09-01

    In support of the MarcoPolo-R mission, we have carried out numerical simulations of spacecraft trajectories about the binary asteroid 175706 (1996 FG3) under the influence of solar radiation pressure. We study the effects of (1) the asteroid's mass, shape, and rotational parameters, (2) the secondary's mass, shape, and orbit parameters, (3) the spacecraft's mass, surface area, and reflectivity, and (4) the time of arrival, and therefore the relative position to the sun and planets. We have considered distance regimes between 5 and 20 km, the typical range for a detailed characterization of the asteroids - primary and secondary - with imaging systems, spectrometers and by laser altimetry. With solar radiation pressure and gravity forces of the small asteroid competing, orbits are found to be unstable, in general. However, limited orbital stability can be found in the so-called Self-Stabilized Terminator Orbits (SSTO), where initial orbits are circular, orbital planes are oriented approximately perpendicular to the solar radiation pressure, and where the orbital plane of the spacecraft is shifted slightly (between 0.2 and 1 km) from the asteroid in the direction away from the sun. Under the effect of radiation pressure, the vector perpendicular to the orbit plane is observed to follow the sun direction. Shape and rotation parameters of the asteroid as well as gravitational perturbations by the secondary (not to mention sun and planets) were found not to affect the results. Such stable orbits may be suited for long radio tracking runs, which will allow for studying the gravity field. As the effect of the solar radiation pressure depends on the spacecraft mass, shape, and albedo, good knowledge of the spacecraft model and persistent monitoring of the spacecraft orientation are required.

  1. Estimation of land-atmosphere energy transfer over the Tibetan Plateau by a combination use of geostationary and polar-orbiting satellite data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhong, L.; Ma, Y.

    2017-12-01

    Land-atmosphere energy transfer is of great importance in land-atmosphere interactions and atmospheric boundary layer processes over the Tibetan Plateau (TP). The energy fluxes have high temporal variability, especially in their diurnal cycle, which cannot be acquired by polar-orbiting satellites alone because of their low temporal resolution. Therefore, it's of great practical significance to retrieve land surface heat fluxes by a combination use of geostationary and polar orbiting satellites. In this study, a time series of the hourly LST was estimated from thermal infrared data acquired by the Chinese geostationary satellite FengYun 2C (FY-2C) over the TP. The split window algorithm (SWA) was optimized using a regression method based on the observations from the Enhanced Observing Period (CEOP) of the Asia-Australia Monsoon Project (CAMP) on the Tibetan Plateau (CAMP/Tibet) and Tibetan observation and research platform (TORP), the land surface emissivity (LSE) from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), and the water vapor content from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR) project. The 10-day composite hourly LST data were generated via the maximum value composite (MVC) method to reduce the cloud effects. The derived LST was validated by the field observations of CAMP/Tibet and TORP. The results show that the retrieved LST and in situ data have a very good correlation (with root mean square error (RMSE), mean bias (MB), mean absolute error (MAE) and correlation coefficient (R) values of 1.99 K, 0.83 K, 1.71 K, and 0.991, respectively). Together with other characteristic parameters derived from polar-orbiting satellites and meteorological forcing data, the energy balance budgets have been retrieved finally. The validation results showed there was a good consistency between estimation results and in-situ measurements over the TP, which prove the robustness of the proposed estimation

  2. Effort to recover SOHO spacecraft continue as investigation board focuses on most likely causes

    Science.gov (United States)

    1998-07-01

    in its orbit around the Sun, the orientation of the panels with respect to the Sun should gradually change. The orbit of the spacecraft and the seasonal change in the spacecraft-Sun alignment should result in the increased solar illumination of the spacecraft solar arrays over the next few months. The engineers predict that in late September 1998, illumination of the solar arrays and, consequently, power supplied to the spacecraft, should approach a maximum. The probability of successfully establishing contact reaches a maximum at this point. After this time, illumination of the solar arrays gradually diminishes as the spacecraft-Sun alignment continues to change. In an attempt to recover SOHO as soon as possible, the Flight Operations Team is uplinking commands to the spacecraft via NASA's Deep Space Network, managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, approximately 12 hours per day with no success to date. A recovery plan is under development by ESA and NASA to provide for orderly restart of the spacecraft and to mitigate risks involved. The recovery of the Olympus spacecraft by ESA in 1991 under similar conditions leads to optimism that the SOHO spacecraft may be recoverable once contact is re-established. In May 1991, ESA's Olympus telecommunications satellite experienced a similar major anomaly which resulted in the loss of attitude, leading to intermittent power availability. As a consequence, there was inadequate communication, and the batteries and fuel froze. From analysis of the data available prior to the loss, there was confidence that the power situation would improve over the coming months. A recovery plan was prepared, supported by laboratory tests, to assess the characteristics of thawing batteries and propellants. Telecommand access of Olympus was regained four weeks later, and batteries and propellant tanks were thawed out progressively over the next four weeks. The attitude was then fully recovered and the payload switched back on

  3. Cassini at Saturn Proximal Orbits - Attitude Control Challenges

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burk, Thomas A.

    2013-01-01

    The Cassini mission at Saturn will come to an end in the spring and summer of 2017 with a series of 22 orbits that will dip inside the rings of Saturn. These are called proximal orbits and will conclude with spacecraft disposal into the atmosphere of the ringed world on September 15, 2017. These unique orbits that cross the ring plane only a few thousand kilometers above the cloud tops of the planet present new attitude control challenges for the Cassini operations team. Crossing the ring plane so close to the inner edge of the rings means that the Cassini orientation during the crossing will be tailored to protect the sensitive electronics bus of the spacecraft. This orientation will put the sun sensors at some extra risk so this paper discusses how the team prepares for dust hazards. Periapsis is so close to the planet that spacecraft controllability with RCS thrusters needs to be evaluated because of the predicted atmospheric torque near closest approach to Saturn. Radiation during the ring plane crossings will likely trigger single event transients in some attitude control sensors. This paper discusses how the attitude control team deals with radiation hazards. The angular size and unique geometry of the rings and Saturn near periapsis means that star identification will be interrupted and this paper discusses how the safe mode attitude is selected to best deal with these large bright bodies during the proximal orbits.

  4. Manifold dynamics in the Earth-Moon system via isomorphic mapping with application to spacecraft end-of-life strategies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pontani, Mauro; Giancotti, Marco; Teofilatto, Paolo

    2014-12-01

    Recently, manifold dynamics has assumed an increasing relevance for analysis and design of low-energy missions, both in the Earth-Moon system and in alternative multibody environments. With regard to lunar missions, exterior and interior transfers, based on the transit through the regions where the collinear libration points L1 and L2 are located, have been studied for a long time and some space missions have already taken advantage of the results of these studies. This paper is focused on the definition and use of a special isomorphic mapping for low-energy mission analysis. A convenient set of cylindrical coordinates is employed to describe the spacecraft dynamics (i.e. position and velocity), in the context of the circular restricted three-body problem, used to model the spacecraft motion in the Earth-Moon system. This isomorphic mapping of trajectories allows the identification and intuitive representation of periodic orbits and of the related invariant manifolds, which correspond to tubes that emanate from the curve associated with the periodic orbit. Heteroclinic connections, i.e. the trajectories that belong to both the stable and the unstable manifolds of two distinct periodic orbits, can be easily detected by means of this representation. This paper illustrates the use of isomorphic mapping for finding (a) periodic orbits, (b) heteroclinic connections between trajectories emanating from two Lyapunov orbits, the first at L1, and the second at L2, and (c) heteroclinic connections between trajectories emanating from the Lyapunov orbit at L1 and from a particular unstable lunar orbit. Heteroclinic trajectories are asymptotic trajectories that travels at zero-propellant cost. In practical situations, a modest delta-v budget is required to perform transfers along the manifolds. This circumstance implies the possibility of performing complex missions, by combining different types of trajectory arcs belonging to the manifolds. This work studies also the possible

  5. Link calibrations for the TDRSS orbiting VLBI experiment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Edwards, C.D.

    1987-01-01

    The first successful interferometric observations of extragalactic radio sources using an orbiting antenna as one of the observing stations were achieved in July and August 1986 using the TDRSS. The technical obstacles to maintaining phase coherence between the orbiting antenna and the ground stations are reviewed, with an emphasis on the effects of spacecraft motion. An analysis of the interferometric delay and phase reveals the signature of errors in the spacecraft ephemeris. Various calibration schemes are discussed, including the use of a ground beacon at White Sands to calibrate the communications link between White Sands and the TDRSE satellite. Using all available calibrations, coherence of 84 percent was achieved for 700-sec integrations

  6. In-Flight Operation of the Dawn Ion Propulsion System Through Survey Science Orbit at Ceres

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garner, Charles E.; Rayman, Marc D.

    2015-01-01

    The Dawn mission, part of NASA's Discovery Program, has as its goal the scientific exploration of the two most massive main-belt objects, Vesta and Ceres. The Dawn spacecraft was launched from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on September 27, 2007 on a Delta-II 7925H- 9.5 (Delta-II Heavy) rocket that placed the 1218-kg spacecraft onto an Earth-escape trajectory. On-board the spacecraft is an ion propulsion system (IPS) developed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory which will provide a total delta V of 11 km/s for the heliocentric transfer to Vesta, orbit capture at Vesta, transfer between Vesta science orbits, departure and escape from Vesta, heliocentric transfer to Ceres, orbit capture at Ceres, and transfer between Ceres science orbits. Full-power thrusting from December 2007 through October 2008 was used to successfully target a Mars gravity assist flyby in February 2009 that provided an additional delta V of 2.6 km/s. Deterministic thrusting for the heliocentric transfer to Vesta resumed in June 2009 and concluded with orbit capture at Vesta on July 16, 2011. From July 2011 through September 2012 the IPS was used to transfer to all the different science orbits at Vesta and to escape from Vesta orbit. Cruise for a rendezvous with Ceres began in September 2012 and concluded with the start of the approach to Ceres phase on December 26, 2015, leading to orbit capture on March 6, 2015. Deterministic thrusting continued during approach to place the spacecraft in its first science orbit, called RC3, which was achieved on April 23, 2015. Following science operations at RC3 ion thrusting was resumed for twenty-five days leading to arrival to the next science orbit, called survey orbit, on June 3, 2015. The IPS will be used for all subsequent orbit transfers and trajectory correction maneuvers until completion of the primary mission in approximately June 2016. To date the IPS has been operated for over 46,774 hours, consumed approximately 393 kg of xenon, and provided

  7. Collision risk investigation for an operational spacecraft caused by space debris

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Binbin; Wang, Zhaokui; Zhang, Yulin

    2017-04-01

    The collision probability between an operational spacecraft and a population of space debris is investigated. By dividing the 3-dimensional operational space of the spacecraft into several space volume cells (SVC) and proposing a boundary selection method to calculate the collision probability in each SVC, the distribution of the collision risk, as functions of the time, the orbital height, the declination, the impact elevation, the collision velocity, etc., can be obtained. Thus, the collision risk could be carefully evaluated over a time span for the general orbital configurations of the spacecraft and the space debris. As an application, the collision risk for the Tiangong-2 space laboratory caused by the cataloged space debris is discussed and evaluated. Results show that most of the collision threat comes from the front left and front right in Tiangong-2's local, quasi-horizontal plane. And the collision probability will also accumulate when Tiangong-2 moves to the largest declinations (about {±} 42°). As a result, the manned space activities should be avoided at those declinations.

  8. Modeling Attitude Dynamics in Simulink: A Study of the Rotational and Translational Motion of a Spacecraft Given Torques and Impulses Generated by RMS Hand Controllers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mauldin, Rebecca H.

    2010-01-01

    In order to study and control the attitude of a spacecraft, it is necessary to understand the natural motion of a body in orbit. Assuming a spacecraft to be a rigid body, dynamics describes the complete motion of the vehicle by the translational and rotational motion of the body. The Simulink Attitude Analysis Model applies the equations of rigid body motion to the study of a spacecraft?s attitude in orbit. Using a TCP/IP connection, Matlab reads the values of the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) hand controllers and passes them to Simulink as specified torque and impulse profiles. Simulink then uses the governing kinematic and dynamic equations of a rigid body in low earth orbit (LE0) to plot the attitude response of a spacecraft for five seconds given known applied torques and impulses, and constant principal moments of inertia.

  9. The History of Orbiter Corrosion Control (1981 - 2011)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Russell, Richard W.

    2014-01-01

    After 135 missions and 30 years the Orbiter fleet was retired in 2011. Working with Orbiter project management and a world class engineering team the CCRB was successful in providing successful sustaining engineering support for approximately 20 years. Lessons learned from the Orbiter program have aided NASA and contractor engineers in the design and manufacture of new spacecraft so that exploration of space can continue. The Orbiters are proudly being displayed for all the public to see in New York City, Washington D.C., Los Angeles, and at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

  10. Investigation of nickel hydrogen battery technology for the RADARSAT spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mccoy, D. A.; Lackner, J. L.

    1986-01-01

    The low Earth orbit (LEO) operations of the RADARSAT spacecraft require high performance batteries to provide energy to the payload and platform during eclipse period. Nickel Hydrogen cells are currently competing with the more traditional Nickel Cadmium cells for high performance spacecraft applications at geostationary Earth orbit (GEO) and Leo. Nickel Hydrogen cells appear better suited for high power applications where high currents and high Depths of Discharge are required. Although a number of GEO missions have flown with Nickel Hydrogen batteries, it is not readily apparent that the LEO version of the Nickel Hydrogen cell is able to withstand the extended cycle lifetime (5 years) of the RADARSAT mission. The problems associated with Nickel Hydrogen cells are discussed in the contex of RADARSAT mission and a test program designed to characterize cell performance is presented.

  11. A multi-satellite study of accelerated ionospheric ion beams above the polar cap

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. Maggiolo

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a study of nearly field-aligned outflowing ion beams observed on the Cluster satellites over the polar cap. Data are taken at geocentric radial distances of the order of 5–9 RE. The distinction is made between ion beams originating from the polar cusp/cleft and beams accelerated almost along the magnetic field line passing by the spacecraft. Polar cusp beams are characterized by nearly field-aligned proton and oxygen ions with an energy ratio EO+ / EH+, of the order of 3 to 4, due to the ion energy repartition inside the source and to the latitudinal extension of the source. Rapid variations in the outflowing ion energy are linked with pulses/modifications of the convection electric field. Cluster data allow one to show that these perturbations of the convection velocity and the associated ion structures propagate at the convection velocity.

    In contrast, polar cap local ion beams are characterized by field-aligned proton and oxygen ions with similar energies. These beams show the typical inverted V structures usually observed in the auroral zone and are associated with a quasi-static converging electric field indicative of a field-aligned electric field. The field-aligned potential drop fits well the ion energy profile. The simultaneous observation of precipitating electrons and upflowing ions of similar energies at the Cluster orbit indicates that the spacecraft are crossing the mid-altitude part of the acceleration region. In the polar cap, the parallel electric field can thus extend to altitudes higher than 5 Earth radii. A detailed analysis of the distribution functions shows that the ions are heated during their parallel acceleration and that energy is exchanged between H+ and O+. Furthermore, intense electrostatic waves are observed simultaneously. These observations could be due to an ion-ion two-stream instability.

  12. Dimensional crossover of effective orbital dynamics in polar distorted He 3 -A : Transitions to antispacetime

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nissinen, J.; Volovik, G. E.

    2018-01-01

    Topologically protected superfluid phases of He 3 allow one to simulate many important aspects of relativistic quantum field theories and quantum gravity in condensed matter. Here we discuss a topological Lifshitz transition of the effective quantum vacuum in which the determinant of the tetrad field changes sign through a crossing to a vacuum state with a degenerate fermionic metric. Such a transition is realized in polar distorted superfluid He 3 -A in terms of the effective tetrad fields emerging in the vicinity of the superfluid gap nodes: the tetrads of the Weyl points in the chiral A-phase of He 3 and the degenerate tetrad in the vicinity of a Dirac nodal line in the polar phase of He 3 . The continuous phase transition from the A -phase to the polar phase, i.e., the transition from the Weyl nodes to the Dirac nodal line and back, allows one to follow the behavior of the fermionic and bosonic effective actions when the sign of the tetrad determinant changes, and the effective chiral spacetime transforms to antichiral "anti-spacetime." This condensed matter realization demonstrates that while the original fermionic action is analytic across the transition, the effective action for the orbital degrees of freedom (pseudo-EM) fields and gravity have nonanalytic behavior. In particular, the action for the pseudo-EM field in the vacuum with Weyl fermions (A-phase) contains the modulus of the tetrad determinant. In the vacuum with the degenerate metric (polar phase) the nodal line is effectively a family of 2 +1 d Dirac fermion patches, which leads to a non-analytic (B2-E2)3/4 QED action in the vicinity of the Dirac line.

  13. Spacecraft computer technology at Southwest Research Institute

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shirley, D. J.

    1993-01-01

    Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has developed and delivered spacecraft computers for a number of different near-Earth-orbit spacecraft including shuttle experiments and SDIO free-flyer experiments. We describe the evolution of the basic SwRI spacecraft computer design from those weighing in at 20 to 25 lb and using 20 to 30 W to newer models weighing less than 5 lb and using only about 5 W, yet delivering twice the processing throughput. Because of their reduced size, weight, and power, these newer designs are especially applicable to planetary instrument requirements. The basis of our design evolution has been the availability of more powerful processor chip sets and the development of higher density packaging technology, coupled with more aggressive design strategies in incorporating high-density FPGA technology and use of high-density memory chips. In addition to reductions in size, weight, and power, the newer designs also address the necessity of survival in the harsh radiation environment of space. Spurred by participation in such programs as MSTI, LACE, RME, Delta 181, Delta Star, and RADARSAT, our designs have evolved in response to program demands to be small, low-powered units, radiation tolerant enough to be suitable for both Earth-orbit microsats and for planetary instruments. Present designs already include MIL-STD-1750 and Multi-Chip Module (MCM) technology with near-term plans to include RISC processors and higher-density MCM's. Long term plans include development of whole-core processors on one or two MCM's.

  14. The Carter constant for inclined orbits about a massive Kerr black hole: I. Circular orbits

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Komorowski, P G; Valluri, S R; Houde, M, E-mail: pkomorow@uwo.c, E-mail: valluri@uwo.c, E-mail: mhoude2@uwo.c [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario (Canada)

    2010-11-21

    In an extreme binary black hole system, an orbit will increase its angle of inclination ({iota}) as it evolves in Kerr spacetime. We focus our attention on the behaviour of the Carter constant (Q) for near-polar orbits, and develop an analysis that is independent of and complements radiation-reaction models. For a Schwarzschild black hole, the polar orbits represent the abutment between the prograde and retrograde orbits at which Q is at its maximum value for given values of the latus rectum ({tilde l}) and the eccentricity (e). The introduction of spin ({tilde S}={vert_bar}J{vert_bar}/M{sup 2}) to the massive black hole causes this boundary, or abutment, to be moved towards greater orbital inclination; thus, it no longer cleanly separates prograde and retrograde orbits. To characterize the abutment of a Kerr black hole (KBH), we first investigated the last stable orbit (LSO) of a test-particle about a KBH, and then extended this work to general orbits. To develop a better understanding of the evolution of Q we developed analytical formulae for Q in terms of {tilde l}, e and {tilde S} to describe elliptical orbits at the abutment, polar orbits and LSOs. By knowing the analytical form of {partial_derivative}Q/{partial_derivative}{tilde l} at the abutment, we were able to test a 2PN flux equation for Q. We also used these formulae to numerically calculate the {partial_derivative}{iota}/{partial_derivative}{tilde l} of hypothetical circular orbits that evolve along the abutment. From these values we have determined that {partial_derivative}{iota}/{partial_derivative}{tilde l} = -(122.7{tilde S} - 36{tilde S}{sup 3}){tilde l}{sup -11/2} - (63/2 {tilde S} + 35/4 {tilde S}{sup 3}){tilde l}{sup -9/2} - 15/2 {tilde S}{tilde l}{sup -7/2} - 9/2 {tilde S}{tilde l}{sup -5/2}. By taking the limit of this equation for {tilde l} {yields} {infinity}, and comparing it with the published result for the weak-field radiation reaction, we found the upper limit on

  15. Cassini Attitude and Articulation Control Subsystem Fault Protection Challenges During Saturn Proximal Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bates, David M.

    2015-01-01

    NASA's Cassini Spacecraft, launched on October 15th, 1997 arrived at Saturn on June 30th, 2004, is the largest and most ambitious interplanetary spacecraft in history. As the first spacecraft to achieve orbit at Saturn, Cassini has collected science data throughout its four-year prime mission (2004-08), and has since been approved for a first and second extended mission through 2017. As part of the final extended mission, Cassini will begin an aggressive and exciting campaign of high inclination low altitude flybys within the inner most rings of Saturn, skimming Saturn's outer atmosphere, until the spacecraft is finally disposed of via planned impact with the planet. This final campaign, known as the proximal orbits, presents unique fault protection related challenges, the details of which are discussed in this paper.

  16. Ascent performance feasibility for next-generation spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mancuso, Salvatore Massimo

    This thesis deals with the optimization of the ascent trajectories for single-stage suborbital (SSSO), single-stage-to-orbit (SSTO), and two-stage-to-orbit (TSTO) rocket-powered spacecraft. The maximum payload weight problem has been solved using the sequential gradient-restoration algorithm. For the TSTO case, some modifications to the original version of the algorithm have been necessary in order to deal with discontinuities due to staging and the fact that the functional being minimized depends on interface conditions. The optimization problem is studied for different values of the initial thrust-to-weight ratio in the range 1.3 to 1.6, engine specific impulse in the range 400 to 500 sec, and spacecraft structural factor in the range 0.08 to 0.12. For the TSTO configuration, two subproblems are studied: uniform structural factor between stages and nonuniform structural factor between stages. Due to the regular behavior of the results obtained, engineering approximations have been developed which connect the maximum payload weight to the engine specific impulse and spacecraft structural factor; in turn, this leads to useful design considerations. Also, performance sensitivity to the scale of the aerodynamic drag is studied, and it is shown that its effect on payload weight is relatively small, even for drag changes approaching ± 50%. The main conclusions are that: the design of a SSSO configuration appears to be feasible; the design of a SSTO configuration might be comfortably feasible, marginally feasible, or unfeasible, depending on the parameter values assumed; the design of a TSTO configuration is not only feasible, but its payload appears to be considerably larger than that of a SSTO configuration. Improvements in engine specific impulse and spacecraft structural factor are desirable and crucial for SSTO feasibility; indeed, it appears that aerodynamic improvements do not yield significant improvements in payload weight.

  17. Prospects for Measuring Planetary Spin and Frame-Dragging in Spacecraft Timing Signals

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schärer, Andreas; Bondarescu, Ruxandra [Department of Physics, University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland); Saha, Prasenjit [Department of Physics, University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland); Institute for Computational Science, University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland); Angélil, Raymond [Institute for Computational Science, University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland); Helled, Ravit [Institute for Computational Science, University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland); Department of Geosciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv (Israel); Jetzer, Philippe, E-mail: andreas.schaerer@physik.uzh.ch [Department of Physics, University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland)

    2017-09-05

    Satellite tracking involves sending electromagnetic signals to Earth. Both the orbit of the spacecraft and the electromagnetic signals themselves are affected by the curvature of spacetime. The arrival time of the pulses is compared to the ticks of local clocks to reconstruct the orbital path of the satellite to high accuracy, and implicitly measure general relativistic effects. In particular, Schwarzschild space curvature (static) and frame-dragging (stationary) due to the planet's spin affect the satellite's orbit. The dominant relativistic effect on the path of the signal photons is Shapiro delays due to static space curvature. We compute these effects for some current and proposed space missions, using a Hamiltonian formulation in four dimensions. For highly eccentric orbits, such as in the Juno mission and in the Cassini Grand Finale, the relativistic effects have a kick-like nature, which could be advantageous for detecting them if their signatures are properly modeled as functions of time. Frame-dragging appears, in principle, measurable by Juno and Cassini, though not by Galileo 5 and 6. Practical measurement would require disentangling frame-dragging from the Newtonian “foreground” such as the gravitational quadrupole which has an impact on both the spacecraft's orbit and the signal propagation. The foreground problem remains to be solved.

  18. Risk of spacecraft on-orbit obsolescence: Novel framework, stochastic modeling, and implications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dubos, Gregory F.; Saleh, Joseph H.

    2010-07-01

    The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has repeatedly noted the difficulties encountered by the Department of Defense (DOD) in keeping its acquisition of space systems on schedule and within budget. Among the recommendations provided by GAO, a minimum Technology Readiness Level (TRL) for technologies to be included in the development of a space system is advised. The DOD considers this recommendation impractical arguing that if space systems were designed with only mature technologies (high TRL), they would likely become obsolete on-orbit fairly quickly. The risk of on-orbit obsolescence is a key argument in the DOD's position for dipping into low technology maturity for space acquisition programs, but this policy unfortunately often results in the cost growth and schedule slippage criticized by the GAO. The concept of risk of on-orbit obsolescence has remained qualitative to date. In this paper, we formulate a theory of risk of on-orbit obsolescence by building on the traditional notion of obsolescence and adapting it to the specificities of space systems. We develop a stochastic model for quantifying and analyzing the risk of on-orbit obsolescence, and we assess, in its light, the appropriateness of DOD's rationale for maintaining low TRL technologies in its acquisition of space assets as a strategy for mitigating on-orbit obsolescence. Our model and results contribute one step towards the resolution of the conceptual stalemate on this matter between the DOD and the GAO, and we hope will inspire academics to further investigate the risk of on-orbit obsolescence.

  19. Solar Power System Options for the Radiation and Technology Demonstration Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kerslake, Thomas W.; Haraburda, Francis M.; Riehl, John P.

    2000-01-01

    The Radiation and Technology Demonstration (RTD) Mission has the primary objective of demonstrating high-power (10 kilowatts) electric thruster technologies in Earth orbit. This paper discusses the conceptual design of the RTD spacecraft photovoltaic (PV) power system and mission performance analyses. These power system studies assessed multiple options for PV arrays, battery technologies and bus voltage levels. To quantify performance attributes of these power system options, a dedicated Fortran code was developed to predict power system performance and estimate system mass. The low-thrust mission trajectory was analyzed and important Earth orbital environments were modeled. Baseline power system design options are recommended on the basis of performance, mass and risk/complexity. Important findings from parametric studies are discussed and the resulting impacts to the spacecraft design and cost.

  20. The Polar Cusp Observed by Cluster Under Constant Imf-Bz Southward

    Science.gov (United States)

    Escoubet, C. P.; Berchem, J.; Pitout, F.; Trattner, K. J.; Richard, R. L.; Taylor, M. G.; Soucek, J.; Grison, B.; Laakso, H. E.; Masson, A.; Dunlop, M. W.; Dandouras, I. S.; Reme, H.; Fazakerley, A. N.; Daly, P. W.

    2011-12-01

    The Earth's magnetic field is influenced by the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), specially at the magnetopause where both magnetic fields enter in direct contact and magnetic reconnection can be initiated. In the polar regions, the polar cusp that extends from the magnetopause down to the ionosphere is also directly influenced. The reconnection not only allow ions and electrons from the solar wind to enter the polar cusp but also give an impulse to the magnetic field lines threading the polar cusp through the reconnection electric field. A dispersion in energy of the ions is subsequently produced by the motion of field lines and the time-of-flight effect on down-going ions. If reconnection is continuous and operates at constant rate, the ion dispersion is smooth and continuous. On the other hand if the reconnection rate varies, we expect interruption in the dispersion forming energy steps or staircase. Similarly, multiple entries near the magnetopause could also produce steps at low or mid-altitude when a spacecraft is crossing subsequently the field lines originating from these multiple sources. Cluster with four spacecraft following each other in the mid-altitude cusp can be used to distinguish between these "temporal" and "spatial" effects. We will show two Cluster cusp crossings where the spacecraft were separated by a few minutes. The energy dispersions observed in the first crossing were the same during the few minutes that separated the spacecraft. In the second crossing, two ion dispersions were observed on the first spacecraft and only one of the following spacecraft, about 10 min later. The detailed analysis indicates that these steps result from spatial structures.

  1. Optimizing Orbit-Instrument Configuration for Global Precipitation Mission (GPM) Satellite Fleet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Eric A.; Adams, James; Baptista, Pedro; Haddad, Ziad; Iguchi, Toshio; Im, Eastwood; Kummerow, Christian; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    Following the scientific success of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) spearheaded by a group of NASA and NASDA scientists, their external scientific collaborators, and additional investigators within the European Union's TRMM Research Program (EUROTRMM), there has been substantial progress towards the development of a new internationally organized, global scale, and satellite-based precipitation measuring mission. The highlights of this newly developing mission are a greatly expanded scope of measuring capability and a more diversified set of science objectives. The mission is called the Global Precipitation Mission (GPM). Notionally, GPM will be a constellation-type mission involving a fleet of nine satellites. In this fleet, one member is referred to as the "core" spacecraft flown in an approximately 70 degree inclined non-sun-synchronous orbit, somewhat similar to TRMM in that it carries both a multi-channel polarized passive microwave radiometer (PMW) and a radar system, but in this case it will be a dual frequency Ku-Ka band radar system enabling explicit measurements of microphysical DSD properties. The remainder of fleet members are eight orbit-synchronized, sun-synchronous "constellation" spacecraft each carrying some type of multi-channel PMW radiometer, enabling no worse than 3-hour diurnal sampling over the entire globe. In this configuration the "core" spacecraft serves as a high quality reference platform for training and calibrating the PMW rain retrieval algorithms used with the "constellation" radiometers. Within NASA, GPM has advanced to the pre-formulation phase which has enabled the initiation of a set of science and technology studies which will help lead to the final mission design some time in the 2003 period. This presentation first provides an overview of the notional GPM program and mission design, including its organizational and programmatic concepts, scientific agenda, expected instrument package, and basic flight

  2. Mapping the space radiation environment in LEO orbit by the SATRAM Timepix payload on board the Proba-V satellite

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Granja, Carlos, E-mail: carlos.granja@utef.cvut.cz; Polansky, Stepan

    2016-07-07

    Detailed spatial- and time-correlated maps of the space radiation environment in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) are produced by the spacecraft payload SATRAM operating in open space on board the Proba-V satellite from the European Space Agency (ESA). Equipped with the hybrid semiconductor pixel detector Timepix, the compact radiation monitor payload provides the composition and spectral characterization of the mixed radiation field with quantum-counting and imaging dosimetry sensitivity, energetic charged particle tracking, directionality and energy loss response in wide dynamic range in terms of particle types, dose rates and particle fluxes. With a polar orbit (sun synchronous, 98° inclination) at the altitude of 820 km the payload samples the space radiation field at LEO covering basically the whole planet. First results of long-period data evaluation in the form of time-and spatially-correlated maps of total dose rate (all particles) are given.

  3. Dynamic and reduced-dynamic precise orbit determination of satellites in low earth orbits

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Swatschina, P.

    2009-01-01

    The precise positioning of satellites in Low Earth Orbits (LEO) has become a key technology for advanced space missions. Dedicated satellite missions, such as CHAMP, GRACE and GOCE, that aim to map the Earths gravity field and its variation over time with unprecedented accuracy, initiated the demand for highly precise orbit solutions of LEO satellites. Furthermore, a wide range of additional science opportunities opens up with the capability to generate accurate LEO orbits. For all considered satellite missions, the primary measurement system for navigation is a spaceborne GPS receiver. The goal of this thesis is to establish and implement methods for Precise Orbit Determination (POD) of LEO satellites using GPS. Striving for highest precision using yet efficient orbit generation strategies, the attained orbit solutions are aimed to be competitive with the most advanced solutions of other institutions. Dynamic and reduced-dynamic orbit models provide the basic concepts of this work. These orbit models are subsequently adjusted to the highly accurate GPS measurements. The GPS measurements are introduced at the zero difference level in the ionosphere free linear combination. Appropriate procedures for GPS data screening and editing are established to detect erroneous data and to employ measurements of good quality only. For the dynamic orbit model a sophisticated force model, especially designed for LEO satellites, has been developed. In order to overcome the limitations that are induced by the deficiencies of the purely dynamical model, two different types of empirical parameters are introduced into the force model. These reduced-dynamic orbit models allow for the generation of much longer orbital arcs while preserving the spacecraft dynamics to the most possible extent. The two methods for reduced-dynamic orbit modeling are instantaneous velocity changes (pulses) or piecewise constant accelerations. For both techniques highly efficient modeling algorithms are

  4. Long-period polar rain variations, solar wind and hemispherically symmetric polar rain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Makita, K.; Meng, C.

    1987-01-01

    On the basic of electron data obtained by the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) F2 satellite the long-period variations of the polar rain flux are examined for four consecutive solar rotations. It is clearly demonstrated that the asymmetric enhancement of the polar rain flux is strongly controlled by the sector structure of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). However, the orbit-to-orbit and day-to-day variations of the polar rain flux are detected even during a very stable sector period, and the polar rain flux does not have any clear relationship to the magnitude of the IMF B/sub x/ or B/sub y/. Thus the polarity of B/sub x/ controls only the accessibility of a polar region. It is also noticed that the intensity of polar rain fluxes does not show any relationship to the density of the solar wind, suggesting that the origin of the polar rain electrons is different from the commonly observed part of the solar wind electron distribution function. In addition to the asymmetric polar rain distribution, increasing polar rain fluxes of similar high intensity are sometimes detected over both polar caps. An examination of more than 1 year's data from the DMSP F2 and F4 satellites shows that simultaneous intense uniform precipitations (>10 7 electrons/cm 2 s sr) over both polar caps are not coincidental; it also shows that the spectra are similar. The occurrence of hemispherically symmetric events is not common. They generally are observed after an IMF sector transition period, during unstable periods in the sector structure, and while the solar wind density is high. copyright American Geophysical Union 1987

  5. Leo Spacecraft Charging Design Guidelines: A Proposed NASA Standard

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hillard, G. B.; Ferguson, D. C.

    2004-01-01

    Over the past decade, Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) spacecraft have gradually required ever-increasing power levels. As a rule, this has been accomplished through the use of high voltage systems. Recent failures and anomalies on such spacecraft have been traced to various design practices and materials choices related to the high voltage solar arrays. NASA Glenn has studied these anomalies including plasma chamber testing on arrays similar to those that experienced difficulties on orbit. Many others in the community have been involved in a comprehensive effort to understand the problems and to develop practices to avoid them. The NASA Space Environments and Effects program, recognizing the timeliness of this effort, commissioned and funded a design guidelines document intended to capture the current state of understanding. This document, which was completed in the spring of 2003, has been submitted as a proposed NASA standard. We present here an overview of this document and discuss the effort to develop it as a NASA standard.

  6. Source of spin polarized electrons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pierce, D.T.; Meier, F.A.; Siegmann, H.C.

    1976-01-01

    A method is described of producing intense beams of polarized free electrons in which a semiconductor with a spin orbit split valence band and negative electron affinity is used as a photocathode and irradiated with circularly polarized light

  7. Dynamics of space particles and spacecrafts passing by the atmosphere of the Earth.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gomes, Vivian Martins; Prado, Antonio Fernando Bertachini de Almeida; Golebiewska, Justyna

    2013-01-01

    The present research studies the motion of a particle or a spacecraft that comes from an orbit around the Sun, which can be elliptic or hyperbolic, and that makes a passage close enough to the Earth such that it crosses its atmosphere. The idea is to measure the Sun-particle two-body energy before and after this passage in order to verify its variation as a function of the periapsis distance, angle of approach, and velocity at the periapsis of the particle. The full system is formed by the Sun, the Earth, and the particle or the spacecraft. The Sun and the Earth are in circular orbits around their center of mass and the motion is planar for all the bodies involved. The equations of motion consider the restricted circular planar three-body problem with the addition of the atmospheric drag. The initial conditions of the particle or spacecraft (position and velocity) are given at the periapsis of its trajectory around the Earth.

  8. Bulk electron spin polarization generated by the spin Hall current

    OpenAIRE

    Korenev, V. L.

    2005-01-01

    It is shown that the spin Hall current generates a non-equilibrium spin polarization in the interior of crystals with reduced symmetry in a way that is drastically different from the previously well-known equilibrium polarization during the spin relaxation process. The steady state spin polarization value does not depend on the strength of spin-orbit interaction offering possibility to generate relatively high spin polarization even in the case of weak spin-orbit coupling.

  9. Bulk electron spin polarization generated by the spin Hall current

    Science.gov (United States)

    Korenev, V. L.

    2006-07-01

    It is shown that the spin Hall current generates a nonequilibrium spin polarization in the interior of crystals with reduced symmetry in a way that is drastically different from the previously well-known “equilibrium” polarization during the spin relaxation process. The steady state spin polarization value does not depend on the strength of spin-orbit interaction offering possibility to generate relatively high spin polarization even in the case of weak spin-orbit coupling.

  10. SpaceX's Dragon America's next generation spacecraft

    CERN Document Server

    Seedhouse, Erik

    2016-01-01

    This book describes Dragon V2, a futuristic vehicle that not only provides a means for NASA to transport its astronauts to the orbiting outpost but also advances SpaceX’s core objective of reusability. A direct descendant of Dragon, Dragon V2 can be retrieved, refurbished and re-launched. It is a spacecraft with the potential to completely revolutionize the economics of an industry where equipment costing hundreds of millions of dollars is routinely discarded after a single use. It was presented by SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in May 2014 as the spaceship that will carry NASA astronauts to the International Space Station as soon as 2016 SpaceX’s Dragon – America’s Next Generation Spacecraft describes the extraordinary feats of engineering and human achievement that have placed this revolutionary spacecraft at the forefront of the launch industry and positioned it as the precursor for ultimately transporting humans to Mars. It describes the design and development of Dragon, provides mission highlights of the f...

  11. Probing interferometric parallax with interplanetary spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rodeghiero, G.; Gini, F.; Marchili, N.; Jain, P.; Ralston, J. P.; Dallacasa, D.; Naletto, G.; Possenti, A.; Barbieri, C.; Franceschini, A.; Zampieri, L.

    2017-07-01

    We describe an experimental scenario for testing a novel method to measure distance and proper motion of astronomical sources. The method is based on multi-epoch observations of amplitude or intensity correlations between separate receiving systems. This technique is called Interferometric Parallax, and efficiently exploits phase information that has traditionally been overlooked. The test case we discuss combines amplitude correlations of signals from deep space interplanetary spacecraft with those from distant galactic and extragalactic radio sources with the goal of estimating the interplanetary spacecraft distance. Interferometric parallax relies on the detection of wavefront curvature effects in signals collected by pairs of separate receiving systems. The method shows promising potentialities over current techniques when the target is unresolved from the background reference sources. Developments in this field might lead to the construction of an independent, geometrical cosmic distance ladder using a dedicated project and future generation instruments. We present a conceptual overview supported by numerical estimates of its performances applied to a spacecraft orbiting the Solar System. Simulations support the feasibility of measurements with a simple and time-saving observational scheme using current facilities.

  12. International Symposium on Spacecraft Ground Control and Flight Dynamics, SCD1, Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil, Feb. 7-11, 1994

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rozenfeld, Pawel; Kuga, Helio Koiti; Orlando, Valcir

    An international symposium on spacecraft flight dynamics and ground control systems produced 85 papers in the areas of attitude determination and control, orbit control, satellite constellation strategies, stationkeeping, spacecraft maneuvering, orbit determination, astrodynamics, ground command and control systems, and mission operations. Several papers included discussions on the application of artificial intelligence, neural networks, expert systems, and ion propulsion. For individual titles, see A95-89098 through A95-89182.

  13. Polarization effects in hadron fragmentation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lednicky, R.

    1984-01-01

    Hadron polarization (spin alignment) and polarization asymmetry are discussed in terms of the quark recombination model with the spin-orbit interaction taken into account. It is shown that predictions of this model are at least in qualitative agreement with experimental data. Various polarization mechanisms in terms of this model and the possibility of their checking are also discussed

  14. IR SPECTRAL MAPPING OF THE MARTIAN SOUTH POLAR RESIDUAL CAP USING CRISM

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. Campbell

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs are considered to be important in theories of abiogenesis (Allamandola, 2011 . There is evidence that PAHs have been detected on two icy Saturnian satellites using the Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS on the Cassini spacecraft (Cruikshank et al., 2007. The hypothesised presence of PAHs in Mars south polar cap has not been systematically examined even though the Mars south polar cap may allow the preservation of organic molecules that are typically destroyed at the Martian surface by UV radiation (Dartnell et al. 2012. This hypothesis is supported by recent analyses of South Polar Residual Cap (SPRC structural evolution (Thomas et al., 2009 that suggest the possibility that seasonal and long term sublimation may excavate dust particles from within the polar ice. Periodic sublimation is believed to be responsible for the formation of so-called “Swiss Cheese Terrain”, a unique surface feature found only in the Martian south polar residual cap consisting of flat floored, circular depressions (Byrne, 2009. We show the first examples of work towards the detection of PAHs in Swiss Cheese Terrain, using data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM, on board NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO. CRISM is designed to search for mineralogical indications of past and present water, thus providing extensive coverage of the south polar cap. In this work, we discuss whether CRISM infrared spectra can be used to detect PAHs in Swiss Cheese Terrain and demonstrate a number of maps showing shifts in spectral profiles over the SPRC.

  15. Cassini Operational Sun Sensor Risk Management During Proximal Orbit Saturn Ring Plane Crossings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bates, David M.

    2016-01-01

    NASA's Cassini Spacecraft, launched on October 15th, 1997 which arrived at Saturn on June 30th, 2004, is the largest and most ambitious interplanetary spacecraft in history. As the first spacecraft to achieve orbit at Saturn, Cassini has collected science data throughout its four-year prime mission (2004–08), and has since been approved for a first and second extended mission through 2017. As part of the final extended missions, Cassini will begin an aggressive and exciting campaign of high inclination, low altitude flybys within the inner most rings of Saturn, skimming Saturn’s outer atmosphere, until the spacecraft is finally disposed of via planned impact with the planet. This final campaign, known as the proximal orbits, requires a strategy for managing the Sun Sensor Assembly (SSA) health, the details of which are presented in this paper.

  16. Weight estimates and packaging techniques for the microwave radiometer spacecraft. [shuttle compatible design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jensen, J. K.; Wright, R. L.

    1981-01-01

    Estimates of total spacecraft weight and packaging options were made for three conceptual designs of a microwave radiometer spacecraft. Erectable structures were found to be slightly lighter than deployable structures but could be packaged in one-tenth the volume. The tension rim concept, an unconventional design approach, was found to be the lightest and transportable to orbit in the least number of shuttle flights.

  17. Titan Orbiter Aerorover Mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sittler Jr., E. C.; Acuna, M.; Burchell, M. J.; Coates, A.; Farrell, W.; Flasar, M.; Goldstein, B. E.; Gorevan, S.; Hartle, R. E.; Johnson, W. T. K.

    2001-01-01

    We propose a combined Titan orbiter and Titan Aerorover mission with an emphasis on both in situ and remote sensing measurements of Titan's surface, atmosphere, ionosphere, and magnetospheric interaction. The biological aspect of the Titan environment will be emphasized by the mission (i.e., search for organic materials which may include simple organics to 'amono' analogues of amino acids and possibly more complex, lightening detection and infrared, ultraviolet, and charged particle interactions with Titan's surface and atmosphere). An international mission is assumed to control costs. NASA will provide the orbiter, launch vehicle, DSN coverage and operations, while international partners will provide the Aerorover and up to 30% of the cost for the scientific instruments through collaborative efforts. To further reduce costs we propose a single PI for orbiter science instruments and a single PI for Aerorover science instruments. This approach will provide single command/data and power interface between spacecraft and orbiter instruments that will have redundant central DPU and power converter for their instruments. A similar approach could be used for the Aerorover. The mission profile will be constructed to minimize conflicts between Aerorover science, orbiter radar science, orbiter radio science, orbiter imaging science, and orbiter fields and particles (FP) science. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

  18. Development of Large-Scale Spacecraft Fire Safety Experiments

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ruff, Gary A.; Urban, David L.; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos

    2013-01-01

    exploration missions outside of low-earth orbit and accordingly, more complex in terms of operations, logistics, and safety. This will increase the challenge of ensuring a fire-safe environment for the crew throughout the mission. Based on our fundamental uncertainty of the behavior of fires in low...... of the spacecraft fire safety risk. The activity of this project is supported by an international topical team of fire experts from other space agencies who conduct research that is integrated into the overall experiment design. The large-scale space flight experiment will be conducted in an Orbital Sciences...

  19. Gravity and Macro-Model Tuning for the Geosat Follow-on Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemoine, Frank G.; Rowlands, David D.; Marr, Gregory C.; Zelensky, Nikita P.; Luthcke, Scott B.; Cox, Christopher M.

    1999-01-01

    The US Navy's GEOSAT Follow-On (GFO) spacecraft was launched on February 10, 1998 and the primary objective of the mission was to map the oceans using a radar altimeter. The spacecraft tracking complement consisted of GPS receivers, a laser retroreflector and Doppler beacons. Since the GPS receivers have not yet returned reliable data, the only means of providing high-quality precise orbits has been though satellite laser ranging (SLR). The spacecraft has been tracked by the international satellite laser ranging network since April 22, 1998, and an average of 7.4 passes per day have been obtained from US and participating foreign stations. Since the predicted radial orbit error due to the gravity field is two to three cm, the largest contributor to the high SLR residuals (7-10 cm RMS for five day arcs) is the mismodelling of the non-conservative forces, not withstanding the development of a three-dimensional eight-panel model and an analytical attitude model for the GFO spacecraft. The SLR residuals show a clear correlation with beta-prime (solar elevation) angle, peaking in mid-August 1998 when the beta-prime angle reached -80 to -90 degrees. In this paper we discuss the tuning of the non-conservative force model, for GFO and report the subsequent addition of the GFO tracking data to the Earth gravity model solutions.

  20. Peripheral orbit model

    CERN Document Server

    Hara, Yasuo

    1975-01-01

    Peripheral orbit model, in which an incoming hadron is assumed to revolve in a peripheral orbit around a target hadron, is discussed. The non-diffractive parts of two-body reaction amplitudes of hadrons are expressed in terms of the radius, width an absorptivity of the orbit. The radius of the orbit is about 1 fm and the width of the orbit is determined by the range of the interaction between the hadrons. The model reproduces all available experimental data on differential cross-sections and polarizations of $K^{-}p\\to K^{-}p$ and $\\bar K^{\\circ}n$ reactions for all angles successfully. This contribution is not included in the proceedings since it will appear in Progress of Theoretical Physics Vol. 51 (1974) No 2. Any person interested in the subject may apply for reprints to the author.

  1. Application of the NASCAP Spacecraft Simulation Tool to Investigate Electrodynamic Tether Current Collection in LEO

    Science.gov (United States)

    Adams, Mitzi; HabashKrause, Linda

    2012-01-01

    Recent interest in using electrodynamic tethers (EDTs) for orbital maneuvering in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) has prompted the development of the Marshall ElectroDynamic Tether Orbit Propagator (MEDTOP) model. The model is comprised of several modules which address various aspects of EDT propulsion, including calculation of state vectors using a standard orbit propagator (e.g., J2), an atmospheric drag model, realistic ionospheric and magnetic field models, space weather effects, and tether librations. The natural electromotive force (EMF) attained during a radially-aligned conductive tether results in electrons flowing down the tether and accumulating on the lower-altitude spacecraft. The energy that drives this EMF is sourced from the orbital energy of the system; thus, EDTs are often proposed as de-orbiting systems. However, when the current is reversed using satellite charged particle sources, then propulsion is possible. One of the most difficult challenges of the modeling effort is to ascertain the equivalent circuit between the spacecraft and the ionospheric plasma. The present study investigates the use of the NASA Charging Analyzer Program (NASCAP) to calculate currents to and from the tethered satellites and the ionospheric plasma. NASCAP is a sophisticated set of computational tools to model the surface charging of three-dimensional (3D) spacecraft surfaces in a time-varying space environment. The model's surface is tessellated into a collection of facets, and NASCAP calculates currents and potentials for each one. Additionally, NASCAP provides for the construction of one or more nested grids to calculate space potential and time-varying electric fields. This provides for the capability to track individual particles orbits, to model charged particle wakes, and to incorporate external charged particle sources. With this study, we have developed a model of calculating currents incident onto an electrodynamic tethered satellite system, and first results are shown

  2. Future spacecraft propulsion systems. Enabling technologies for space exploration. 2. ed.

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Czysz, Paul A. [St. Louis Univ., MO (United States). Oliver L. Parks Endowed Chair in Aerospace Engineering; Bruno, Claudio [Univ. degli Studi di Roma (Italy). Dipt. di Meccanica e Aeronautica

    2009-07-01

    In this second edition of Future Spacecraft Propulsion Systems, the authors demonstrate the need to break free from the old established concepts of expendable rockets, using chemical propulsion, and to develop new breeds of launch vehicle capable of both launching payloads into orbit at a dramatically reduced cost and for sustained operations in low-Earth orbit. The next steps to establishing a permanent 'presence' in the Solar System beyond Earth are the commercialisation of sustained operations on the Moon and the development of advanced nuclear or high-energy space propulsion systems for Solar System exploration out to the boundary of interstellar space. In the future, high-energy particle research facilities may one day yield a very high-energy propulsion system that will take us to the nearby stars, or even beyond. Space is not quiet: it is a continuous series of nuclear explosions that provide the material for new star systems to form and provide the challenge to explore. This book provides an assessment of the industrial capability required to construct and operate the necessary spacecraft. Time and distance communication and control limitations impose robotic constraints. Space environments restrict human sustained presence and put high demands on electronic, control and materials systems. This comprehensive and authoritative book puts spacecraft propulsion systems in perspective, from earth orbit launchers to astronomical/space exploration vehicles. It includes new material on fusion propulsion, new figures and updates and expands the information given in the first edition. (orig.)

  3. Comprehensive Evaluation of Attitude and Orbit Estimation Using Actual Earth Magnetic Field Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deutschmann, Julie K.; Bar-Itzhack, Itzhack Y.

    2000-01-01

    A single, augmented Extended Kalman Filter (EKF), which simultaneously and autonomously estimates spacecraft attitude and orbit has been developed and successfully tested with real magnetometer and gyro data only. Because the earth magnetic field is a function of time and position, and because time is known quite precisely, the differences between the computed and measured magnetic field components, as measured by the magnetometers throughout the entire spacecraft orbit, are a function of both orbit and attitude errors. Thus, conceivably these differences could be used to estimate both orbit and attitude; an observability study validated this assumption. The results of testing the EKF with actual magnetometer and gyro data, from four satellites supported by the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) Guidance, Navigation, and Control Center, are presented and evaluated. They confirm the assumption that a single EKF can estimate both attitude and orbit when using gyros and magnetometers only.

  4. Modes of uncontrolled rotational motion of the Progress M-29M spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Belyaev, M. Yu.; Matveeva, T. V.; Monakhov, M. I.; Rulev, D. N.; Sazonov, V. V.

    2018-01-01

    We have reconstructed the uncontrolled rotational motion of the Progress M-29M transport cargo spacecraft in the single-axis solar orientation mode (the so-called sunward spin) and in the mode of the gravitational orientation of a rotating satellite. The modes were implemented on April 3-7, 2016 as a part of preparation for experiments with the DAKON convection sensor onboard the Progress spacecraft. The reconstruction was performed by integral statistical techniques using the measurements of the spacecraft's angular velocity and electric current from its solar arrays. The measurement data obtained in a certain time interval have been jointly processed using the least-squares method by integrating the equations of the spacecraft's motion relative to the center of mass. As a result of processing, the initial conditions of motion and parameters of the mathematical model have been estimated. The motion in the sunward spin mode is the rotation of the spacecraft with an angular velocity of 2.2 deg/s about the normal to the plane of solar arrays; the normal is oriented toward the Sun or forms a small angle with this direction. The duration of the mode is several orbit passes. The reconstruction has been performed over time intervals of up to 1 h. As a result, the actual rotational motion of the spacecraft relative to the Earth-Sun direction was obtained. In the gravitational orientation mode, the spacecraft was rotated about its longitudinal axis with an angular velocity of 0.1-0.2 deg/s; the longitudinal axis executed small oscillated relative to the local vertical. The reconstruction of motion relative to the orbital coordinate system was performed in time intervals of up to 7 h using only the angularvelocity measurements. The measurements of the electric current from solar arrays were used for verification.

  5. Fuzzy based attitude controller for flexible spacecraft with on/off thrusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knapp, Roger Glenn

    1993-05-01

    A fuzzy-based attitude controller is designed for attitude control of a generic spacecraft with on/off thrusters. The controller is comprised of packages of rules dedicated to addressing different objectives (e.g., disturbance rejection, low fuel consumption, avoiding the excitation of flexible appendages, etc.). These rule packages can be inserted or removed depending on the requirements of the particular spacecraft and are parameterized based on vehicle parameters such as inertia or operational parameters such as the maneuvering rate. Individual rule packages can be 'weighted' relative to each other to emphasize the importance of one objective relative to another. Finally, the fuzzy controller and rule packages are demonstrated using the high-fidelity Space Shuttle Interactive On-Orbit Simulator (IOS) while performing typical on-orbit operations and are subsequently compared with the existing shuttle flight control system performance.

  6. Digital image transformation and rectification of spacecraft and radar images

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, S. S. C.

    1985-01-01

    The application of digital processing techniques to spacecraft television pictures and radar images is discussed. The use of digital rectification to produce contour maps from spacecraft pictures is described; images with azimuth and elevation angles are converted into point-perspective frame pictures. The digital correction of the slant angle of radar images to ground scale is examined. The development of orthophoto and stereoscopic shaded relief maps from digital terrain and digital image data is analyzed. Digital image transformations and rectifications are utilized on Viking Orbiter and Lander pictures of Mars.

  7. Spatial analysis of galactic cosmic ray particles in low earth orbit/near equator orbit using SPENVIS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suparta, W; Zulkeple, S K

    2014-01-01

    The space environment has grown intensively harmful to spacecraft and astronauts. Galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) are one of the radiation sources that composed of high energetic particles originated from space and capable of damaging electronic systems through single event upset (SEU) process. In this paper, we analyzed GCR fluxes at different altitudes by using Space Environment Information System (SPENVIS) software and the results are compared to determine their intensities with respect to distance in the Earth's orbit. The altitudes are set at low earth orbit (400 km and 685 km), medium earth orbit (19,100 km and 20,200 km) and high earth orbit (35,793 km and 1,000,000 km). Then, within Low Earth Orbit (LEO) near the equator (NEqO), we used altitude of 685 km to compare GCRs with the intensities of solar particles and trapped particles in the radiation belt to determine the significance of GCRs in the orbit itself.

  8. Juno/JEDI observations of 0.01 to >10 MeV energetic ions in the Jovian auroral regions: Anticipating a source for polar X-ray emission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haggerty, D. K.; Mauk, B. H.; Paranicas, C. P.; Clark, G.; Kollmann, P.; Rymer, A. M.; Bolton, S. J.; Connerney, J. E. P.; Levin, S. M.

    2017-07-01

    After a successful orbit insertion, the Juno spacecraft completed its first 53.5 day orbit and entered a very low altitude perijove with the full scientific payload operational for the first time on 27 August 2016. The Jupiter Energetic particle Detector Instrument measured ions and electrons over the auroral regions and through closest approach, with ions measured from 0.01 to >10 MeV, depending on species. This report focuses on the composition of the energetic ions observed during the first perijove of the Juno mission. Of particular interest are the ions that precipitate from the magnetosphere onto the polar atmosphere and ions that are accelerated locally by Jupiter's powerful auroral processes. We report preliminary findings on the spatial variations, species, including energy and pitch angle distributions throughout the prime science region during the first orbit of the Juno mission. The prime motivation for this work was to examine the heavy ions that are thought to be responsible for the observed polar X-rays. Jupiter Energetic particle Detector Instrument (JEDI) did observe precipitating heavy ions with energies >10 MeV, but for this perijove the intensities were far below those needed to account for previously observed polar X-ray emissions. During this survey we also found an unusual signal of ions between oxygen and sulfur. We include here a report on what appears to be a transitory observation of magnesium, or possibly sodium, at MeV energies through closest approach.

  9. In-Flight spacecraft magnetic field monitoring using scalar/vector gradiometry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Primdahl, Fritz; Risbo, Torben; Merayo, José M.G.

    2006-01-01

    Earth magnetic field mapping from planetary orbiting satellites requires a spacecraft magnetic field environment control program combined with the deployment of the magnetic sensors on a boom in order to reduce the measurement error caused by the local spacecraft field. Magnetic mapping missions...... (Magsat, Oersted, CHAMP, SAC-C MMP and the planned ESA Swarm project) carry a vector magnetometer and an absolute scalar magnetometer for in-flight calibration of the vector magnetometer scale values and for monitoring of the inter-axes angles and offsets over time intervals from months to years...... sensors onboard the Oersted satellite. For Oersted, a large difference between the pre-flight determined spacecraft magnetic field and the in-flight estimate exists causing some concern about the general applicability of the dual sensors technique....

  10. The problem of space nuclear power sources collisions with artificial space objects in near-earth orbits

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gafarov, A.A.

    1993-01-01

    Practically all space objects with onboard nuclear power sources stay in earth satellite orbits with an orbital lifetime long enough to reduce their radioactivity to levels presenting no danger for the Earth population. One of the reasons for orbit lifetime reduction can be collisions with other space objects in near-earth orbits. The possible consequence of collisions can be partial, or even complete, destruction of the spacecraft with an onboard nuclear power source; as well as delivery of additional impulse both to the spacecraft and its fragments. It is shown that collisions in orbit do not cause increase of radiation hazard for the Earth population if there is aerodynamic breakup of nuclear power sources into fragments of safe sizes during atmospheric reentry

  11. Plasma Interactions with Spacecraft. Volume 2, NASCAP-2K Scientific Documentation for Version 4.1

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-04-15

    surface is taken as the equipotential surface at  = ±ln2. This choice is made because the attracted species is absorbed by the sheath, so we have only...spacecraft-generated plasma environments on spacecraft systems. This document describes the physics and numeric models used in the surface charging...2 2.1 Surface Charging from Orbit Limited Currents

  12. Dark Material at the Surface of Polar Crater Deposits on Mercury

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neumann, Gregory A.; Cavanaugh, John F.; Sun, Xiaoli; Mazarico, Erwan; Smith, David E.; Zuber, Maria T.; Solomon, Sean C.; Paige, Daid A.

    2012-01-01

    Earth-based radar measurements [1-3] have yielded images of radar-bright material at the poles of Mercury postulated to be near-surface water ice residing in cold traps on the permanently shadowed floors of polar impact craters. The Mercury Laser Altimeter (MLA) on board the MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft has now mapped much of the north polar region of Mercury [4] (Fig. 1). Radar-bright zones lie within polar craters or along poleward-facing scarps lying mainly in shadow. Calculations of illumination with respect to solid-body motion [5] show that at least 0.5% of the surface area north of 75deg N lies in permanent shadow, and that most such permanently shadowed regions (PSRs) coincide with radar-bright regions. MLA transmits a 1064-nm-wavelength laser pulse at 8 Hz, timing the leading and trailing edges of the return pulse. MLA can in some cases infer energy and thereby surface reflectance at the laser wavelength from the returned pulses. Surficial exposures of water ice would be optically brighter than the surroundings, but persistent surface water ice would require temperatures over all seasons to remain extremely low (Mercury s eccentric orbit, 3:2 spin-orbit resonance, and near-zero obliquity generally do not support such conditions in all permanently shadowed craters but suggest that water ice buried near the surface ( 1 Gy. We describe measurements of reflectivity derived from MLA pulse returns. These reflectivity data show that surface materials in the shadowed regions are darker than their surroundings, enough to strongly attenuate or extinguish laser returns. Such measurements appear to rule out widespread surface exposures of water ice. We consider explanations for the apparent low reflectivity of these regions involving other types of volatile deposit.

  13. Linear Magnetoelectric Effect by Orbital Magnetism

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Scaramucci, A.; Bousquet, E.; Fechner, M.; Mostovoy, M.; Spaldin, N. A.

    2012-01-01

    We use symmetry analysis and first-principles calculations to show that the linear magnetoelectric effect can originate from the response of orbital magnetic moments to the polar distortions induced by an applied electric field. Using LiFePO4 as a model compound we show that spin-orbit coupling

  14. Wuhan University Deep-space Orbit Determination and Gravity Recovery System(WUDOGS and Its Application Analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    YE Mao

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available WUDOGS(Wuhan University deep-space orbit determination and gravity recovery system is a software system designed for deep spacecraft precise orbit determination and planetary gravity recovery, developed independently at Wuhan University. WUDOGS now has the function for Lunar and Mars spacecraft precision orbit determination. Its design pattern and main function are briefly introduced. The cross verification test(CVT between WUDOGS and state of the art planetary precise orbit determination software GEODYN-Ⅱ are elaborated. The results show that:①for orbit propagation, with all the same forces and other configuration, the predicted orbit difference in R,T,N directions are less than 0.3 mm for one month arc, 5×10-3 mm for 2 days arc, compared with GEODYN-Ⅱ;②the difference RMS of computed values of observables for two-way range and two-way range rate is at levels of 0.06 mm and 0.002 mm/s respectively;③for Chinese Chang'E-1 POD, the reconstructed orbit difference between WUDOGS and GEODYN-Ⅱ is at 2 cm level, for ESA MEX POD, the reconstructed orbit difference between WUDOGS and ESA is at 25 m level. Current developing situation of WUDOGS and comparison with international research level show that WUDOGS has a good application prospect, which will be important for meeting the demand of Chinese future planetary exploration and the development of deep space spacecraft POD software.

  15. Cluster observations of ion dispersion discontinuities in the polar cusp

    Science.gov (United States)

    Escoubet, C. P.; Berchem, J.; Pitout, F.; Richard, R. L.; Trattner, K. J.; Grison, B.; Taylor, M. G.; Masson, A.; Dunlop, M. W.; Dandouras, I. S.; Reme, H.; Fazakerley, A. N.

    2009-12-01

    The reconnection between the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) and the Earth’s magnetic field is taking place at the magnetopause on magnetic field lines threading through the polar cusp. When the IMF is southward, reconnection occurs near the subsolar point, which is magnetically connected to the equatorward boundary of the polar cusp. Subsequently the ions injected through the reconnection point precipitate in the cusp and are dispersed poleward. If reconnection is continuous and operates at constant rate, the ion dispersion is smooth and continuous. On the other hand if the reconnection rate varies, we expect interruption in the dispersion forming energy steps or staircase. Similarly, multiple entries near the magnetopause could also produce steps at low or mid-altitude when a spacecraft is crossing subsequently the field lines originating from these multiple sources. In addition, motion of the magnetopause induced by solar wind pressure changes or erosion due to reconnection can also induce a motion of the polar cusp and a disruption of the ions dispersion observed by a spacecraft. Cluster with four spacecraft following each other in the mid-altitude cusp can be used to distinguish between these “temporal” and “spatial” effects. We will present a cusp crossing with two spacecraft, separated by around two minutes. The two spacecraft observed a very similar dispersion with a step in energy in its centre and two other dispersions poleward. We will show that the steps could be temporal (assuming that the time between two reconnection bursts corresponds to the time delay between the two spacecraft) but it would be a fortuitous coincidence. On the other hand the steps and the two poleward dispersions could be explained by spatial effects if we take into account the motion of the open-closed boundary between the two spacecraft crossings.

  16. Explicit polarization (X-Pol) potential using ab initio molecular orbital theory and density functional theory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Lingchun; Han, Jaebeom; Lin, Yen-lin; Xie, Wangshen; Gao, Jiali

    2009-10-29

    The explicit polarization (X-Pol) method has been examined using ab initio molecular orbital theory and density functional theory. The X-Pol potential was designed to provide a novel theoretical framework for developing next-generation force fields for biomolecular simulations. Importantly, the X-Pol potential is a general method, which can be employed with any level of electronic structure theory. The present study illustrates the implementation of the X-Pol method using ab initio Hartree-Fock theory and hybrid density functional theory. The computational results are illustrated by considering a set of bimolecular complexes of small organic molecules and ions with water. The computed interaction energies and hydrogen bond geometries are in good accord with CCSD(T) calculations and B3LYP/aug-cc-pVDZ optimizations.

  17. The status of polarization studies at HERA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boege, M.

    1993-01-01

    In August 1992 a vertical electron beam polarization of nearly 60% at 26.7 GeV (spin tune=60.5) was obtained at HERA. This was achieved by optimizing the energy and orbit tunes and by applying harmonic corrections to the closed orbit. The polarization level was reproducible from fill to fill and the calibration of the Compton polarimeter was confirmed by measuring the polarization build up curve. The polarization measurements were made with currents of one to two milliamps. Much higher currents are expected for the 1993 luminosity run (∼ 30 mA were obtained in May 1993). The high polarization level was reproduced at high current. Further polarization studies in parallel with e-p operation are planned. In 1993/94 a pair of spin rotators will be installed in the East straight section so that longitudinal polarization is available at the East interaction point. Simulations with the spin tracking program SITROS are in qualitative agreement with the measurements. Calculations with SITROS show that longitudinal polarizations of up to 50% could then still be achieved

  18. Globally Polarized Quark-gluon Plasma in Non-central A+ACollisions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liang, Zuo-tang; Wang, Xin-Nian

    2004-10-01

    Produced partons have large local relative orbital angular momentum along the direction opposite to the reaction plane in the early stage of non-central heavy-ion collisions. Parton scattering is shown to polarize quarks along the same direction due to spin-orbital coupling.Such global quark polarization will lead to many observable consequences,such as left-right asymmetry of hadron spectra, global transverse polarization of thermal photons, dileptons and hadrons. Hadrons from the decay of polarized resonances will have azimuthal asymmetry similar to the elliptic flow. Global hyperon polarization is predicted with indifferent hadronization scenarios and can be easily tested.

  19. Characterization of dust aggregates in the vicinity of the Rosetta spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Güttler, C.; Hasselmann, P. H.; Li, Y.; Fulle, M.; Tubiana, C.; Kovacs, G.; Agarwal, J.; Sierks, H.; Fornasier, S.; Hofmann, M.; Gutiérrez Marqués, P.; Ott, T.; Drolshagen, E.; Bertini, I.; Osiris Team

    2017-09-01

    In a Rosetta/OSIRIS imaging activity in June 2015, we have observed the dynamic motion of particles close to the spacecraft. Due to the focal setting of the OSIRIS Wide Angle Camera (WAC), these particles were blurred, which can be used to measure their distances to the spacecraft. We detected 108 dust aggregates over a 130 minutes long sequence, and find that their sizes are around a millimetre and their distances cluster between 2 m and 40 m from the spacecraft. Their number densities are about a factor 10 higher than expected for the overall coma and highly fluctuating. Their velocities are small compared to the spacecraft orbital motion and directed away from the spacecraft, towards the comet. From this we conclude that they have interacted with the spacecraft and assess three possible scenarios. We prefer a scenario where centimeter-sized aggregates collide with the spacecraft and we would observe the fragments. Ablation of a dust layer on the spacecraft's z panel when rotated towards the sun is a reasonable alternative. We could also measure an acceleration for a subset of 18 aggregates, which is directed away from the sun and can be explain by a rocket effect, which requires a minimum ice fraction in the order of 0.1%

  20. Polarized proton beam for eRHIC

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Huang, H. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Meot, F. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Ptitsyn, V. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Roser, T. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)

    2015-05-03

    RHIC has provided polarized proton collisions from 31 GeV to 255 GeV in the past decade. To preserve polarization through numerous depolarizing resonances through the whole accelerator chain, harmonic orbit correction, partial snakes, horizontal tune jump system and full snakes have been used. In addition, close attentions have been paid to betatron tune control, orbit control and beam line alignment. The polarization of 60% at 255 GeV has been delivered to experiments with 1.8×1011 bunch intensity. For the eRHIC era, the beam brightness has to be maintained to reach the desired luminosity. Since we only have one hadron ring in the eRHIC era, existing spin rotator and snakes can be converted to six snake configuration for one hadron ring. With properly arranged six snakes, the polarization can be maintained at 70% at 250 GeV. This paper summarizes the effort and plan to reach high polarization with small emittance for eRHIC.

  1. Lay out, test verification and in orbit performance of HELIOS a temperature control system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brungs, W.

    1975-01-01

    HELIOS temperature control system is described. The main design features and the impact of interactions between experiment, spacecraft system, and temperature control system requirements on the design are discussed. The major limitations of the thermal design regarding a closer sun approach are given and related to test experience and performance data obtained in orbit. Finally the validity of the test results achieved with prototype and flight spacecraft is evaluated by comparison between test data, orbit temperature predictions and flight data.

  2. Spin-polarization and spin-flip in a triple-quantum-dot ring by using tunable lateral bias voltage and Rashba spin-orbit interaction

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Molavi, Mohamad, E-mail: Mo_molavi@yahoo.com [Faculty of Physics, Kharazmi University, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Faizabadi, Edris, E-mail: Edris@iust.ac.ir [School of Physics, Iran University of Science and Technology, 16846 Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

    2017-04-15

    By using the Green's function formalism, we investigate the effects of single particle energy levels of a quantum dot on the spin-dependent transmission properties through a triple-quantum-dot ring structure. In this structure, one of the quantum dots has been regarded to be non-magnetic and the Rashba spin-orbit interaction is imposed locally on this dot while the two others can be magnetic. The on-site energy of dots, manipulates the interference of the electron spinors that are transmitted to output leads. Our results show that the effects of magnetic dots on spin-dependent transmission properties are the same as the difference of on-site energies of the various dots, which is applicable by a controllable lateral bias voltage externally. Besides, by tuning the parameters such as Rashba spin-orbit interaction, and on-site energy of dots and magnetic flux inside the ring, the structure can be indicated the spin-flip effect and behave as a full spin polarizer or splitter. - Highlights: • The effects of magnetic dots on spin-dependent transmission properties are the same as the difference of on-site energies of the various dots. • In the situation that the QDs have non-zero on-site energies, the system can demonstrate the full spin-polarization. • By tuning the Rashba spin-orbit strength and magnetic flux encountered by the ring the system operates as a Stern-Gerlach apparatus.

  3. Modeling the angular motion dynamics of spacecraft with a magnetic attitude control system based on experimental studies and dynamic similarity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kulkov, V. M.; Medvedskii, A. L.; Terentyev, V. V.; Firsyuk, S. O.; Shemyakov, A. O.

    2017-12-01

    The problem of spacecraft attitude control using electromagnetic systems interacting with the Earth's magnetic field is considered. A set of dimensionless parameters has been formed to investigate the spacecraft orientation regimes based on dynamically similar models. The results of experimental studies of small spacecraft with a magnetic attitude control system can be extrapolated to the in-orbit spacecraft motion control regimes by using the methods of the dimensional and similarity theory.

  4. Passive Plasma Contact Mechanisms for Small-Scale Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    McTernan, Jesse K.

    Small-scale spacecraft represent a paradigm shift in how entities such as academia, industry, engineering firms, and the scientific community operate in space. However, although the paradigm shift produces unique opportunities to build satellites in unique ways for novel missions, there are also significant challenges that must be addressed. This research addresses two of the challenges associated with small-scale spacecraft: 1) the miniaturization of spacecraft and associated instrumentation and 2) the need to transport charge across the spacecraft-environment boundary. As spacecraft decrease in size, constraints on the size, weight, and power of on-board instrumentation increase--potentially limiting the instrument's functionality or ability to integrate with the spacecraft. These constraints drive research into mechanisms or techniques that use little or no power and efficiently utilize existing resources. One limited resource on small-scale spacecraft is outer surface area, which is often covered with solar panels to meet tight power budgets. This same surface area could also be needed for passive neutralization of spacecraft charging. This research explores the use of a transparent, conductive layer on the solar cell coverglass that is electrically connected to spacecraft ground potential. This dual-purpose material facilitates the use of outer surfaces for both energy harvesting of solar photons as well as passive ion collection. Mission capabilities such as in-situ plasma measurements that were previously infeasible on small-scale platforms become feasible with the use of indium tin oxide-coated solar panel coverglass. We developed test facilities that simulate the space environment in low Earth orbit to test the dual-purpose material and the various application of this approach. Particularly, this research is in support of two upcoming missions: OSIRIS-3U, by Penn State's Student Space Programs Lab, and MiTEE, by the University of Michigan. The purpose of

  5. Spin Polarization Oscillations without Spin Precession: Spin-Orbit Entangled Resonances in Quasi-One-Dimensional Spin Transport

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. H. Berman

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Resonant behavior involving spin-orbit entangled states occurs for spin transport along a narrow channel defined in a two-dimensional electron gas, including an apparent rapid relaxation of the spin polarization for special values of the channel width and applied magnetic field (so-called ballistic spin resonance. A fully quantum-mechanical theory for transport using multiple subbands of the one-dimensional system provides the dependence of the spin density on the applied magnetic field and channel width and position along the channel. We show how the spatially nonoscillating part of the spin density vanishes when the Zeeman energy matches the subband energy splittings. The resonance phenomenon persists in the presence of disorder.

  6. Orbital motions as gradiometers for post-Newtonian tidal effects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lorenzo eIorio

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available The direct long-term changes occurring in the orbital dynamics of a local gravitationally bound binary system S due to the post-Newtonian tidal acceleration caused by an external massive source are investigated. A class of systems made of a test particle m rapidly orbiting with orbital frequency nb an astronomical body of mass M which, in turn, slowly revolves around a distantobject of mass M with orbital frequency nb'<< □ nb is considered. The characteristic frequenciesof the non-Keplerian orbital variations of m and of M itself are assumed to be negligible withrespect to both nb and nb'. General expressions for the resulting Newtonian and post-Newtoniantidal orbital shifts of m are obtained. The future missions BepiColombo and JUICE to Mercuryand Ganymede, respectively, are considered in view of a possible detection. The largest effects,of the order of □ 0:1 □□ 0:5 milliarcseconds per year (mas yr□□1, occur for the Ganymede orbiterof the JUICE mission. Although future improvements in spacecraft tracking and orbit determina14tion might, perhaps, reach the required sensitivity, the systematic bias represented by the otherknown orbital perturbations of both Newtonian and post-Newtonian origin would be overwhel16ming. The realization of a dedicated artificial mini-planetary system to be carried onboard andEarth-orbiting spacecraft is considered as well. Post-Newtonian tidal precessions as large as1 □□ 102 mas yr□□1 could be obtained, but the quite larger Newtonian tidal effects would be amajor source of systematic bias because of the present-day percent uncertainty in the product of the Earth’s mass times the Newtonian gravitational parameter.

  7. Spin polarization, orbital occupation and band gap opening in vanadium dioxide: The effect of screened Hartree-Fock exchange

    KAUST Repository

    Wang, Hao

    2014-07-01

    The metal-insulator transition of VO2 so far has evaded an accurate description by density functional theory. The screened hybrid functional of Heyd, Scuseria and Ernzerhof leads to reasonable solutions for both the low-temperature monoclinic and high-temperature rutile phases only if spin polarization is excluded from the calculations. We explore whether a satisfactory agreement with experiment can be achieved by tuning the fraction of Hartree Fock exchange (α) in the density functional. It is found that two branches of locally stable solutions exist for the rutile phase for 12.5%≤α≤20%. One is metallic and has the correct stability as compared to the monoclinic phase, the other is insulating with lower energy than the metallic branch. We discuss these observations based on the V 3d orbital occupations and conclude that α=10% is the best possible choice for spin-polarized VO2 calculations. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  8. Standardization and Economics of Nuclear Spacecraft, Final Report, Phase I, Sense Study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1973-03-01

    Feasibility and cost benefits of nuclear-powered standardized spacecraft are investigated. The study indicates that two shuttle-launched nuclear-powered spacecraft should be able to serve the majority of unmanned NASA missions anticipated for the 1980's. The standard spacecraft include structure, thermal control, power, attitude control, some propulsion capability and tracking, telemetry, and command subsystems. One spacecraft design, powered by the radioisotope thermoelectric generator, can serve missions requiring up to 450 watts. The other spacecraft design, powered by similar nuclear heat sources in a Brayton-cycle generator, can serve missions requiring up to 21000 watts. Design concepts and trade-offs are discussed. The conceptual designs selected are presented and successfully tested against a variety of missions. The thermal design is such that both spacecraft are capable of operating in any earth orbit and any orientation without modification. Three-axis stabilization is included. Several spacecraft can be stacked in the shuttle payload compartment for multi-mission launches. A reactor-powered thermoelectric generator system, operating at an electric power level of 5000 watts, is briefly studied for applicability to two test missions of divers requirements. A cost analysis indicates that use of the two standardized spacecraft offers sizable savings in comparison with specially designed solar-powered spacecraft. There is a duplicate copy.

  9. Cassini Spacecraft In-Flight Swap to Backup Attitude Control Thrusters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bates, David M.

    2010-01-01

    NASA's Cassini Spacecraft, launched on October 15th, 1997 and arrived at Saturn on June 30th, 2004, is the largest and most ambitious interplanetary spacecraft in history. In order to meet the challenging attitude control and navigation requirements of the orbit profile at Saturn, Cassini is equipped with a monopropellant thruster based Reaction Control System (RCS), a bipropellant Main Engine Assembly (MEA) and a Reaction Wheel Assembly (RWA). In 2008, after 11 years of reliable service, several RCS thrusters began to show signs of end of life degradation, which led the operations team to successfully perform the swap to the backup RCS system, the details and challenges of which are described in this paper. With some modifications, it is hoped that similar techniques and design strategies could be used to benefit other spacecraft.

  10. Searching for Orbits with Minimum Fuel Consumption for Station-Keeping Maneuvers: An Application to Lunisolar Perturbations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antonio Fernando Bertachini de Almeida Prado

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The present paper has the goal of developing a new criterion to search for orbits that minimize the fuel consumption for station-keeping maneuvers. This approach is based on the integral over the time of the perturbing forces. This integral measures the total variation of velocity caused by the perturbations in the spacecraft, which corresponds to the equivalent variation of velocity that an engine should deliver to the spacecraft to compensate the perturbations and to keep its orbit Keplerian all the time. This integral is a characteristic of the orbit and the set of perturbations considered and does not depend on the type of engine used. In this sense, this integral can be seen as a criterion to select the orbit of the spacecraft. When this value becomes larger, more consumption of fuel is required for the station keeping, and, in this sense, less interesting is the orbit. This concept can be applied to any perturbation. In the present research, as an example, the perturbation caused by a third body is considered. Then, numerical simulations considering the effects of the Sun and the Moon in a satellite around the Earth are shown to exemplify the method.

  11. Quantifying the importance of orbital over spin correlations in delta-Pu within density-functional theory

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Soderlind, P

    2008-01-01

    The electronic structure of plutonium is studied within the density-functional theory (DFT) model. Key features of the electronic structure are correctly modeled and bonding, total energy, and electron density of states are all consistent with measure data, although the prediction of magnetism is not consistent with many observations. Here we analyze the contributions to the electronic structure arising from spin polarization, orbital polarization, and spin-orbit interaction. These effects give rise to spin and orbital moments that are of nearly equal magnitude, but anti-parallel, suggesting a magnetic-moment cancellation with a zero total moment. Quantifying the spin versus orbital effects on the bonding, total energy, and electron spectra it becomes clear that the spin polarization is much less important than the orbital correlations. Consequently, a restricted DFT approach with a non-spin polarized electronic structure can produce reasonable equation-of-state and electron spectra for (delta)-Pu when the orbital effects are accounted for. Hence, we present two non-magnetic models. One in which the spin moment is canceled by the orbital moment and another in which the spin moment (and therefore the orbital moment) is restricted to zero

  12. Large-Scale Spacecraft Fire Safety Tests

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urban, David; Ruff, Gary A.; Ferkul, Paul V.; Olson, Sandra; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos; T'ien, James S.; Torero, Jose L.; Cowlard, Adam J.; Rouvreau, Sebastien; Minster, Olivier; hide

    2014-01-01

    An international collaborative program is underway to address open issues in spacecraft fire safety. Because of limited access to long-term low-gravity conditions and the small volume generally allotted for these experiments, there have been relatively few experiments that directly study spacecraft fire safety under low-gravity conditions. Furthermore, none of these experiments have studied sample sizes and environment conditions typical of those expected in a spacecraft fire. The major constraint has been the size of the sample, with prior experiments limited to samples of the order of 10 cm in length and width or smaller. This lack of experimental data forces spacecraft designers to base their designs and safety precautions on 1-g understanding of flame spread, fire detection, and suppression. However, low-gravity combustion research has demonstrated substantial differences in flame behavior in low-gravity. This, combined with the differences caused by the confined spacecraft environment, necessitates practical scale spacecraft fire safety research to mitigate risks for future space missions. To address this issue, a large-scale spacecraft fire experiment is under development by NASA and an international team of investigators. This poster presents the objectives, status, and concept of this collaborative international project (Saffire). The project plan is to conduct fire safety experiments on three sequential flights of an unmanned ISS re-supply spacecraft (the Orbital Cygnus vehicle) after they have completed their delivery of cargo to the ISS and have begun their return journeys to earth. On two flights (Saffire-1 and Saffire-3), the experiment will consist of a flame spread test involving a meter-scale sample ignited in the pressurized volume of the spacecraft and allowed to burn to completion while measurements are made. On one of the flights (Saffire-2), 9 smaller (5 x 30 cm) samples will be tested to evaluate NASAs material flammability screening tests

  13. Optimal Weighting of Multi-Spacecraft Data to Estimate Gradients of Physical Fields

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chanteur, G. M.; Le Contel, O.; Sahraoui, F.; Retino, A.; Mirioni, L.

    2016-12-01

    Multi-spacecraft missions like the ESA mission CLUSTER and the NASA mission MMS are essential to improve our understanding of physical processes in space plasmas. Several methods were designed in the 90's during the preparation phase of the CLUSTER mission to estimate gradients of physical fields from simultaneous multi-points measurements [1, 2]. Both CLUSTER and MMS involve four spacecraft with identical full scientific payloads including various sensors of electromagnetic fields and different type of particle detectors. In the standard methods described in [1, 2], which are presently in use, data from the four spacecraft have identical weights and the estimated gradients are most reliable when the tetrahedron formed by the four spacecraft is regular. There are three types of errors affecting the estimated gradients (see chapter 14 in [1]) : i) truncature errors are due to local non-linearity of spatial variations, ii) physical errors are due to instruments, and iii) geometrical errors are due to uncertainties on the positions of the spacecraft. An assessment of truncature errors for a given observation requires a theoretical model of the measured field. Instrumental errors can easily be taken into account for a given geometry of the cluster but are usually less than the geometrical errors which diverge quite fast when the tetrahedron flattens, a circumstance occurring twice per orbit of the cluster. Hence reliable gradients can be estimated only on part of the orbit. Reciprocal vectors of the tetrahedron were presented in chapter 4 of [1], they have the advantage over other methods to treat the four spacecraft symmetrically and to allow a theoretical analysis of the errors (see chapters 4 of [1] and 4 of [2]). We will present Generalized Reciprocal Vectors for weighted data and an optimization procedure to improve the reliability of the estimated gradients when the tetrahedron is not regular. A brief example using CLUSTER or MMS data will be given. This approach

  14. Orbital motions as gradiometers for post-Newtonian tidal effects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Iorio, Lorenzo, E-mail: lorenzo.iorio@libero.it [Ministero dell' Istruzione, dell' Università e della Ricerca, Istruzione, Bari (Italy)

    2014-08-14

    The direct long-term changes occurring in the orbital dynamics of a local gravitationally bound binary system S due to the post-Newtonian tidal acceleration caused by an external massive source are investigated. A class of systems made of a test particle m rapidly orbiting with orbital frequency n{sub b} an astronomical body of mass M which, in turn, slowly revolves around a distant object of mass M′ with orbital frequency n{sub b}′ « n{sub b} is considered. The characteristic frequencies of the non-Keplerian orbital variations of m and of M itself are assumed to be negligible with respect to both n{sub b} and n{sub b}′. General expressions for the resulting Newtonian and post-Newtonian tidal orbital shifts of m are obtained. The future missions BepiColombo and JUICE to Mercury and Ganymede, respectively, are considered in view of a possible detection. The largest effects, of the order of ≈ 0.1-0.5 milliarcseconds per year (mas yr{sup −1}), occur for the Ganymede orbiter of the JUICE mission. Although future improvements in spacecraft tracking and orbit determination might, perhaps, reach the required sensitivity, the systematic bias represented by the other known orbital perturbations of both Newtonian and post-Newtonian origin would be overwhelming. The realization of a dedicated artificial mini-planetary system to be carried onboard and Earth-orbiting spacecraft is considered as well. Post-Newtonian tidal precessions as large as ≈ 1−10{sup 2} mas yr{sup −1} could be obtained, but the quite larger Newtonian tidal effects would be a major source of systematic bias because of the present-day percent uncertainty in the product of the Earth's mass times the Newtonian gravitational parameter.

  15. Trajectories for spacecraft encounters with Comet Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova in 1996

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dunham, David W.; Jen, Shao-Chiang; Farquhar, Robert W.

    1989-01-01

    Early in 1996, the relatively bright short-period Comet Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova (HMP) will pass only 0.17 astronomical unit from the earth, providing both an unusually favorable apparition for ground-based observers and an opportunity for a spacecraft to reach Comet HMP on relatively low-energy trajectories. The Japanense Institute of Space and Astronautical Sciences Sakigake spacecraft is expected to fly by Comet HMP on February 3, 1996, after utilizing four earth swingbys to modify its orbit. If the camera on the ESA Giotto spacecraft is inoperable, Giotto may also be sent to Comet HMP. In addition, 1-year earth-return trajectories to Comet HMP are described, along with some that can be extended to encounter Comet Giacobini-Zinner in 1998.

  16. Cygnus X-1: Discovery of variable circular polarization

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Michalsky, J.J.; Swedlund, J.B.; Stokes, R.A.

    1975-01-01

    HDE 226868, the optical counterpart of Cyg X-1, has been observed for circular polarization during 1974. Observations in five colors suggest that circular polarization results from an interstellar effect. Measurements of the blue polarization reveal circular polarization variations synchronous with the 5)./sub /6 orbital period. The circular polarization variation appears to be similar to the blue intensity variation

  17. The Viking Orbiter and its Mariner inheritance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wolfe, A. E.; Norris, H. W.

    1975-01-01

    The orbiter system of the Viking spacecraft performs the functions of transporting the lander into orbit around Mars, surveying the proposed landing sites, relaying lander data to earth, and conducting independent scientific observations of Mars. The orbiter system is a semiautomatic, solar-powered, triaxially stabilized platform capable of making trajectory corrections and communicating with earth on S-band. Its instruments for visual imaging, detecting water vapor, and thermal mapping are mounted on a separate two-degree-of-freedom scan platform. Radio science is conducted at three frequencies, using the main S-band system, a separate X-band derived from the S-band, and the UHF one-way link with the lander.

  18. Sunlight effects on the 3D polar current system determined from low Earth orbit measurements

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Laundal, Karl M.; Finlay, Chris; Olsen, Nils

    2016-01-01

    Interaction between the solar wind and the Earth’s magnetosphere is associated with large-scale currents in the ionosphere at polar latitudes that flow along magnetic field lines (Birkeland currents) and horizontally. These current systems are tightly linked, but their global behaviors are rarely...... analyzed together. In this paper, we present estimates of the average global Birkeland currents and horizontal ionospheric currents from the same set of magnetic field measurements. The magnetic field measurements, from the low Earth orbiting Swarm and CHAMP satellites, are used to co-estimate poloidal...... and toroidal parts of the magnetic disturbance field, represented in magnetic apex coordinates. The use of apex coordinates reduces effects of longitudinal and hemispheric variations in the Earth’s main field. We present global currents from both hemispheres during different sunlight conditions. The results...

  19. Spacecraft Trajectory Estimation Using a Sampled-Data Extended Kalman Filter with Range-Only Measurements

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Erwin, R. S; Bernstein, Dennis S

    2005-01-01

    .... In this paper we use a sampled-data extended Kalman Filter to estimate the trajectory or a target satellite when only range measurements are available from a constellation or orbiting spacecraft...

  20. Uncertainty Requirement Analysis for the Orbit, Attitude, and Burn Performance of the 1st Lunar Orbit Insertion Maneuver

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Young-Joo Song

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available In this study, the uncertainty requirements for orbit, attitude, and burn performance were estimated and analyzed for the execution of the 1st lunar orbit insertion (LOI maneuver of the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO mission. During the early design phase of the system, associate analysis is an essential design factor as the 1st LOI maneuver is the largest burn that utilizes the onboard propulsion system; the success of the lunar capture is directly affected by the performance achieved. For the analysis, the spacecraft is assumed to have already approached the periselene with a hyperbolic arrival trajectory around the moon. In addition, diverse arrival conditions and mission constraints were considered, such as varying periselene approach velocity, altitude, and orbital period of the capture orbit after execution of the 1st LOI maneuver. The current analysis assumed an impulsive LOI maneuver, and two-body equations of motion were adapted to simplify the problem for a preliminary analysis. Monte Carlo simulations were performed for the statistical analysis to analyze diverse uncertainties that might arise at the moment when the maneuver is executed. As a result, three major requirements were analyzed and estimated for the early design phase. First, the minimum requirements were estimated for the burn performance to be captured around the moon. Second, the requirements for orbit, attitude, and maneuver burn performances were simultaneously estimated and analyzed to maintain the 1st elliptical orbit achieved around the moon within the specified orbital period. Finally, the dispersion requirements on the B-plane aiming at target points to meet the target insertion goal were analyzed and can be utilized as reference target guidelines for a mid-course correction (MCC maneuver during the transfer. More detailed system requirements for the KPLO mission, particularly for the spacecraft bus itself and for the flight dynamics subsystem at the ground

  1. FORTE spacecraft vibration mitigation. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maly, J.R.

    1996-02-01

    This report documents work that was performed by CSA Engineering, Inc., for Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), to reduce vibrations of the FORTE spacecraft by retrofitting damped structural components into the spacecraft structure. The technical objective of the work was reduction of response at the location of payload components when the structure is subjected to the dynamic loading associated with launch and proto-qualification testing. FORTE is a small satellite that will be placed in orbit in 1996. The structure weighs approximately 425 lb, and is roughly 80 inches high and 40 inches in diameter. It was developed and built by LANL in conjunction with Sandia National Laboratories Albuquerque for the United States Department of Energy. The FORTE primary structure was fabricated primarily with graphite epoxy, using aluminum honeycomb core material for equipment decks and solar panel substrates. Equipment decks were bonded and bolted through aluminum mounting blocks to adjoining structure

  2. A New Lunar Topographic Map of the Moon by KAGUYA-LALT: The First Precise Topography of the Polar Regions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Araki, H.; Ishihara, Y.; Noda, H.; Goossens, S.; Tazawa, S.; Kawano, N.; Sasaki, S.; Oberst, J.

    2008-12-01

    The Japanese lunar explorer KAGUYA (SELENE) was launched successfully on September 14th, 2007. A laser altimeter (LALT) is on board the main orbiter of KAGUYA. The objectives of LALT are (1) determination of lunar global figure, (2) studies in internal structure and surface processes, (3) exploration of the lunar pole regions, and (4) reduction of lunar occultation data. LALT transmits laser pulses whose time width is about 20 nano-seconds and pulse interval is 1 second. Range accuracy is up to 5m. The range data are transformed to the topography of the moon with the aid of position and attitude data of the main orbiter. From the end of December 2007, LALT started continuous operation and a global topography map with unprecedented resolution was produced. Lunar mean radius is estimated as 1737.15±0.01 km and the COM-COF offset is 1.94 km based on the spherical harmonic model STM359_grid-02 derived from LALT topography. The amplitude of the power spectrum of STM359_grid-02 is larger than that of the previous model at L>30 degrees, which may reflect the process of basin formation and/or crustal evolution. In the polar regions where previous CLEMENTINE altimeter did not cover, many topographic features that were difficult to see on the imagery from spacecraft or ground based radar are discovered. The sunlit rate in the lunar polar regions is estimated by using the polar topographic map made from LALT topography. We found that i) the highest sunlit rate is 93~96 % in both polar regions and ii) the eternal shadow area is smaller than previous estimations. These results will be of great use for the planning of the lunar polar exploration in near future.

  3. Spacecraft Conceptual Design for the 8-Meter Advanced Technology Large Aperture Space Telescope (ATLAST)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hopkins, Randall C.; Capizzo, Peter; Fincher, Sharon; Hornsby, Linda S.; Jones, David

    2010-01-01

    The Advanced Concepts Office at Marshall Space Flight Center completed a brief spacecraft design study for the 8-meter monolithic Advanced Technology Large Aperture Space Telescope (ATLAST-8m). This spacecraft concept provides all power, communication, telemetry, avionics, guidance and control, and thermal control for the observatory, and inserts the observatory into a halo orbit about the second Sun-Earth Lagrange point. The multidisciplinary design team created a simple spacecraft design that enables component and science instrument servicing, employs articulating solar panels for help with momentum management, and provides precise pointing control while at the same time fast slewing for the observatory.

  4. Autonomous Spacecraft Communication Interface for Load Planning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dever, Timothy P.; May, Ryan D.; Morris, Paul H.

    2014-01-01

    Ground-based controllers can remain in continuous communication with spacecraft in low Earth orbit (LEO) with near-instantaneous communication speeds. This permits near real-time control of all of the core spacecraft systems by ground personnel. However, as NASA missions move beyond LEO, light-time communication delay issues, such as time lag and low bandwidth, will prohibit this type of operation. As missions become more distant, autonomous control of manned spacecraft will be required. The focus of this paper is the power subsystem. For present missions, controllers on the ground develop a complete schedule of power usage for all spacecraft components. This paper presents work currently underway at NASA to develop an architecture for an autonomous spacecraft, and focuses on the development of communication between the Mission Manager and the Autonomous Power Controller. These two systems must work together in order to plan future load use and respond to unanticipated plan deviations. Using a nominal spacecraft architecture and prototype versions of these two key components, a number of simulations are run under a variety of operational conditions, enabling development of content and format of the messages necessary to achieve the desired goals. The goals include negotiation of a load schedule that meets the global requirements (contained in the Mission Manager) and local power system requirements (contained in the Autonomous Power Controller), and communication of off-plan disturbances that arise while executing a negotiated plan. The message content is developed in two steps: first, a set of rapid-prototyping "paper" simulations are preformed; then the resultant optimized messages are codified for computer communication for use in automated testing.

  5. Advanced Exoplanet Star Tracker for Orbit Self Determination, Phase I

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — This proposal puts forth an innovative star tracker hardware sensor that allows for autonomous calculation of a spacecraft's orbit by employing Doppler Spectroscopy...

  6. Performance Testing of a Photocatalytic Oxidation Module for Spacecraft Cabin Atmosphere Revitalization

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perry, Jay L.; Abney, Morgan B.; Frederick, Kenneth R.; Scott, Joseph P.; Kaiser, Mark; Seminara, Gary; Bershitsky, Alex

    2011-01-01

    Photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) is a candidate process technology for use in high volumetric flow rate trace contaminant control applications in sealed environments. The targeted application for PCO as applied to crewed spacecraft life support system architectures is summarized. Technical challenges characteristic of PCO are considered. Performance testing of a breadboard PCO reactor design for mineralizing polar organic compounds in a spacecraft cabin atmosphere is described. Test results are analyzed and compared to results reported in the literature for comparable PCO reactor designs.

  7. Spin-Orbit Coupling for Photons and Polaritons in Microstructures

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. G. Sala

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available We use coupled micropillars etched out of a semiconductor microcavity to engineer a spin-orbit Hamiltonian for photons and polaritons in a microstructure. The coupling between the spin and orbital momentum arises from the polarization-dependent confinement and tunneling of photons between adjacent micropillars arranged in the form of a hexagonal photonic molecule. It results in polariton eigenstates with distinct polarization patterns, which are revealed in photoluminescence experiments in the regime of polariton condensation. Thanks to the strong polariton nonlinearities, our system provides a photonic workbench for the quantum simulation of the interplay between interactions and spin-orbit effects, particularly when extended to two-dimensional lattices.

  8. Catalystlike effect of orbital angular momentum on the conversion of transverse to three-dimensional spin states within tightly focused radially polarized beams

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Lei; Liu, Sheng; Li, Peng; Zhang, Yi; Cheng, Huachao; Zhao, Jianlin

    2018-05-01

    We report on the catalystlike effect of orbital angular momentum (OAM) on local spin-state conversion within the tightly focused radially polarized beams associated with optical spin-orbit interaction. It is theoretically demonstrated that the incident OAM can lead to a conversion of purely transverse spin state to a three-dimensional spin state on the focal plane. This conversion can be conveniently manipulated by altering the sign and value of the OAM. By comparing the total OAM and spin angular momentum (SAM) on the incident plane to those on the focal plane, it is indicated that the incident OAM have no participation in the angular momentum intertransfer, and just play a role as a catalyst of local SAM conversion. Such an effect of OAM sheds new light on the optical spin-orbit interaction in tight-focusing processes. The resultant three-dimensional spin states may provide more degrees of freedom in optical manipulation and spin-dependent directive coupling.

  9. Optimal Rendezvous and Docking Simulator for Elliptical Orbits, Phase I

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — It is proposed to develop and implement a simulation of spacecraft rendezvous and docking guidance, navigation, and control in elliptical orbit. The foundation of...

  10. Maintaining Aura's Orbit Requirements While Performing Orbit Maintenance Maneuvers Containing an Orbit Normal Delta-V Component

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Megan R.; Petersen, Jeremy D.

    2014-01-01

    The Earth Observing System (EOS) Afternoon Constellation consists of five member missions (GCOM-W1, Aqua, CALIPSO, CloudSat, and Aura), each of which maintain a frozen, sun-synchronous orbit with a 16-day repeating ground track that follows the Worldwide Reference System-2 (WRS-2). Under nominal science operations for Aura, the propulsion system is oriented such that the resultant thrust vector is aligned 13.493 degrees away from the velocity vector along the yaw axis. When performing orbit maintenance maneuvers, the spacecraft performs a yaw slew to align the thrust vector in the appropriate direction. A new Drag Make Up (DMU) maneuver operations scheme has been implemented for Aura alleviating the need for the 13.493 degree yaw slew. The focus of this investigation is to assess the impact that no-slew DMU maneuver operations will have on Aura's Mean Local Time (MLT) which drives the required along track separation between Aura and the constellation members, as well as Aura's frozen orbit properties, eccentricity and argument of perigee. Seven maneuver strategies were analyzed to determine the best operational approach. A mirror pole strategy, with maneuvers alternating at the North and South poles, was implemented operationally to minimize impact to the MLT. Additional analysis determined that the mirror pole strategy could be further modified to include frozen orbit maneuvers and thus maintain both MLT and the frozen orbit properties under noslew operations.

  11. On-orbit evaluation of the control system/structural mode interactions on OSO-8

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slafer, L. I.

    1980-01-01

    The Orbiting Solar Observatory-8 experienced severe structural mode/control loop interaction problems during the spacecraft development. Extensive analytical studies, using the hybrid coordinate modeling approach, and comprehensive ground testing were carried out in order to achieve the system's precision pointing performance requirements. A recent series of flight tests were conducted with the spacecraft in which a wide bandwidth, high resolution telemetry system was utilized to evaluate the on-orbit flexible dynamics characteristics of the vehicle along with the control system performance. This paper describes the results of these tests, reviewing the basic design problem, analytical approach taken, ground test philosophy, and on-orbit testing. Data from the tests was used to determine the primary mode frequency, damping, and servo coupling dynamics for the on-orbit condition. Additionally, the test results have verified analytically predicted differences between the on-orbit and ground test environments. The test results have led to a validation of both the analytical modeling and servo design techniques used during the development of the control system, and also verified the approach taken to vehicle and servo ground testing.

  12. Potentiality of an orbiting interferometer for space-time experiments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grassi Strini, A.M.; Strini, G.; Tagliaferri, G.

    1979-01-01

    It is suggested that by putting a Michelson interferometer aboard a spacecraft orbiting around the earth, very substantial progress could be made in space-time experiments. It is estimated that in measurements of e.g. some anisotropy of the light velocity, a spacecraft-borne interferometer of quite small size (0.1 m arm-length) would reach a sensitivity greater by a factor of approximately 10 8 than the best achievements to date of ground-based devices. (author)

  13. Accelerated simulation of near-Earth-orbit polymer degradation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laue, Eric

    1992-01-01

    There is a need to simulate the near-Earth-orbit environmental conditions, and it is useful to be able to monitor the changes in physical properties of spacecraft materials. Two different methods for simulating the vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV) and soft X-ray near-Earth-orbit flux are presented. Also, methods for monitoring the changes in optical ultraviolet transmission and mass loss are presented. The results of exposures to VUV photons and charged particles on these materials are discussed.

  14. Results of Large-Scale Spacecraft Flammability Tests

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferkul, Paul; Olson, Sandra; Urban, David L.; Ruff, Gary A.; Easton, John; T'ien, James S.; Liao, Ta-Ting T.; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos; Torero, Jose L.; Eigenbrand, Christian; hide

    2017-01-01

    For the first time, a large-scale fire was intentionally set inside a spacecraft while in orbit. Testing in low gravity aboard spacecraft had been limited to samples of modest size: for thin fuels the longest samples burned were around 15 cm in length and thick fuel samples have been even smaller. This is despite the fact that fire is a catastrophic hazard for spaceflight and the spread and growth of a fire, combined with its interactions with the vehicle cannot be expected to scale linearly. While every type of occupied structure on earth has been the subject of full scale fire testing, this had never been attempted in space owing to the complexity, cost, risk and absence of a safe location. Thus, there is a gap in knowledge of fire behavior in spacecraft. The recent utilization of large, unmanned, resupply craft has provided the needed capability: a habitable but unoccupied spacecraft in low earth orbit. One such vehicle was used to study the flame spread over a 94 x 40.6 cm thin charring solid (fiberglasscotton fabric). The sample was an order of magnitude larger than anything studied to date in microgravity and was of sufficient scale that it consumed 1.5 of the available oxygen. The experiment which is called Saffire consisted of two tests, forward or concurrent flame spread (with the direction of flow) and opposed flame spread (against the direction of flow). The average forced air speed was 20 cms. For the concurrent flame spread test, the flame size remained constrained after the ignition transient, which is not the case in 1-g. These results were qualitatively different from those on earth where an upward-spreading flame on a sample of this size accelerates and grows. In addition, a curious effect of the chamber size is noted. Compared to previous microgravity work in smaller tunnels, the flame in the larger tunnel spread more slowly, even for a wider sample. This is attributed to the effect of flow acceleration in the smaller tunnels as a result of hot

  15. Lidar Orbital Angular Momentum Sensor

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The recognition in recent decades that electromagnetic fields have angular momentum (AM) in the form of not only polarization (or spin AM) but also orbital (OAM) has...

  16. Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) Mission: Science from Geostationary Orbit on-board a Commercial Communications Satellite

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eastes, R.; Deaver, T.; Krywonos, A.; Lankton, M. R.; McClintock, W. E.; Pang, R.

    2011-12-01

    Geostationary orbits are ideal for many science investigations of the Earth system on global scales. These orbits allow continuous observations of the same geographic region, enabling spatial and temporal changes to be distinguished and eliminating the ambiguity inherent to observations from low Earth orbit (LEO). Just as observations from geostationary orbit have revolutionized our understanding of changes in the troposphere, they will dramatically improve our understanding of the space environment at higher altitudes. However, geostationary orbits are infrequently used for science missions because of high costs. Geostationary satellites are large, typically weighing tons. Consequently, devoting an entire satellite to a science mission requires a large financial commitment, both for the spacecraft itself and for sufficient science instrumentation to justify a dedicated spacecraft. Furthermore, the small number of geostationary satellites produced for scientific missions increases the costs of each satellite. For these reasons, it is attractive to consider flying scientific instruments on satellites operated by commercial companies, some of whom have fleets of ~40 satellites. However, scientists' lack of understanding of the capabilities of commercial spacecraft as well as commercial companies' concerns about risks to their primary mission have impeded the cooperation necessary for the shared use of a spacecraft. Working with a commercial partner, the GOLD mission has successfully overcome these issues. Our experience indicates that there are numerous benefits to flying on commercial communications satellites (e.g., it is possible to downlink large amounts of data) and the costs are low if the experimental requirements adequately match the capabilities and available resources of the host spacecraft. Consequently, affordable access to geostationary orbit aboard a communications satellite now appears possible for science payloads.

  17. Ellipsometry with randomly varying polarization states

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Liu, F.; Lee, C. J.; Chen, J. Q.; E. Louis,; van der Slot, P. J. M.; Boller, K. J.; F. Bijkerk,

    2012-01-01

    We show that, under the right conditions, one can make highly accurate polarization-based measurements without knowing the absolute polarization state of the probing light field. It is shown that light, passed through a randomly varying birefringent material has a well-defined orbit on the Poincar

  18. Comparison of ERBS orbit determination accuracy using batch least-squares and sequential methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oza, D. H.; Jones, T. L.; Fabien, S. M.; Mistretta, G. D.; Hart, R. C.; Doll, C. E.

    1991-10-01

    The Flight Dynamics Div. (FDD) at NASA-Goddard commissioned a study to develop the Real Time Orbit Determination/Enhanced (RTOD/E) system as a prototype system for sequential orbit determination of spacecraft on a DOS based personal computer (PC). An overview is presented of RTOD/E capabilities and the results are presented of a study to compare the orbit determination accuracy for a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) user spacecraft obtained using RTOS/E on a PC with the accuracy of an established batch least squares system, the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS), operating on a mainframe computer. RTOD/E was used to perform sequential orbit determination for the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS), and the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS) was used to perform the batch least squares orbit determination. The estimated ERBS ephemerides were obtained for the Aug. 16 to 22, 1989, timeframe, during which intensive TDRSS tracking data for ERBS were available. Independent assessments were made to examine the consistencies of results obtained by the batch and sequential methods. Comparisons were made between the forward filtered RTOD/E orbit solutions and definitive GTDS orbit solutions for ERBS; the solution differences were less than 40 meters after the filter had reached steady state.

  19. Comparison of ERBS orbit determination accuracy using batch least-squares and sequential methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oza, D. H.; Jones, T. L.; Fabien, S. M.; Mistretta, G. D.; Hart, R. C.; Doll, C. E.

    1991-01-01

    The Flight Dynamics Div. (FDD) at NASA-Goddard commissioned a study to develop the Real Time Orbit Determination/Enhanced (RTOD/E) system as a prototype system for sequential orbit determination of spacecraft on a DOS based personal computer (PC). An overview is presented of RTOD/E capabilities and the results are presented of a study to compare the orbit determination accuracy for a Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) user spacecraft obtained using RTOS/E on a PC with the accuracy of an established batch least squares system, the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS), operating on a mainframe computer. RTOD/E was used to perform sequential orbit determination for the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS), and the Goddard Trajectory Determination System (GTDS) was used to perform the batch least squares orbit determination. The estimated ERBS ephemerides were obtained for the Aug. 16 to 22, 1989, timeframe, during which intensive TDRSS tracking data for ERBS were available. Independent assessments were made to examine the consistencies of results obtained by the batch and sequential methods. Comparisons were made between the forward filtered RTOD/E orbit solutions and definitive GTDS orbit solutions for ERBS; the solution differences were less than 40 meters after the filter had reached steady state.

  20. Increased electric sail thrust through removal of trapped shielding electrons by orbit chaotisation due to spacecraft body

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. Janhunen

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available An electric solar wind sail is a recently introduced propellantless space propulsion method whose technical development has also started. The electric sail consists of a set of long, thin, centrifugally stretched and conducting tethers which are charged positively and kept in a high positive potential of order 20 kV by an onboard electron gun. The positively charged tethers deflect solar wind protons, thus tapping momentum from the solar wind stream and producing thrust. The amount of obtained propulsive thrust depends on how many electrons are trapped by the potential structures of the tethers, because the trapped electrons tend to shield the charged tether and reduce its effect on the solar wind. Here we present physical arguments and test particle calculations indicating that in a realistic three-dimensional electric sail spacecraft there exist a natural mechanism which tends to remove the trapped electrons by chaotising their orbits and causing them to eventually collide with the conducting tethers. We present calculations which indicate that if these mechanisms were able to remove trapped electrons nearly completely, the electric sail performance could be about five times higher than previously estimated, about 500 nN/m, corresponding to 1 N thrust for a baseline construction with 2000 km total tether length.

  1. Video-Game-Like Engine for Depicting Spacecraft Trajectories

    Science.gov (United States)

    Upchurch, Paul R.

    2009-01-01

    GoView is a video-game-like software engine, written in the C and C++ computing languages, that enables real-time, three-dimensional (3D)-appearing visual representation of spacecraft and trajectories (1) from any perspective; (2) at any spatial scale from spacecraft to Solar-system dimensions; (3) in user-selectable time scales; (4) in the past, present, and/or future; (5) with varying speeds; and (6) forward or backward in time. GoView constructs an interactive 3D world by use of spacecraft-mission data from pre-existing engineering software tools. GoView can also be used to produce distributable application programs for depicting NASA orbital missions on personal computers running the Windows XP, Mac OsX, and Linux operating systems. GoView enables seamless rendering of Cartesian coordinate spaces with programmable graphics hardware, whereas prior programs for depicting spacecraft trajectories variously require non-Cartesian coordinates and/or are not compatible with programmable hardware. GoView incorporates an algorithm for nonlinear interpolation between arbitrary reference frames, whereas the prior programs are restricted to special classes of inertial and non-inertial reference frames. Finally, whereas the prior programs present complex user interfaces requiring hours of training, the GoView interface provides guidance, enabling use without any training.

  2. Towards the integration of orbital space use in Life Cycle Impact Assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maury, Thibaut; Loubet, Philippe; Ouziel, Jonathan; Saint-Amand, Maud; Dariol, Ludovic; Sonnemann, Guido

    2017-10-01

    A rising sustainability concern is occurring in the space sector: 29,000 human-made objects, larger than 10cm are orbiting the Earth but only 6% are operational spacecrafts. Today, space debris is today a significant and constant danger to all space missions. Consequently, it becomes compelled to design new space missions considering End-of-Life requirements in order to ensure the sustainable use of space orbits. Furthermore, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has been identified by the European Space Agency as an adequate tool to measure the environmental impact of spacecraft missions. Hence, our challenge is to integrate orbital space use into Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) to broaden the scope of LCA for space systems. The generation of debris in the near-Earth's orbital regions leads to a decrease in volume availability. The Area-of-Protection (AoP) 'resources' seems to be the most relevant reflection of this depletion. To address orbital space use in a comprehensive way, we propose a first attempt at establishing an impact pathway linking outer space use to resources. This framework will be the basis for defining new indicator(s) related to orbital space use. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. MIDN: A spacecraft Micro-dosimeter mission

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pisacane, V. L.; Ziegler, J. F.; Nelson, M. E.; Caylor, M.; Flake, D.; Heyen, L.; Youngborg, E.; Rosenfeld, A. B.; Cucinotta, F.; Zaider, M.; Dicello, J. F.

    2006-01-01

    MIDN (Micro-dosimetry instrument) is a payload on the MidSTAR-I spacecraft (Midshipman Space Technology Applications Research) under development at the United States Naval Academy. MIDN is a solid-state system being designed and constructed to measure Micro-dosimetric spectra to determine radiation quality factors for space environments. Radiation is a critical threat to the health of astronauts and to the success of missions in low-Earth orbit and space exploration. The system will consist of three separate sensors, one external to the spacecraft, one internal and one embedded in polyethylene. Design goals are mass <3 kg and power <2 W. The MidSTAR-I mission in 2006 will provide an opportunity to evaluate a preliminary version of this system. Its low power and mass makes it useful for the International Space Station and manned and unmanned interplanetary missions as a real-time system to assess and alert astronauts to enhanced radiation environments. (authors)

  4. Direct measurement of discrete valley and orbital quantum numbers in bilayer graphene.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hunt, B M; Li, J I A; Zibrov, A A; Wang, L; Taniguchi, T; Watanabe, K; Hone, J; Dean, C R; Zaletel, M; Ashoori, R C; Young, A F

    2017-10-16

    The high magnetic field electronic structure of bilayer graphene is enhanced by the spin, valley isospin, and an accidental orbital degeneracy, leading to a complex phase diagram of broken symmetry states. Here, we present a technique for measuring the layer-resolved charge density, from which we directly determine the valley and orbital polarization within the zero energy Landau level. Layer polarization evolves in discrete steps across 32 electric field-tuned phase transitions between states of different valley, spin, and orbital order, including previously unobserved orbitally polarized states stabilized by skew interlayer hopping. We fit our data to a model that captures both single-particle and interaction-induced anisotropies, providing a complete picture of this correlated electron system. The resulting roadmap to symmetry breaking paves the way for deterministic engineering of fractional quantum Hall states, while our layer-resolved technique is readily extendable to other two-dimensional materials where layer polarization maps to the valley or spin quantum numbers.The phase diagram of bilayer graphene at high magnetic fields has been an outstanding question, with orders possibly between multiple internal quantum degrees of freedom. Here, Hunt et al. report the measurement of the valley and orbital order, allowing them to directly reconstruct the phase diagram.

  5. Polarization transfer from polarized nuclear spin to μ- spin in muonic atom

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kuno, Yoshitaka; Nagamine, Kanetada; Yamazaki, Toshimitsu.

    1987-02-01

    A theoretical study of polarization transfer from an initially-polarized nuclear spin to a μ - spin in a muonic atom is given. The switching of the hyperfine interaction at excited muonic states as well as at the ground 1s state is taken into account. The upper state of hyperfine doublet at the muonic 1s state is considered to proceed down to the lower state. It is found that as the hyperfine interaction becomes effective at higher excited muonic orbitals, a less extent of polarization is transferred from the nuclear spin to the μ - spin. The theoretical values obtained are compared with the recent experiment of μ - repolarization in a polarized 209 Bi target. (author)

  6. Sentinel-5: the new generation European operational atmospheric chemistry mission in polar orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pérez Albiñana, Abelardo; Erdmann, Matthias; Wright, Norrie; Martin, Didier; Melf, Markus; Bartsch, Peter; Seefelder, Wolfgang

    2017-08-01

    Sentinel-5 is an Earth Observation instrument to be flown on the Metop Second Generation (Metop-SG) satellites with the fundamental objective of monitoring atmospheric composition from polar orbit. The Sentinel-5 instrument consists of five spectrometers to measure the solar spectral radiance backscattered by the earth atmosphere in five bands within the UV (270nm) to SWIR (2385nm) spectral range. Data provided by Sentinel-5 will allow obtaining the distribution of important atmospheric constituents such as ozone, on a global daily basis and at a finer spatial resolution than its precursor instruments on the first generation of Metop satellites. The launch of the first Metop-SG satellite is foreseen for 2021. The Sentinel-5 instrument is being developed by Airbus DS under contract to the European Space Agency. The Sentinel-5 mission is part of the Space Component of the Copernicus programme, a joint initiative by ESA, EUMETSAT and the European Commission. The Preliminary Design Review (PDR) for the Sentinel-5 development was successfully completed in 2015. This paper provides a description of the Sentinel-5 instrument design and data calibration.

  7. Polarization measurement and vertical aperture optimization for obtaining circularly polarized bend-magnet radiation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kortright, J.B.; Rice, M.; Hussain, Z. [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab., CA (United States)] [and others

    1997-04-01

    Growing interest in utilizing circular polarization prompted the design of bend-magnet beamline 9.3.2 at the Advanced Light Source, covering the 30-1500 eV spectral region, to include vertical aperturing capabilities for optimizing the collection of circular polarization above and below the orbit plane. After commissioning and early use of the beamline, a multilayer polarimeter was used to characterize the polarization state of the beam as a function of vertical aperture position. This report partially summarizes the polarimetry measurements and compares results with theoretical calculations intended to simulate experimental conditions.

  8. Initial On-Orbit Engineering Results from the O/OREOS Nanosatellite

    OpenAIRE

    Kitts, Christopher; Rasay, Mike; Bica, Laura; Mas, Ignacio; Neumann, Michael; Young, Anthony; Minelli, Giovanni; Ricco, Antonio; Stackpole, Eric; Agasid, Elwood; Beasley, Christopher; Friedericks, Charlie; Squires, David; Ehrenfreund, Pascale; Nicholson, Wayne

    2011-01-01

    The Organism/Organics Exposure to Orbital Stresses (O/OREOS) nanosatellite mission successfully launched on November 19, 2010 from Kodiak, AK aboard a Minotaur IV launch vehicle. The principal goals for this 5.5 kg spacecraft include conducting astrobiologically-relevant experiments in two separate payloads within the 3U cubesat form factor and demonstrating in-situ measurement technology in a small satellite. Developed by the Small Spacecraft Payloads and Technology Team at NASA Ames Researc...

  9. The Eccentric Behavior of Nearly Frozen Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sweetser, Theodore H.; Vincent, Mark A.

    2013-01-01

    Frozen orbits are orbits which have only short-period changes in their mean eccentricity and argument of periapse, so that they basically keep a fixed orientation within their plane of motion. Nearly frozen orbits are those whose eccentricity and argument of periapse have values close to those of a frozen orbit. We call them "nearly" frozen because their eccentricity vector (a vector whose polar coordinates are eccentricity and argument of periapse) will stay within a bounded distance from the frozen orbit eccentricity vector, circulating around it over time. For highly inclined orbits around the Earth, this distance is effectively constant over time. Furthermore, frozen orbit eccentricity values are low enough that these orbits are essentially eccentric (i.e., off center) circles, so that nearly frozen orbits around Earth are bounded above and below by frozen orbits.

  10. The Gas-Surface Interaction of a Human-Occupied Spacecraft with a Near-Earth Object

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farrell, W. M.; Hurley, D. M.; Poston, M. J.; Zimmerman, M. I.; Orlando, T. M.; Hibbitts, C. A.; Killen, R. M.

    2016-01-01

    NASA's asteroid redirect mission (ARM) will feature an encounter of the human-occupied Orion spacecraft with a portion of a near- Earth asteroid (NEA) previously placed in orbit about the Moon by a capture spacecraft. Applying a shuttle analog, we suggest that the Orion spacecraft should have a dominant local water exosphere, and that molecules from this exosphere can adsorb onto the NEA. The amount of adsorbed water is a function of the defect content of the NEA surface, with retention of shuttle-like water levels on the asteroid at 10(exp 15) H2O's/m2 for space weathered regolith at T approximately 300 K.

  11. Trajectories of inner and outer heliospheric spacecraft: Predicted through 1999

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parthasarathy, R.; King, Joseph H.

    1991-01-01

    Information is presented in tabular and graphical form on the trajectories of the international fleet of spacecraft that will be probing the far reaches of the heliosphere during the 1990s. In particular, the following spacecraft are addressed: Pioneer 10 and 11, Pioneer Venus Orbiter (PVO), Voyager 1 and 2, Galileo, Ulysses, Suisei, Sakigake, Giotto, International Cometary Explorer (ICE), and Interplanetary Monitoring Platform 8 (IMP 8). Yearly resolution listing of position information in inertial space are given for Pioneer and Voyager spacecraft from the times of their launches in the 1970s. One series of plots shows the radial distances, latitudes, and longitudes of the Pioneers and Voyagers. The solar ecliptic inertial coordinate system is used. In this system, the Z axis is normal to the ecliptic plane and the X axis is towards the first point of Aries (from Sun to Earth on the vernal equinox).

  12. Valley polarization in magnetically doped single-layer transition-metal dichalcogenides

    KAUST Repository

    Cheng, Yingchun

    2014-04-28

    We demonstrate that valley polarization can be induced and controlled in semiconducting single-layer transition-metal dichalcogenides by magnetic doping, which is important for spintronics, valleytronics, and photonics devices. As an example, we investigate Mn-doped MoS2 by first-principles calculations. We study how the valley polarization depends on the strength of the spin orbit coupling and the exchange interaction and discuss how it can be controlled by magnetic doping. Valley polarization by magnetic doping is also expected for other honeycomb materials with strong spin orbit coupling and the absence of inversion symmetry.

  13. Omni-directional Particle Detector (ODPD) on Tiangong-2 Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guohong, S.; Zhang, S.; Yang, X.; Wang, C.

    2017-12-01

    Tiangong-2 spacecraft is the second space laboratory independently developed by china after Tiangong-1, which was launched on 15 September 2016. It is also the first real space laboratory in china, which will be used to further validate the space rendezvous and docking technology and to carry out a series of space tests. The spacecraft's orbit is 350km height and 42° inclination. The omni-directional particle detector (ODPD) on Tiangong-2 spacecraft is a new instrument developed by China. Its goal is the anisotropy and energy spectra of space particles on manned space flight orbit. The ODPD measures the energy spectra and pitch angle distributions of high energy electrons and protons. It consists of one electron spectrum telescope, one proton spectrum telescope and sixteen directional flux telescopes. The ODPD is designed to measure the protons spectrum from 2.5MeV to 150MeV, electrons spectrum from 0.2MeV to 1.5MeV, the flux of electrons energy >200keV and protons energy>1.5MeV on 2∏ space, also the ODPD has a small sensor to measure the LET spectrum from 1-100MeV/cm2sr. The primary advantage can give the particle's pitch angle distributions at any time because of the sixteen flux telescopes arrange form 0 to 180 degree. This is the first paper dealing with ODPD data, so we firstly spend some time describing the instrument, its theory of operation and its calibration. Then we give the preliminary detecting results.

  14. Assessing Sahelian vegetation and stress from seasonal time series of polar orbiting and geostationary satellite imagery

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olsen, Jørgen Lundegaard

    that short term variations in anomalies from seasonally detrended time series of indices could carry information on vegetation stress was examined and confirmed. However, it was not found sufficiently robust on pixel level to be implemented for monitoring vegetation water stress on a per-pixel basis...... provide good sensitivity to canopy water content, which can make vegetation stress detection possible. Furthermore, the high frequency observations in the optical spectrum now available from geostationary instruments have the potential for detection of changes in vegetation related surface properties...... on short timescales, which are challenging from polar orbiting instruments. Geostationary NDVI and the NIR and SWIR based Shortwave Infrared Water Stress Index (SIWSI) indices are compared with extensive field data from the Dahra site, supplemented by data from the Agoufou and Demokeya sites. The indices...

  15. Polar Stratigraphy

    Science.gov (United States)

    1999-01-01

    These three images were taken on three different orbits over the north polar cap in April 1999. Each shows a different part of the same ice-free trough. The left and right images are separated by a distance of more than 100 kilometers (62 miles). Note the similar layers in each image.

  16. Review of current activities to model and measure the orbital debris environment in low-earth orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reynolds, R. C.

    A very active orbital debris program is currently being pursued at the NASA/Johnson Space Center (JSC), with projects designed to better define the current environment, to project future environments, to model the processes contributing to or constraining the growth of debris in the environment, and to gather supporting data needed to improve the understanding of the orbital debris problem and the hazard it presents to spacecraft. This paper is a review of the activity being conducted at JSC, by NASA, Lockheed Engineering and Sciences Company, and other support contractors, and presents a review of current activity, results of current research, and a discussion of directions for future development.

  17. Application of circular polarized synchrotron radiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Miyahara, Tsuneaki; Kawata, Hiroshi

    1988-03-01

    The idea of using the polarizing property of light for physical experiment by controlling it variously has been known from old time, and the Faraday effect and the research by polarizing microscopy are its examples. The light emitted from the electron orbit of an accelerator has the different polarizing characteristics from those of the light of a laboratory light source, and as far as observing it within the electron orbit plane, it becomes linearly polarized light. By utilizing this property well, research is carried out at present in synchrotron experimental facilities. Recently, the technology related to the insert type light cources using permanent magnets has advanced remarkably, and circular polarized light has become to be producible. If the light like this can be obtained with the energy not only in far ultraviolet region but also to x-ray region at high luminance, new possibility should open. At the stage that the design of an insert type light source was finished, and its manufacture was started, the research on the method of evaluating the degree of circular polarization and the research on the utilization of circular polarized synchrotron radiation are earnestly carried out. In this report, the results of researches presented at the study meeting are summarized. Moreover, the design and manufacture of the beam lines for exclusive use will be carried out. (Kako, I.)

  18. A Study of Single- and Double-Averaged Second-Order Models to Evaluate Third-Body Perturbation Considering Elliptic Orbits for the Perturbing Body

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. C. Domingos

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The equations for the variations of the Keplerian elements of the orbit of a spacecraft perturbed by a third body are developed using a single average over the motion of the spacecraft, considering an elliptic orbit for the disturbing body. A comparison is made between this approach and the more used double averaged technique, as well as with the full elliptic restricted three-body problem. The disturbing function is expanded in Legendre polynomials up to the second order in both cases. The equations of motion are obtained from the planetary equations, and several numerical simulations are made to show the evolution of the orbit of the spacecraft. Some characteristics known from the circular perturbing body are studied: circular, elliptic equatorial, and frozen orbits. Different initial eccentricities for the perturbed body are considered, since the effect of this variable is one of the goals of the present study. The results show the impact of this parameter as well as the differences between both models compared to the full elliptic restricted three-body problem. Regions below, near, and above the critical angle of the third-body perturbation are considered, as well as different altitudes for the orbit of the spacecraft.

  19. Design of relative trajectories for in orbit proximity operations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Opromolla, Roberto; Fasano, Giancarmine; Rufino, Giancarlo; Grassi, Michele

    2018-04-01

    This paper presents an innovative approach to design relative trajectories suitable for close-proximity operations in orbit, by assigning high-level constraints regarding their stability, shape and orientation. Specifically, this work is relevant to space mission scenarios, e.g. formation flying, on-orbit servicing, and active debris removal, which involve either the presence of two spacecraft carrying out coordinated maneuvers, or a servicing/recovery spacecraft (chaser) performing monitoring, rendezvous and docking with respect to another space object (target). In the above-mentioned scenarios, an important aspect is the capability of reducing collision risks and of providing robust and accurate relative navigation solutions. To this aim, the proposed approach exploits a relative motion model relevant to two-satellite formations, and developed in mean orbit parameters, which takes the perturbation effect due to secular Earth oblateness, as well as the motion of the target along a small-eccentricity orbit, into account. This model is used to design trajectories which ensure safe relative motion, to minimize collision risks and relax control requirements, providing at the same time favorable conditions, in terms of target-chaser relative observation geometry for pose determination and relative navigation with passive or active electro-optical sensors on board the chaser. Specifically, three design strategies are proposed in the context of a space target monitoring scenario, considering as design cases both operational spacecraft and debris, characterized by highly variable shape, size and absolute rotational dynamics. The effectiveness of the proposed design approach in providing favorable observation conditions for target-chaser relative pose estimation is demonstrated within a simulation environment which reproduces the designed target-chaser relative trajectory, the operation of an active LIDAR installed on board the chaser, and pose estimation algorithms.

  20. SEL2 servicing: increased science return via on-orbit propellant replenishment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reed, Benjamin B.; DeWeese, Keith; Kienlen, Michael; Aranyos, Thomas; Pellegrino, Joseph; Bacon, Charles; Qureshi, Atif

    2016-07-01

    Spacecraft designers are driving observatories to the distant Sun-Earth Lagrange Point 2 (SEL2) to meet ever-increasing science requirements. The mass fraction dedicated to propellant for these observatories to reach and operate at SEL2 will be allocated with the upmost care, as it comes at the expense of optics and instrument masses. As such, these observatories could benefit from on-orbit refueling, allowing greater dry-to-wet mass ratio at launch and/or longer mission life. NASA is developing technologies, capabilities and integrated mission designs for multiple servicing applications in low Earth orbit (LEO), geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) and cisluner locations. Restore-L, a mission officially in formulation, will launch a free-flying robotic servicer to refuel a government-owned satellite in LEO by mid 2020. This paper will detail the results of a point design mission study to extend Restore-L servicing technologies from LEO to SEL2. This SEL2 mission would launch an autonomous, robotic servicer spacecraft equipped to extend the life of two space assets through refueling. Two space platforms were chosen to 1) drive the requirements for achieving SEL2 orbit and rendezvous with a spacecraft, and 2) to drive the requirements to translate within SEL2 to conduct a follow-on servicing mission. Two fuels, xenon and hydrazine, were selected to assess a multiple delivery system. This paper will address key mission drivers, such as servicer autonomy (necessitated due to communications latency at L2). Also discussed will be the value of adding cooperative servicing elements to the client observatories to reduce mission risk.

  1. Interactive Spacecraft Trajectory Design Strategies Featuring Poincare Map Topology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schlei, Wayne R.

    Space exploration efforts are shifting towards inexpensive and more agile vehicles. Versatility regarding spacecraft trajectories refers to the agility to correct deviations from an intended path or even the ability to adapt the future path to a new destination--all with limited spaceflight resources (i.e., small DeltaV budgets). Trajectory design methods for such nimble vehicles incorporate equally versatile procedures that allow for rapid and interactive decision making while attempting to reduce Delta V budgets, leading to a versatile trajectory design platform. A versatile design paradigm requires the exploitation of Poincare map topology , or the interconnected web of dynamical structures, existing within the chaotic dynamics of multi-body gravitational models to outline low-Delta V transfer options residing nearby to a current path. This investigation details an autonomous procedure to extract the periodic orbits (topology nodes) and correlated asymptotic flow structures (or the invariant manifolds representing topology links). The autonomous process summarized in this investigation (termed PMATE) overcomes discontinuities on the Poincare section that arise in the applied multi-body model (the planar circular restricted three-body problem) and detects a wide variety of novel periodic orbits. New interactive capabilities deliver a visual analytics foundation for versatile spaceflight design, especially for initial guess generation and manipulation. Such interactive strategies include the selection of states and arcs from Poincare section visualizations and the capabilities to draw and drag trajectories to remove dependency on initial state input. Furthermore, immersive selection is expanded to cull invariant manifold structures, yielding low-DeltaV or even DeltaV-free transfers between periodic orbits. The application of interactive design strategies featuring a dense extraction of Poincare map topology is demonstrated for agile spaceflight with a simple

  2. Radioisotopic heater units warm an interplanetary spacecraft

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Franco-Ferreira, E.A.

    1998-01-01

    The Cassini orbiter and Huygens probe, which were successfully launched on October 15, 1997, constitute NASA's last grand-scale interplanetary mission of this century. The mission, which consists of a four-year, close-up study of Saturn and its moons, begins in July 2004 with Cassini's 60 orbits of Saturn and about 33 fly-bys of the large moon Titan. The Huygens probe will descend and land on Titan. Investigations will include Saturn's atmosphere, its rings and its magnetosphere. The atmosphere and surface of Titan and other icy moons also will be characterized. Because of the great distance of Saturn from the sun, some of the instruments and equipment on both the orbiter and the probe require external heaters to maintain their temperature within normal operating ranges. These requirements are met by Light Weight Radioisotope Heater Units (LWRHUs) designed, fabricated and safety tested at Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico. An improved gas tungsten arc welding procedure lowered costs and decreased processing time for heat units for the Cassini spacecraft

  3. Protection of surface assets on Mars from wind blown jettisoned spacecraft components

    Science.gov (United States)

    Paton, Mark

    2017-07-01

    Jettisoned Entry, Descent and Landing System (EDLS) hardware from landing spacecraft have been observed by orbiting spacecraft, strewn over the Martian surface. Future Mars missions that land spacecraft close to prelanded assets will have to use a landing architecture that somehow minimises the possibility of impacts from these jettisoned EDLS components. Computer modelling is used here to investigate the influence of wind speed and direction on the distribution of EDLS components on the surface. Typical wind speeds encountered in the Martian Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) were found to be of sufficient strength to blow items having a low ballistic coefficient, i.e. Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerators (HIADs) or parachutes, onto prelanded assets even when the lander itself touches down several kilometres away. Employing meteorological measurements and careful characterisation of the Martian PBL, e.g. appropriate wind speed probability density functions, may then benefit future spacecraft landings, increase safety and possibly help reduce the delta v budget for Mars landers that rely on aerodynamic decelerators.

  4. The O/OREOS Mission - Astrobiology in Low Earth Orbit. [Astrobiology in Low Earth Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ehrenfreund, P.; Ricco, A. J.; Squires, D.; Kitts, C.; Agasid, E.; Bramall, N.; Bryson, K.; Chittenden, J.; Conley, C.; Cook, A.; hide

    2014-01-01

    The O/OREOS (Organism/Organic Exposure to Orbital Stresses) nanosatellite is the first science demonstration spacecraft and flight mission of the NASA Astrobiology Small- Payloads Program (ASP). O/OREOS was launched successfully on November 19, 2010, to a high-inclination (72 deg), 650-km Earth orbit aboard a US Air Force Minotaur IV rocket from Kodiak, Alaska. O/OREOS consists of 3 conjoined cubesat (each 1000 cu cm) modules: (i) a control bus; (ii) the Space Environment Survivability of Living Organisms (SESLO) experiment; and (iii) the Space Environment Viability of Organics (SEVO) experiment. Among the innovative aspects of the O/OREOS mission are a real-time analysis of the photostability of organics and biomarkers and the collection of data on the survival and metabolic activity for microorganisms at 3 times during the 6-month mission. We report on the spacecraft characteristics, payload capabilities, and present operational phase and flight data from the O/OREOS mission. The science and technology rationale of O/OREOS supports NASA0s scientific exploration program by investigating the local space environment as well as space biology relevant to Moon and Mars missions. It also serves as a precursor for experiments on small satellites, the International Space Station (ISS), future free-flyers and lunar surface exposure facilities.

  5. Space-to-Space Power Beaming Enabling High Performance Rapid Geocentric Orbit Transfer

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dankanich, John W.; Vassallo, Corinne; Tadge, Megan

    2015-01-01

    The use of electric propulsion is more prevalent than ever, with industry pursuing all electric orbit transfers. Electric propulsion provides high mass utilization through efficient propellant transfer. However, the transfer times become detrimental as the delta V transitions from near-impulsive to low-thrust. Increasing power and therefore thrust has diminishing returns as the increasing mass of the power system limits the potential acceleration of the spacecraft. By using space-to-space power beaming, the power system can be decoupled from the spacecraft and allow significantly higher spacecraft alpha (W/kg) and therefore enable significantly higher accelerations while maintaining high performance. This project assesses the efficacy of space-to-space power beaming to enable rapid orbit transfer while maintaining high mass utilization. Concept assessment requires integrated techniques for low-thrust orbit transfer steering laws, efficient large-scale rectenna systems, and satellite constellation configuration optimization. This project includes the development of an integrated tool with implementation of IPOPT, Q-Law, and power-beaming models. The results highlight the viability of the concept, limits and paths to infusion, and comparison to state-of-the-art capabilities. The results indicate the viability of power beaming for what may be the only approach for achieving the desired transit times with high specific impulse.

  6. Gravity and Nonconservative Force Model Tuning for the GEOSAT Follow-On Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemoine, Frank G.; Zelensky, Nikita P.; Rowlands, David D.; Luthcke, Scott B.; Chinn, Douglas S.; Marr, Gregory C.; Smith, David E. (Technical Monitor)

    2000-01-01

    The US Navy's GEOSAT Follow-On spacecraft was launched on February 10, 1998 and the primary objective of the mission was to map the oceans using a radar altimeter. Three radar altimeter calibration campaigns have been conducted in 1999 and 2000. The spacecraft is tracked by satellite laser ranging (SLR) and Doppler beacons and a limited amount of data have been obtained from the Global Positioning Receiver (GPS) on board the satellite. Even with EGM96, the predicted radial orbit error due to gravity field mismodelling (to 70x70) remains high at 2.61 cm (compared to 0.88 cm for TOPEX). We report on the preliminary gravity model tuning for GFO using SLR, and altimeter crossover data. Preliminary solutions using SLR and GFO/GFO crossover data from CalVal campaigns I and II in June-August 1999, and January-February 2000 have reduced the predicted radial orbit error to 1.9 cm and further reduction will be possible when additional data are added to the solutions. The gravity model tuning has improved principally the low order m-daily terms and has reduced significantly the geographically correlated error present in this satellite orbit. In addition to gravity field mismodelling, the largest contributor to the orbit error is the non-conservative force mismodelling. We report on further nonconservative force model tuning results using available data from over one cycle in beta prime.

  7. Mars orbiter redirected in bid to find Beagle

    CERN Multimedia

    2003-01-01

    "Mission controllers in Darmstadt, Germany, have successfully redirected Europe's Mars Express orbiter into a polar orbit, putting it on course for a last-ditch attempt to contact Beagle 2, the lander that has been missing since Christmas day when it should have touched down on the red planet" (1/2 page).

  8. Characteristics of anomalous Hall effect in spin-polarized two-dimensional electron gases in the presence of both intrinsic, extrinsic, and external electric-field induced spin—orbit couplings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu Song; Yan Yu-Zhen; Hu Liang-Bin

    2012-01-01

    The various competing contributions to the anomalous Hall effect in spin-polarized two-dimensional electron gases in the presence of both intrinsic, extrinsic and external electric-field induced spin—orbit coupling were investigated theoretically. Based on a unified semiclassical theoretical approach, it is shown that the total anomalous Hall conductivity can be expressed as the sum of three distinct contributions in the presence of these competing spin—orbit interactions, namely an intrinsic contribution determined by the Berry curvature in the momentum space, an extrinsic contribution determined by the modified Bloch band group velocity and an extrinsic contribution determined by spin—orbit-dependent impurity scattering. The characteristics of these competing contributions are discussed in detail in the paper. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)

  9. Optimizing the degree of polarization in PETRA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bremer, H.D.; Kewisch, J.; Lewin, H.C.; Mais, H.; Rossmanith, R.; Schmidt, R.; Barber, D.P.

    1982-05-01

    A method is described for compensating the depolarizing effects caused by vertical orbit distortions. The technique has been successfully applied during measurements of beam polarization at PETRA and reproducible polarizations of 70 to 80% have been obtained both in single beam and colliding beam operation. (orig.)

  10. Post-launch performance evaluation of the OMPS Nadir Mapper and Nadir Profiler

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grotenhuis, Michael G.; Wu, Xiangqian; Flynn, Larry; Beach, Eric; Niu, Jianguo; Yu, Wei

    2014-09-01

    The Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) represents the latest generation of polar-orbiting satellites operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The first in the JPSS series of satellites, the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (NPP) spacecraft was launched in November 2011 to bridge the gap between the current Polar Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) and the future JPSS-1. The Ozone Mapping Profiler Suite (OMPS) is a suite of hyperspectral instruments onboard the Suomi NPP spacecraft designed to continue atmospheric ozone records through both atmospheric profiles and global distribution mapping. OMPS will also be included on the future JPSS payloads. In order to properly extend measurements from previous ozone instruments, including the Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet (SBUV) instrument on POES, proper OMPS calibration is necessary. In this study, the postlaunch performance of the OMPS Nadir Mapper (NM) and Nadir Profiler (NP) are evaluated through their Sensor Data Records (SDRs), which validates their end-to-end calibration. This is achieved through stability monitoring and intercomparison.

  11. PALOMA: A Magnetic CV between Polars and Intermediate Polars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Joshi, Arti; Pandey, J. C.; Singh, K. P.; Agrawal, P. C.

    2016-10-01

    We present analyses of archival X-ray data obtained from the XMM-Newton satellite and optical photometric data obtained from 1 m class telescopes of ARIES, Nainital of a magnetic cataclysmic variable (MCV) Paloma. Two persistent periods at 156 ± 1 minutes and 130 ± 1 minutes are present in the X-ray data, which we interpret as the orbital and spin periods, respectively. These periods are similar to those obtained from the previous as well as new optical photometric observations. The soft-X-ray excess seen in the X-ray spectrum of Paloma and the averaged X-ray spectra are well fitted by two-temperature plasma models with temperatures of {0.10}-0.01+0.02 and {13.0}-0.5+0.5 keV with an Fe Kα line and an absorbing column density of 4.6 × 1022 cm-2. This material partially covers 60 ± 2% of the X-ray source. We also present the orbital and spin-phase-resolved spectroscopy of Paloma in the 0.3{--}10.0 {keV} energy band and find that the X-ray spectral parameters show orbital and spin-phase dependencies. New results obtained from optical and X-ray studies of Paloma indicate that it belongs to a class of a few magnetic CVs that seem to have the characteristics of both the polars and the intermediate polars.

  12. The effects of Dresselhaus and Rashba spin-orbit interactions on the electron tunneling in a non-magnetic heterostructure

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lu Jianduo; Li Jianwen

    2010-01-01

    We theoretically investigate the electron transport properties in a non-magnetic heterostructure with both Dresselhaus and Rashba spin-orbit interactions. The detailed-numerical results show that (1) the large spin polarization can be achieved due to Dresselhaus and Rashba spin-orbit couplings induced splitting of the resonant level, although the magnetic field is zero in such a structure, (2) the Rashba spin-orbit coupling plays a greater role on the spin polarization than the Dresselhaus spin-orbit interaction does, and (3) the transmission probability and the spin polarization both periodically change with the increase of the well width.

  13. Buried CO2 Ice traces in South Polar Layered Deposits of Mars detected by radar sounder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castaldo, L.; Mège, D.; Orosei, R.; Séjourné, A.

    2014-12-01

    SHARAD (SHAllow RADar) is the subsurface sounding radar provided by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) as a facility instrument to NASA's 2005 Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). The Reduced Data Record of SHARAD data covering the area of the South Polar Layered Deposits (SPLD), has been used. The elaboration and interpretation of the data, aimed to estimate electromagnetic properties of surface layers, has been performed in terms of permittivity. The theory of electromagnetic scattering from fractal surfaces, and the estimation of geometric parameters from topographic data by Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) which was one of five instruments on board the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft, has been used. A deep analysis of inversion has been made on all Mars and extended to the South Polar Caps in order to extract the area with a permittivity constant of CO2 ice. Several corrections have been applied to the data, moreover the calibration of the signal requires the determination of a constant that takes into account the power gain due to the radar system and the surface in order to compensate the power losses due to the orbitographic phenomena. The determination of regions with high probability of buried CO2 ice in the first layer of the Martian surface, is obtained extracting the real part of the permittivity constant of the CO2 ice (~2), estimated by other means. The permittivity of CO2ice is extracted from the Global Permittivity Map of Mars using the global standard deviation of itself as following: ɛCO2ice=ɛCO2ice+ Σ (1)where Σ=±std(ɛMapMars)/2Figure 1(a) shows the south polar areas where the values of the permittivity point to the possibility of a CO2 ice layer. Figure 1(b) is the corresponding geologic map. The comparison between the two maps indicates that the area with probable buried CO2 overlaps Hesperian and Amazonian polar units (Hp, Hesperian plains-forming deposits marked by narrow sinuous, anabranching ridges and irregular depressions, and

  14. Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) instrument overview

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robinson, M.S.; Brylow, S.M.; Tschimmel, M.; Humm, D.; Lawrence, S.J.; Thomas, P.C.; Denevi, B.W.; Bowman-Cisneros, E.; Zerr, J.; Ravine, M.A.; Caplinger, M.A.; Ghaemi, F.T.; Schaffner, J.A.; Malin, M.C.; Mahanti, P.; Bartels, A.; Anderson, J.; Tran, T.N.; Eliason, E.M.; McEwen, A.S.; Turtle, E.; Jolliff, B.L.; Hiesinger, H.

    2010-01-01

    The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) Wide Angle Camera (WAC) and Narrow Angle Cameras (NACs) are on the NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). The WAC is a 7-color push-frame camera (100 and 400 m/pixel visible and UV, respectively), while the two NACs are monochrome narrow-angle linescan imagers (0.5 m/pixel). The primary mission of LRO is to obtain measurements of the Moon that will enable future lunar human exploration. The overarching goals of the LROC investigation include landing site identification and certification, mapping of permanently polar shadowed and sunlit regions, meter-scale mapping of polar regions, global multispectral imaging, a global morphology base map, characterization of regolith properties, and determination of current impact hazards.

  15. Orbital Normalization of MESSENGER Gamma-Ray Spectrometer Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rhodes, E. A.; Peplowski, P. N.; Evans, L. G.; Hamara, D. K.; Boynton, W. V.; Solomon, S. C.

    2011-12-01

    The MESSENGER Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS) measures energy spectra of gamma rays emanating from the surface of Mercury. Analysis of these spectra provides elemental abundances of surface material. The MESSENGER mission necessarily provides some data normalization challenges for GRS analysis. So as to keep the spacecraft cool while orbiting the dayside of the planet, the orbits are highly eccentric, with altitudes varying from 200-500 km to ~ 15,000 km. A small fraction of time is spent at the low altitudes where gamma-ray signals are largest, requiring a large number of orbits to yield sufficient counting statistics for elemental analysis. Also, the sunshade must always shield the spacecraft from the Sun, which causes the orientation of the GRS often to be far from nadir-pointing, so the detector efficiency and attenuation of gamma rays from the planet must be known for a wide range of off-nadir orientations. An efficiency/attenuation map for the expected ranges of orientations and energies was constructed in a ground calibration experiment for a limited range of orientations using a nuclear reactor and radioisotope sources, and those results were extended to other orientations by radiation transport computations using as input a computer-aided design model of the spacecraft and its composition. This normalization has allowed abundance determinations of elements K, Th, and U from radioisotopes of these elements in the Mercury regolith during the first quarter of the year-long mission. These results provide constraints on models of Mercury's chemical and thermal evolution. The normalization of gamma-ray spectra for surface elements not having radioisotopes is considerably more complex; these gamma rays come from neutron inelastic-scatter and capture reactions in the regolith, where the neutrons are generated by cosmic ray impact onto the planet. A radiation transport computation was performed to generate the expected count rates in the neutron-generated gamma

  16. Using Solar Radiation Pressure to Control L2 Orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tene, Noam; Richon, Karen; Folta, David

    1998-01-01

    The main perturbations at the Sun-Earth Lagrange points L1 and L2 are from solar radiation pressure (SRP), the Moon and the planets. Traditional approaches to trajectory design for Lagrange-point orbits use maneuvers every few months to correct for these perturbations. The gravitational effects of the Moon and the planets are small and periodic. However, they cannot be neglected because small perturbations in the direction of the unstable eigenvector are enough to cause exponential growth within a few months. The main effect of a constant SRP is to shift the center of the orbit by a small distance. For spacecraft with large sun-shields like the Microwave Anisotropy Probe (MAP) and the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST), the SRP effect is larger than all other perturbations and depends mostly on spacecraft attitude. Small variations in the spacecraft attitude are large enough to excite or control the exponential eigenvector. A closed-loop linear controller based on the SRP variations would eliminate one of the largest errors to the orbit and provide a continuous acceleration for use in controlling other disturbances. It is possible to design reference trajectories that account for the periodic lunar and planetary perturbations and still satisfy mission requirements. When such trajectories are used the acceleration required to control the unstable eigenvector is well within the capabilities of a continuous linear controller. Initial estimates show that by using attitude control it should be possible to minimize and even eliminate thruster maneuvers for station keeping.

  17. Characterization of the Morphometry of Impact Craters Hosting Polar Deposits in Mercury's North Polar Region

    Science.gov (United States)

    Talpe Matthieu; Zuber, Maria T.; Yang, Di; Neumann, Gregory A.; Solomon, Sean C.; Mazarico, Erwan; Vilas, Faith

    2012-01-01

    Earth-based radar images of Mercury show radar-bright material inside impact craters near the planet s poles. A previous study indicated that the polar-deposit-hosting craters (PDCs) at Mercury s north pole are shallower than craters that lack such deposits. We use data acquired by the Mercury Laser Altimeter on the MESSENGER spacecraft during 11 months of orbital observations to revisit the depths of craters at high northern latitudes on Mercury. We measured the depth and diameter of 537 craters located poleward of 45 N, evaluated the slopes of the northern and southern walls of 30 PDCs, and assessed the floor roughness of 94 craters, including nine PDCs. We find that the PDCs appear to have a fresher crater morphology than the non-PDCs and that the radar-bright material has no detectable influence on crater depths, wall slopes, or floor roughness. The statistical similarity of crater depth-diameter relations for the PDC and non-PDC populations places an upper limit on the thickness of the radar-bright material (< 170 m for a crater 11 km in diameter) that can be refined by future detailed analysis. Results of the current study are consistent with the view that the radar-bright material constitutes a relatively thin layer emplaced preferentially in comparatively young craters.

  18. Feasibility Study for a Near Term Demonstration of Laser-Sail Propulsion from the Ground to Low Earth Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Montgomery, Edward E., IV; Johnson, Les; Thomas, Herbert D.

    2016-01-01

    This paper adds to the body of research related to the concept of propellant-less in-space propulsion utilizing an external high energy laser (HEL) to provide momentum to an ultra-lightweight (gossamer) spacecraft. It has been suggested that the capabilities of Space Situational Awareness assets and the advanced analytical tools available for fine resolution orbit determination make it possible to investigate the practicalities of a ground to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) demonstration at delivered power levels that only illuminate a spacecraft without causing damage to it. The degree to which this can be expected to produce a measurable change in the orbit of a low ballistic coefficient spacecraft is investigated. Key system characteristics and estimated performance are derived for a near term mission opportunity involving the LightSail 2 spacecraft and laser power levels modest in comparison to those proposed previously by Forward, Landis, or Marx. [1,2,3] A more detailed investigation of accessing LightSail 2 from Santa Rosa Island on Eglin Air Force Base on the United States coast of the Gulf of Mexico is provided to show expected results in a specific case.

  19. Discovery of highly spin-polarized conducting surface states in the strong spin-orbit coupling semiconductor Sb2Se3

    Science.gov (United States)

    Das, Shekhar; Sirohi, Anshu; Kumar Gupta, Gaurav; Kamboj, Suman; Vasdev, Aastha; Gayen, Sirshendu; Guptasarma, Prasenjit; Das, Tanmoy; Sheet, Goutam

    2018-06-01

    Majority of the A2B3 -type chalcogenide systems with strong spin-orbit coupling (SOC), such as Bi2Se3,Bi2Te3 , and Sb2Te3 , etc., are topological insulators. One important exception is Sb2Se3 where a topological nontrivial phase was argued to be possible under ambient conditions, but such a phase could be detected to exist only under pressure. In this paper, we show that Sb2Se3 like Bi2Se3 displays a generation of highly spin-polarized current under mesoscopic superconducting point contacts as measured by point-contact Andreev reflection spectroscopy. In addition, we observe a large negative and anisotropic magnetoresistance of the mesoscopic metallic point contacts formed on Sb2Se3 . Our band-structure calculations confirm the trivial nature of Sb2Se3 crystals and reveal two trivial surface states one of which shows large spin splitting due to Rashba-type SOC. The observed high spin polarization and related phenomena in Sb2Se3 can be attributed to this spin splitting.

  20. Polarization-dependent pump-probe studies in atomic fine-structure levels: towards the production of spin-polarized electrons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sokell, E.; Zamith, S.; Bouchene, M.A.; Girard, B.

    2000-01-01

    The precession of orbital and spin angular momentum vectors has been observed in a pump-probe study of the 4P fine-structure states of atomic potassium. A femtosecond pump pulse prepared a coherent superposition of the two fine-structure components. A time-delayed probe pulse then ionized the system after it had been allowed to evolve freely. Oscillations recorded in the ion signal reflect the evolution of the orientation of the orbital and spin angular momentum due to spin-orbit coupling. This interpretation gives physical insight into the cause of the half-period phase shift observed when the relative polarizations of the laser pulses were changed from parallel to perpendicular. Finally, it is shown that these changes in the orientation of the spin momentum vector of the system can be utilized to produce highly spin-polarized free electrons on the femtosecond scale. (author)

  1. Cancellation of differential accelerations for the LISA spacecraft

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bender, Peter L

    2006-01-01

    The three spacecraft of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna will form a nearly equilateral triangle with nominal side lengths of 5 million km. However, the arm lengths and the corner angles will vary by very roughly 1% over 5-10 years. Part of this variation is due to the nature of Kepler orbits around the Sun. But Sweetser (2006 Astrodynamics 2005, Advances in the Astronautical Sciences vol 123 (San Diego, CA: Univelt Inc.) pp 693-712) has shown recently that differential secular accelerations due to the Earth for the three spacecraft prevent the minimal variations from being preserved for more than 2 or 3 years. Based on Sweetser's results, it appears possible to cancel out the differential secular acceleration due to the Earth by applying forces to the two proof masses in each spacecraft. The applied acceleration is at most 2.1 x 10 -9 m s -2 . However, the directions of the required accelerations would have substantial components along the sides of the triangle, and thus the amplitudes of the applied forces would have to have very low noise, even at frequencies down to below 0.1 mHz

  2. MESSENGER at Mercury: Early Orbital Operations

    Science.gov (United States)

    McNutt, Ralph L., Jr; Solomon, Sean C.; Bedini, Peter D.; Anderson, Brian J.; Blewett, David T.; Evans, Larry G.; Gold, Robert E.; Krimigis, Stamatios M.; Murchie, Scott L.; Nittler, Larry R.; hide

    2013-01-01

    The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft, launched in August 2004 under NASA's Discovery Program, was inserted into orbit about the planet Mercury in March 2011. MESSENGER's three flybys of Mercury in 2008-2009 marked the first spacecraft visits to the innermost planet since the Mariner 10 flybys in 1974-1975. The unprecedented orbital operations are yielding new insights into the nature and evolution of Mercury. The scientific questions that frame the MESSENGER mission led to the mission measurement objectives to be achieved by the seven payload instruments and the radio science experiment. Interweaving the full set of required orbital observations in a manner that maximizes the opportunity to satisfy all mission objectives and yet meet stringent spacecraft pointing and thermal constraints was a complex optimization problem that was solved with a software tool that simulates science observations and tracks progress toward meeting each objective. The final orbital observation plan, the outcome of that optimization process, meets all mission objectives. MESSENGER's Mercury Dual Imaging System is acquiring a global monochromatic image mosaic at better than 90% coverage and at least 250 m average resolution, a global color image mosaic at better than 90% coverage and at least 1 km average resolution, and global stereo imaging at better than 80% coverage and at least 250 m average resolution. Higher-resolution images are also being acquired of targeted areas. The elemental remote sensing instruments, including the Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer and the X-Ray Spectrometer, are being operated nearly continuously and will establish the average surface abundances of most major elements. The Visible and Infrared Spectrograph channel of MESSENGER's Mercury Atmospheric and Surface Composition Spectrometer is acquiring a global map of spectral reflectance from 300 to 1450 nm wavelength at a range of incidence and emission

  3. Polarized beams in high energy storage rings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Montague, B W [European Organization for Nuclear Research, Geneva (Switzerland)

    1984-11-01

    In recent years there has been a considerable advance in understanding the spin motion of particles in storage rings and accelerators. The survey presented here outlines the early historical development in this field, describes the basic ideas governing the kinetics of polarized particles in electromagnetic fields and shows how these have evolved into the current description of polarized beam behaviour. Orbital motion of particles influences their spin precession, and depolarization of a beam can result from excitation of spin resonances by orbit errors and oscillations. Electrons and positrons are additionally influenced by the quantized character of synchrotron radiation, which not only provides a polarizing mechanism but also enhances depolarizing effects. Progress in the theoretical formulation of these phenomena has clarified the details of the physical processes and suggested improved methods of compensating spin resonances. Full use of polarized beams for high-energy physics with storage rings requires spin rotators to produce longitudinal polarization in the interaction regions. Variants of these schemes, dubbed Siberian snakes, provide a curious precession topology which can substantially reduce depolarization in the high-energy range. Efficient polarimetry is an essential requirement for implementing polarized beams, whose utility for physics can be enhanced by various methods of spin manipulation.

  4. An Integrated Vision-Based System for Spacecraft Attitude and Topology Determination for Formation Flight Missions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rogers, Aaron; Anderson, Kalle; Mracek, Anna; Zenick, Ray

    2004-01-01

    With the space industry's increasing focus upon multi-spacecraft formation flight missions, the ability to precisely determine system topology and the orientation of member spacecraft relative to both inertial space and each other is becoming a critical design requirement. Topology determination in satellite systems has traditionally made use of GPS or ground uplink position data for low Earth orbits, or, alternatively, inter-satellite ranging between all formation pairs. While these techniques work, they are not ideal for extension to interplanetary missions or to large fleets of decentralized, mixed-function spacecraft. The Vision-Based Attitude and Formation Determination System (VBAFDS) represents a novel solution to both the navigation and topology determination problems with an integrated approach that combines a miniature star tracker with a suite of robust processing algorithms. By combining a single range measurement with vision data to resolve complete system topology, the VBAFDS design represents a simple, resource-efficient solution that is not constrained to certain Earth orbits or formation geometries. In this paper, analysis and design of the VBAFDS integrated guidance, navigation and control (GN&C) technology will be discussed, including hardware requirements, algorithm development, and simulation results in the context of potential mission applications.

  5. Resonant Orbital Dynamics in LEO Region: Space Debris in Focus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. C. Sampaio

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The increasing number of objects orbiting the earth justifies the great attention and interest in the observation, spacecraft protection, and collision avoidance. These studies involve different disturbances and resonances in the orbital motions of these objects distributed by the distinct altitudes. In this work, objects in resonant orbital motions are studied in low earth orbits. Using the two-line elements (TLE of the NORAD, resonant angles and resonant periods associated with real motions are described, providing more accurate information to develop an analytical model that describes a certain resonance. The time behaviors of the semimajor axis, eccentricity, and inclination of some space debris are studied. Possible irregular motions are observed by the frequency analysis and by the presence of different resonant angles describing the orbital dynamics of these objects.

  6. Electron spin polarization in high-energy storage rings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mane, S.R.

    1987-01-01

    In a high energy storage ring, a single photon emission has relatively little effect on the orbital motion, but it can produce a relatively large change in the electron spin state. Hence the unperturbed orbital motion can be satisfactorily described using classical mechanics, but the spin must be treated quantum mechanically. The electron motion is therefore treated semi-classically in this thesis. It is explained how to diagonalize the unperturbed Hamiltonian to the leading order in Planck's constant. The effects of perturbations are then included, and the relevant time-scales and ensemble averages are elucidated. The Derbenev-Kondratenko formula for the equilibrium degree of polarization is rederived. Mathematical details of the rederivation are given. Since the original authors used a different formalism, a proof is offered of the equivalence between their method and the one used in this thesis. An algorithm is also presented to evaluate the equilibrium polarization. It has a number of new features, which enable the polarization to be calculated to a higher degree of approximation than has hitherto been possible. This facilitates the calculation of so-called spin resonances, which are points at which the polarization almost vanishes. A computer program has been written to implement the above algorithm, in the approximation of linear orbital dynamics, and sample results are presented

  7. Project ECHO: Electronic Communications from Halo Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borrelli, Jason; Cooley, Bryan; Debole, Marcy; Hrivnak, Lance; Nielsen, Kenneth; Sangmeister, Gary; Wolfe, Matthew

    1994-01-01

    The design of a communications relay to provide constant access between the Earth and the far side of the Moon is presented. Placement of the relay in a halo orbit about the L2 Earth-Moon Lagrange point allows the satellite to maintain constant simultaneous communication between Earth and scientific payloads on the far side of the Moon. The requirements of NASA's Discovery-class missions adopted and modified for this design are: total project cost should not exceed $150 million excluding launch costs, launch must be provided by Delta-class vehicle, and the satellite should maintain an operational lifetime of 10 to 15 years. The spacecraft will follow a transfer trajectory to the L2 point, after launch by a Delta II 7925 vehicle in 1999. Low-level thrust is used for injection into a stationkeeping-free halo orbit once the spacecraft reaches the L2 point. The shape of this halo orbit is highly elliptical with the maximum excursion from the L2 point being 35000 km. A spun section and despun section connected through a bearing and power transfer assembly (BAPTA) compose the structure of the spacecraft. Communications equipment is placed on the despun section to provide for a stationary dual parabolic offset-feed array antenna system. The dual system is necessary to provide communications coverage during portions of maximum excursion on the halo orbit. Transmissions to the NASA Deep Space Network 34 m antenna include six channels (color video, two voice, scientific data from lunar payloads, satellite housekeeping and telemetry and uplinked commands) using the S- and X-bands. Four radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTG's) provide a total of 1360 W to power onboard systems and any two of the four Hughes 13 cm ion thrusters at once. Output of the ion thrusters is approximately 17.8 mN each with xenon as the propellant. Presence of torques generated by solar pressure on the antenna dish require the addition of a 'skirt' extending from the spun section of the satellite

  8. Automating Trend Analysis for Spacecraft Constellations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, George; Cooter, Miranda; Updike, Clark; Carey, Everett; Mackey, Jennifer; Rykowski, Timothy; Powers, Edward I. (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    Spacecraft trend analysis is a vital mission operations function performed by satellite controllers and engineers, who perform detailed analyses of engineering telemetry data to diagnose subsystem faults and to detect trends that may potentially lead to degraded subsystem performance or failure in the future. It is this latter function that is of greatest importance, for careful trending can often predict or detect events that may lead to a spacecraft's entry into safe-hold. Early prediction and detection of such events could result in the avoidance of, or rapid return to service from, spacecraft safing, which not only results in reduced recovery costs but also in a higher overall level of service for the satellite system. Contemporary spacecraft trending activities are manually intensive and are primarily performed diagnostically after a fault occurs, rather than proactively to predict its occurrence. They also tend to rely on information systems and software that are oudated when compared to current technologies. When coupled with the fact that flight operations teams often have limited resources, proactive trending opportunities are limited, and detailed trend analysis is often reserved for critical responses to safe holds or other on-orbit events such as maneuvers. While the contemporary trend analysis approach has sufficed for current single-spacecraft operations, it will be unfeasible for NASA's planned and proposed space science constellations. Missions such as the Dynamics, Reconnection and Configuration Observatory (DRACO), for example, are planning to launch as many as 100 'nanospacecraft' to form a homogenous constellation. A simple extrapolation of resources and manpower based on single-spacecraft operations suggests that trending for such a large spacecraft fleet will be unmanageable, unwieldy, and cost-prohibitive. It is therefore imperative that an approach to automating the spacecraft trend analysis function be studied, developed, and applied to

  9. Large-Scale Spacecraft Fire Safety Experiments in ISS Resupply Vehicles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruff, Gary A.; Urban, David

    2013-01-01

    Our understanding of the fire safety risk in manned spacecraft has been limited by the small scale of the testing we have been able to conduct in low-gravity. Fire growth and spread cannot be expected to scale linearly with sample size so we cannot make accurate predictions of the behavior of realistic scale fires in spacecraft based on the limited low-g testing to date. As a result, spacecraft fire safety protocols are necessarily very conservative and costly. Future crewed missions are expected to be longer in duration than previous exploration missions outside of low-earth orbit and accordingly, more complex in terms of operations, logistics, and safety. This will increase the challenge of ensuring a fire-safe environment for the crew throughout the mission. Based on our fundamental uncertainty of the behavior of fires in low-gravity, the need for realistic scale testing at reduced gravity has been demonstrated. To address this concern, a spacecraft fire safety research project is underway to reduce the uncertainty and risk in the design of spacecraft fire safety systems by testing at nearly full scale in low-gravity. This project is supported by the NASA Advanced Exploration Systems Program Office in the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. The activity of this project is supported by an international topical team of fire experts from other space agencies to maximize the utility of the data and to ensure the widest possible scrutiny of the concept. The large-scale space flight experiment will be conducted on three missions; each in an Orbital Sciences Corporation Cygnus vehicle after it has deberthed from the ISS. Although the experiment will need to meet rigorous safety requirements to ensure the carrier vehicle does not sustain damage, the absence of a crew allows the fire products to be released into the cabin. The tests will be fully automated with the data downlinked at the conclusion of the test before the Cygnus vehicle reenters the

  10. Failure analysis of satellite subsystems to define suitable de-orbit devices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palla, Chiara; Peroni, Moreno; Kingston, Jennifer

    2016-11-01

    Space missions in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) are severely affected by the build-up of orbital debris. A key practice, to be compliant with IADC (Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee) mitigation guidelines, is the removal of space systems that interfere with the LEO region not later than 25 years after the End of Mission. It is important to note that the current guidelines are not generally legally binding, even if different Space Agencies are now looking at the compliance for their missions. If the guidelines will change in law, it will be mandatory to have a postmission disposal strategy for all satellites, including micro and smaller classes. A potential increased number of these satellites is confirmed by different projections, in particular in the commercial sector. Micro and smaller spacecraft are, in general, not provided with propulsion capabilities to achieve a controlled re-entry, so they need different de-orbit disposal methods. When considering the utility of different debris mitigation methods, it is useful to understand which spacecraft subsystems are most likely to fail and how this may affect the operation of a de-orbit system. This also helps the consideration of which components are the most relevant or should be redundant depending on the satellite mass class. This work is based on a sample of LEO and MEO satellites launched between January 2000 and December 2014 with mass lower than 1000 kg. Failure analysis of satellite subsystems is performed by means of the Kaplan-Meier survival analysis; the parametric fits are conducted with Weibull distributions. The study is carried out by using the satellite database SpaceTrak™ which provides anomalies, failures, and trends information for spacecraft subsystems and launch vehicles. The database identifies five states for each satellite subsystem: three degraded states, one fully operational state, and one failed state (complete failure). The results obtained can guide the identification of the

  11. SMART-1: the first spacecraft of the future

    Science.gov (United States)

    2003-09-01

    gather high-value scientific and technological data. Another innovation lies in the industrial policy applied to this mission. SMART-1 is a good example of an ESA mission in which a comparatively small company such as the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) has been selected as prime contractor. “The experience of SSC in highly successful projects at national level was a key factor in the decision, as was ESA's goal of fostering a balanced industrial landscape in Europe,” says Niels Jensen of ESA’s Directorate of Industrial Matters and Technology Programmes. The magic of ion engines Solar-electric propulsion, one of the main technologies to be tested by SMART-1, is a new technique that uses 'ion engines'. These work by expelling a continuous beam of charged particles --ions-- at the back of the engine, which produces a thrust in the opposite direction and therefore pushes the spacecraft forward. The energy to feed the engine comes from the solar panels, hence the name 'solar-electric propulsion'. Engineers have been working on ion engines for decades, but only recently have obstacles such as the lack of power availability from a spacecraft’s solar panels been overcome. Recent missions have been using ion thrusters mainly for attitude control and orbit station keeping. In the recent case of ESA’s telecommunication satellite Artemis, the onboard availability of ion thrusters was actually what allowed the mission to be rescued. Having been left by the launcher on an unplanned orbit, Artemis was slowly - but safely - brought up to its final working orbit by the power of its ion engines, initially designed for orbit maintenance only. Starting with SMART-1, the first European spacecraft to use an ion engine as its main propulsion system, the amazing advantages of this method can now be fully exploited. Ion engines are very efficient: they deliver about ten times as much impulse per kilogram of propellant used. This gives a substantial reduction in the mass of the fuel

  12. Astrodynamics Conference, Williamsburg, VA, August 18-20, 1986, Technical Papers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1986-01-01

    Various papers on satellite and planetary mission dynamics are presented. Individual topics discussed include: orbital motion in the frequency domain, the Galileo orbital tour for the 1986 launch opportunity, circulating transportation orbits between earth and Mars, optimum burn scheduling for low-thrust orbital transfers, comparison of nonlinear filters for orbit determination, common period four-satellite continuous global coverage, motion of a drag-free experiment on the Space Station, and engineering improvements, sequencing and orbital determination for Voyager 2 Uranus encounter. Also considered are: approach strategy for rendezvous with Comet Tempel 2, maneuver strategies for Magellan Mission, Jupiter Polar Orbiter Mission concepts, modelling and simulation of Spacecraft Solar Array deployment, sensitivity analysis for lunar trajectories, maximum likelihood estimation for orbit determination, adaptive estimation for an accelerating spacecraft, Slinger in-orbit booster facility, simulation of satellite breakups, missile launch windows of avoiding collisions with satellites, linear-quadratic stationkeeping for the STS Orbiter

  13. Operational Philosophy Concerning Manned Spacecraft Cabin Leaks

    Science.gov (United States)

    DeSimpelaere, Edward

    2011-01-01

    The last thirty years have seen the Space Shuttle as the prime United States spacecraft for manned spaceflight missions. Many lessons have been learned about spacecraft design and operation throughout these years. Over the next few decades, a large increase of manned spaceflight in the commercial sector is expected. This will result in the exposure of commercial crews and passengers to many of the same risks crews of the Space Shuttle have encountered. One of the more dire situations that can be encountered is the loss of pressure in the habitable volume of the spacecraft during on orbit operations. This is referred to as a cabin leak. This paper seeks to establish a general cabin leak response philosophy with the intent of educating future spacecraft designers and operators. After establishing a relative definition for a cabin leak, the paper covers general descriptions of detection equipment, detection methods, and general operational methods for management of a cabin leak. Subsequently, all these items are addressed from the perspective of the Space Shuttle Program, as this will be of the most value to future spacecraft due to similar operating profiles. Emphasis here is placed upon why and how these methods and philosophies have evolved to meet the Space Shuttle s needs. This includes the core ideas of: considerations of maintaining higher cabin pressures vs. lower cabin pressures, the pros and cons of a system designed to feed the leak with gas from pressurized tanks vs. using pressure suits to protect against lower cabin pressures, timeline and consumables constraints, re-entry considerations with leaks of unknown origin, and the impact the International Space Station (ISS) has had to the standard Space Shuttle cabin leak response philosophy. This last item in itself includes: procedural management differences, hardware considerations, additional capabilities due to the presence of the ISS and its resource, and ISS docking/undocking considerations with a

  14. Spin-polarized gapped Dirac spectrum of unsupported silicene

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Podsiadły-Paszkowska, A., E-mail: agata.podsiadly@gmail.com; Krawiec, M., E-mail: mariusz.krawiec@umcs.pl

    2016-06-15

    Highlights: • Effects of spin–orbit interaction and atomic reconstruction of silicene on its electronic properties have been studied. • Spin-polarized gapped Dirac spectrum has been revealed. • Two different AFM phases have been obtained. - Abstract: We study effects of the spin–orbit interaction and the atomic reconstruction of silicene on its electronic spectrum. As an example we consider unsupported silicene pulled off from Pb(111) substrate. Using first principles density functional theory we show that the inversion symmetry broken arrangement of atoms and the spin–orbit interaction generate a spin-polarized electronic spectrum with an energy gap in the Dirac cone. These findings are particularly interesting in view of the quantum anomalous and quantum valley Hall effects and should be observable in weakly interacting silicene-substrate systems.

  15. Mission Analysis and Orbit Control of Interferometric Wheel Formation Flying

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fourcade, J.

    Flying satellite in formation requires maintaining the specific relative geometry of the spacecraft with high precision. This requirement raises new problem of orbit control. This paper presents the results of the mission analysis of a low Earth observation system, the interferometric wheel, patented by CNES. This wheel is made up of three receiving spacecraft, which follow an emitting Earth observation radar satellite. The first part of this paper presents trades off which were performed to choose orbital elements of the formation flying which fulfils all constraints. The second part presents orbit positioning strategies including reconfiguration of the wheel to change its size. The last part describes the station keeping of the formation. Two kinds of constraints are imposed by the interferometric system : a constraint on the distance between the wheel and the radar satellite, and constraints on the distance between the wheel satellites. The first constraint is fulfilled with a classical chemical station keeping strategy. The second one is fulfilled using pure passive actuators. Due to the high stability of the relative eccentricity of the formation, only the relative semi major axis had to be controlled. Differential drag due to differential attitude motion was used to control relative altitude. An autonomous orbit controller was developed and tested. The final accuracy is a relative station keeping better than few meters for a wheel size of one kilometer.

  16. Shared control on lunar spacecraft teleoperation rendezvous operations with large time delay

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ya-kun, Zhang; Hai-yang, Li; Rui-xue, Huang; Jiang-hui, Liu

    2017-08-01

    Teleoperation could be used in space on-orbit serving missions, such as object deorbits, spacecraft approaches, and automatic rendezvous and docking back-up systems. Teleoperation rendezvous and docking in lunar orbit may encounter bottlenecks for the inherent time delay in the communication link and the limited measurement accuracy of sensors. Moreover, human intervention is unsuitable in view of the partial communication coverage problem. To solve these problems, a shared control strategy for teleoperation rendezvous and docking is detailed. The control authority in lunar orbital maneuvers that involves two spacecraft as rendezvous and docking in the final phase was discussed in this paper. The predictive display model based on the relative dynamic equations is established to overcome the influence of the large time delay in communication link. We discuss and attempt to prove via consistent, ground-based simulations the relative merits of fully autonomous control mode (i.e., onboard computer-based), fully manual control (i.e., human-driven at the ground station) and shared control mode. The simulation experiments were conducted on the nine-degrees-of-freedom teleoperation rendezvous and docking simulation platform. Simulation results indicated that the shared control methods can overcome the influence of time delay effects. In addition, the docking success probability of shared control method was enhanced compared with automatic and manual modes.

  17. Precise Orbit Determination of QZS-1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hugentobler, U.; Steigenberger, P.; Rodriguez-Solano, C.; Hauschild, A.

    2011-12-01

    QZS-1, the first satellite of the Japanese Quasi Zenith Satellite System (QZSS) was launched in September 2010. Transmission of the standard codes started in December 2010 and the satellite was declared healthy in June 2011. Five stations of the COoperative Network for GIOVE Observation (CONGO) were upgraded to provide QZSS tracking capability. These five stations provide the basis for the precise orbit determination (POD) of the QZS-1 spacecraft. The stability and consistency of different orbital arc lengths is analyzed based on orbit fit residuals, day boundary discontinuities, and Satellite Laser Ranging residuals. As QZS-1 simultaneously transmits navigation signals on three frequencies in the L1, L2, and L5 band, different ionosphere-free linear combinations can be formed. The differences of the orbits computed from these different observables (ionosphere-free linear combination of L1/L2 and L1/L5) as well as the stability of the differential code biases estimated within the POD are studied. Finally, results of the attitude determination based on the navigation signal transmission from two different antennas onboard QZS-1 are presented.

  18. Vibration and Acoustic Testing for Mars Micromission Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kern, Dennis L.; Scharton, Terry D.

    1999-01-01

    The objective of the Mars Micromission program being managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for NASA is to develop a common spacecraft that can carry telecommunications equipment and a variety of science payloads for exploration of Mars. The spacecraft will be capable of carrying robot landers and rovers, cameras, probes, balloons, gliders or aircraft, and telecommunications equipment to Mars at much lower cost than recent NASA Mars missions. The lightweight spacecraft (about 220 Kg mass) will be launched in a cooperative venture with CNES as a TWIN auxiliary payload on the Ariane 5 launch vehicle. Two or more Mars Micromission launches are planned for each Mars launch opportunity, which occur every 26 months. The Mars launch window for the first mission is November 1, 2002 through April 2003, which is planned to be a Mars airplane technology demonstration mission to coincide with the 100 year anniversary of the Kittyhawk flight. Several subsequent launches will create a telecommunications network orbiting Mars, which will provide for continuous communication with lenders and rovers on the Martian surface. Dedicated science payload flights to Mars are slated to start in 2005. This new cheaper and faster approach to Mars exploration calls for innovative approaches to the qualification of the Mars Micromission spacecraft for the Ariane 5 launch vibration and acoustic environments. JPL has in recent years implemented new approaches to spacecraft testing that may be effectively applied to the Mars Micromission. These include 1) force limited vibration testing, 2) combined loads, vibration and modal testing, and 3) direct acoustic testing. JPL has performed nearly 200 force limited vibration tests in the past 9 years; several of the tests were on spacecraft and large instruments, including the Cassini and Deep Space One spacecraft. Force limiting, which measures and limits the spacecraft base reaction force using triaxial force gages sandwiched between the

  19. Advanced Communication Technology Satellite (ACTS) Multibeam Antenna On-Orbit Performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    1995-01-01

    The NASA Lewis Research Center's Advanced Communication Technology Satellite (ACTS) was launched in September 1993. ACTS introduced several new technologies, including a multibeam antenna (MBA) operating at extremely short wavelengths never before used in communications. This antenna, which has both fixed and rapidly reconfigurable high-energy spot beams (150 miles in diameter), serves users equipped with small antenna terminals. Extensive structural and thermal analyses have been performed for simulating the ACTS MBA on-orbit performance. The results show that the reflector surfaces (mainly the front subreflector), antenna support assembly, and metallic surfaces on the spacecraft body will be distorted because of the thermal effects of varying solar heating, which degrade the ACTS MBA performance. Since ACTS was launched, a number of evaluations have been performed to assess MBA performance in the space environment. For example, the on-orbit performance measurements found systematic environmental disturbances to the MBA beam pointing. These disturbances were found to be imposed by the attitude control system, antenna and spacecraft mechanical alignments, and on-orbit thermal effects. As a result, the MBA may not always exactly cover the intended service area. In addition, the on-orbit measurements showed that antenna pointing accuracy is the performance parameter most sensitive to thermal distortions on the front subreflector surface and antenna support assemblies. Several compensation approaches were tested and evaluated to restore on-orbit pointing stability. A combination of autotrack (75 percent of the time) and Earth sensor control (25 percent of the time) was found to be the best way to compensate for antenna pointing error during orbit. This approach greatly minimizes the effects of thermal distortions on antenna beam pointing.

  20. The Laser Ranging Experiment of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter: Five Years of Operations and Data Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mao, Dandan; McGarry, Jan F.; Mazarico, Erwan; Neumann, Gregory A.; Sun, Xiaoli; Torrence, Mark H.; Zagwodzki, Thomas W.; Rowlands, David D.; Hoffman, Evan D.; Horvath, Julie E.; hide

    2016-01-01

    We describe the results of the Laser Ranging (LR) experiment carried out from June 2009 to September 2014 in order to make one-way time-of-flight measurements of laser pulses between Earth-based laser ranging stations and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) orbiting the Moon. Over 4,000 hours of successful LR data are obtained from 10 international ground stations. The 20-30 centimeter precision of the full-rate LR data is further improved to 5-10 centimeter after conversion into normal points. The main purpose of LR is to utilize the high accuracy normal point data to improve the quality of the LRO orbits, which are nomi- nally determined by the radiometric S-band tracking data. When independently used in the LRO precision orbit determination process with the high-resolution GRAIL (Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory) gravity model, LR data provide good orbit solutions, with an average difference of approximately 50 meters in total position, and approximately 20 centimeters in radial direction, compared to the definitive LRO trajectory. When used in combination with the S-band tracking data, LR data help to improve the orbit accuracy in the radial direction to approximately 15 centimeters. In order to obtain highly accurate LR range measurements for precise orbit determination results, it is critical to closely model the behavior of the clocks both at the ground stations and on the spacecraft. LR provides a unique data set to calibrate the spacecraft clock. The LRO spacecraft clock is characterized by the LR data to a timing knowledge of 0.015 milliseconds over the entire 5 years of LR operation. We here present both the engineering setup of the LR experiments and the detailed analysis results of the LR data.

  1. Electric sail elliptic displaced orbits with advanced thrust model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niccolai, Lorenzo; Quarta, Alessandro A.; Mengali, Giovanni

    2017-09-01

    This paper analyzes the performance of an Electric Solar Wind Sail for generating and maintaining an elliptic, heliocentric, displaced non-Keplerian orbit. In this sense, this paper extends and completes recent studies regarding the performances of an Electric Solar Wind Sail that covers a circular, heliocentric, displaced orbit of given characteristics. The paper presents the general equations that describe the elliptic orbit maintenance in terms of both spacecraft attitude and performance requirements, when a refined thrust model (recently proposed for the preliminary mission design) is taken into account. In particular, the paper also discusses some practical applications on particular mission scenarios in which an analytic solution of the governing equations has been found.

  2. Capture orbits around asteroids by hitting zero-velocity curves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Wei; Yang, Hongwei; Zhang, Wei; Ma, Guangfu

    2017-12-01

    The problem of capturing a spacecraft from a heliocentric orbit into a high parking orbit around binary asteroids is investigated in the current study. To reduce the braking Δ V, a new capture strategy takes advantage of the three-body gravity of the binary asteroid to lower the inertial energy before applying the Δ V. The framework of the circular restricted three-body problem (CR3BP) is employed for the binary asteroid system. The proposed capture strategy is based on the mechanism by which inertial energy can be decreased sharply near zero-velocity curves (ZVCs). The strategy has two steps, namely, hitting the target ZVC and raising the periapsis by a small Δ V at the apoapsis. By hitting the target ZVC, the positive inertial energy decreases and becomes negative. Using a small Δ V, the spacecraft inserts into a bounded orbit around the asteroid. In addition, a rotating mass dipole model is employed for elongated asteroids, which leads to dynamics similar to that of the CR3BP. With this approach, the proposed capture strategy can be applied to elongated asteroids. Numerical simulations validate that the proposed capture strategy is applicable for the binary asteroid 90 Antiope and the elongated asteroid 216 Kleopatra.

  3. Remote sensing of a NTC radio source from a Cluster tilted spacecraft pair

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. M. E. Décréau

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available The Cluster mission operated a "tilt campaign" during the month of May 2008. Two of the four identical Cluster spacecraft were placed at a close distance (~50 km from each other and the spin axis of one of the spacecraft pair was tilted by an angle of ~46°. This gave the opportunity, for the first time in space, to measure global characteristics of AC electric field, at the sensitivity available with long boom (88 m antennas, simultaneously from the specific configuration of the tilted pair of satellites and from the available base of three satellites placed at a large characteristic separation (~1 RE. This paper describes how global characteristics of radio waves, in this case the configuration of the electric field polarization ellipse in 3-D-space, are identified from in situ measurements of spin modulation features by the tilted pair, validating a novel experimental concept. In the event selected for analysis, non-thermal continuum (NTC waves in the 15–25 kHz frequency range are observed from the Cluster constellation placed above the polar cap. The observed intensity variations with spin angle are those of plane waves, with an electric field polarization close to circular, at an ellipticity ratio e = 0.87. We derive the source position in 3-D by two different methods. The first one uses ray path orientation (measured by the tilted pair combined with spectral signature of magnetic field magnitude at source. The second one is obtained via triangulation from the three spacecraft baseline, using estimation of directivity angles under assumption of circular polarization. The two results are not compatible, placing sources widely apart. We present a general study of the level of systematic errors due to the assumption of circular polarization, linked to the second approach, and show how this approach can lead to poor triangulation and wrong source positioning. The estimation derived from the first method places the NTC source region in the

  4. Spacecraft Line-of-Sight Stabilization Using LWIR Earth Signature

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quadrelli, Marco B.; Piazzolla, Sabino

    2012-01-01

    The objective of this study is to investigate the potential of using the bright and near-uniform Earth infrared (or wavelength infrared, LWIR) signature as a stable reference for accurate (micro-rad or less) inertial pointing and tracking on-board an space vehicle, including the determination of the fundamental limits of applicability of the proposed method for space missions. We demonstrate sub-micro radian level pointing accuracy under a representative set of disturbances experienced by the spacecraft in orbit.

  5. The BepiColombo MORE gravimetry and rotation experiments with the ORBIT14 software

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cicalò, S.; Schettino, G.; Di Ruzza, S.; Alessi, E. M.; Tommei, G.; Milani, A.

    2016-04-01

    The BepiColombo mission to Mercury is an ESA/JAXA cornerstone mission, consisting of two spacecraft in orbit around Mercury addressing several scientific issues. One spacecraft is the Mercury Planetary Orbiter, with full instrumentation to perform radio science experiments. Very precise radio tracking from Earth, on-board accelerometer and optical measurements will provide large data sets. From these it will be possible to study the global gravity field of Mercury and its tidal variations, its rotation state and the orbit of its centre of mass. With the gravity field and rotation state, it is possible to constrain the internal structure of the planet. With the orbit of Mercury, it is possible to constrain relativistic theories of gravitation. In order to assess that all the scientific goals are achievable with the required level of accuracy, full cycle numerical simulations of the radio science experiment have been performed. Simulated tracking, accelerometer and optical camera data have been generated, and a long list of variables including the spacecraft initial conditions, the accelerometer calibrations and the gravity field coefficients have been determined by a least-squares fit. The simulation results are encouraging: the experiments are feasible at the required level of accuracy provided that some critical terms in the accelerometer error are moderated. We will show that BepiColombo will be able to provide at least an order of magnitude improvement in the knowledge of Love number k2, libration amplitudes and obliquity, along with a gravity field determination up to degree 25 with a signal-to-noise ratio of 10.

  6. Low-cost autonomous orbit control about Mars: Initial simulation results

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dawson, S. D.; Early, L. W.; Potterveld, C. W.; Königsmann, H. J.

    1999-11-01

    Interest in studying the possibility of extraterrestrial life has led to the re-emergence of the Red Planet as a major target of planetary exploration. Currently proposed missions in the post-2000 period are routinely calling for rendezvous with ascent craft, long-term orbiting of, and sample-return from Mars. Such missions would benefit greatly from autonomous orbit control as a means to reduce operations costs and enable contact with Mars ground stations out of view of the Earth. This paper present results from initial simulations of autonomously controlled orbits around Mars, and points out possible uses of the technology and areas of routine Mars operations where such cost-conscious and robust autonomy could prove most effective. These simulations have validated the approach and control philosophies used in the development of this autonomous orbit controller. Future work will refine the controller, accounting for systematic and random errors in the navigation of the spacecraft from the sensor suite, and will produce prototype flight code for inclusion on future missions. A modified version of Microcosm's commercially available High Precision Orbit Propagator (HPOP) was used in the preparation of these results due to its high accuracy and speed of operation. Control laws were developed to allow an autonomously controlled spacecraft to continuously control to a pre-defined orbit about Mars with near-optimal propellant usage. The control laws were implemented as an adjunct to HPOP. The GSFC-produced 50 × 50 field model of the Martian gravitational potential was used in all simulations. The Martian atmospheric drag was modeled using an exponentially decaying atmosphere based on data from the Mars-GRAM NASA Ames model. It is hoped that the simple atmosphere model that was implemented can be significantly improved in the future so as to approach the fidelity of the Mars-GRAM model in its predictions of atmospheric density at orbital altitudes. Such additional work

  7. Instrumentation with polarized neutrons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boeni, P.; Muenzer, W.; Ostermann, A.

    2009-01-01

    Neutron scattering with polarization analysis is an indispensable tool for the investigation of novel materials exhibiting electronic, magnetic, and orbital degrees of freedom. In addition, polarized neutrons are necessary for neutron spin precession techniques that path the way to obtain extremely high resolution in space and time. Last but not least, polarized neutrons are being used for fundamental studies as well as very recently for neutron imaging. Many years ago, neutron beam lines were simply adapted for polarized beam applications by adding polarizing elements leading usually to unacceptable losses in neutron intensity. Recently, an increasing number of beam lines are designed such that an optimum use of polarized neutrons is facilitated. In addition, marked progress has been obtained in the technology of 3 He polarizers and the reflectivity of large-m supermirrors. Therefore, if properly designed, only factors of approximately 2-3 in neutron intensity are lost. It is shown that S-benders provide neutron beams with an almost wavelength independent polarization. Using twin cavities, polarized beams with a homogeneous phase space and P>0.99 can be produced without significantly sacrificing intensity. It is argued that elliptic guides, which are coated with large m polarizing supermirrors, provide the highest flux.

  8. Using The Global Positioning System For Earth Orbiter and Deep Space Network

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lichten, Stephen M.; Haines, Bruce J.; Young, Lawrence E.; Dunn, Charles; Srinivasan, Jeff; Sweeney, Dennis; Nandi, Sumita; Spitzmesser, Don

    1994-01-01

    The Global Positioning System (GPS) can play a major role in supporting orbit and trajectory determination for spacecraft in a wide range of applications, including low-Earth, high-earth, and even deep space (interplanetary) tracking.

  9. SSS-A spacecraft and experiment description.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Longanecker, G. W.; Hoffman, R. A.

    1973-01-01

    The scientific objectives of the Explorer-45 mission are discussed. The primary objective is the study of the ring current responsible for the main phase of magnetic storms. Closely associated with this objective is the determination of the relationship between magnetic storms, substorms, and the acceleration of charged particles in the magnetosphere. Further objectives are the measurement of a wide range of proton, electron and alpha-particle energies, and studies of wave-particle interactions responsible for particle transport and loss in the inner magnetosphere. The orbital parameters, the spacecraft itself, and some of its unique features, such as the data handling system, which is programmable from the ground, are described.

  10. Validation of Galileo orbits using SLR with a focus on satellites launched into incorrect orbital planes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sośnica, Krzysztof; Prange, Lars; Kaźmierski, Kamil; Bury, Grzegorz; Drożdżewski, Mateusz; Zajdel, Radosław; Hadas, Tomasz

    2018-02-01

    The space segment of the European Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Galileo consists of In-Orbit Validation (IOV) and Full Operational Capability (FOC) spacecraft. The first pair of FOC satellites was launched into an incorrect, highly eccentric orbital plane with a lower than nominal inclination angle. All Galileo satellites are equipped with satellite laser ranging (SLR) retroreflectors which allow, for example, for the assessment of the orbit quality or for the SLR-GNSS co-location in space. The number of SLR observations to Galileo satellites has been continuously increasing thanks to a series of intensive campaigns devoted to SLR tracking of GNSS satellites initiated by the International Laser Ranging Service. This paper assesses systematic effects and quality of Galileo orbits using SLR data with a main focus on Galileo satellites launched into incorrect orbits. We compare the SLR observations with respect to microwave-based Galileo orbits generated by the Center for Orbit Determination in Europe (CODE) in the framework of the International GNSS Service Multi-GNSS Experiment for the period 2014.0-2016.5. We analyze the SLR signature effect, which is characterized by the dependency of SLR residuals with respect to various incidence angles of laser beams for stations equipped with single-photon and multi-photon detectors. Surprisingly, the CODE orbit quality of satellites in the incorrect orbital planes is not worse than that of nominal FOC and IOV orbits. The RMS of SLR residuals is even lower by 5.0 and 1.5 mm for satellites in the incorrect orbital planes than for FOC and IOV satellites, respectively. The mean SLR offsets equal -44.9, -35.0, and -22.4 mm for IOV, FOC, and satellites in the incorrect orbital plane. Finally, we found that the empirical orbit models, which were originally designed for precise orbit determination of GNSS satellites in circular orbits, provide fully appropriate results also for highly eccentric orbits with variable linear

  11. Validation of double Langmuir probe in-orbit performance onboard a nano-satellite

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tejumola, Taiwo Raphael; Zarate Segura, Guillermo Wenceslao; Kim, Sangkyun; Khan, Arifur; Cho, Mengu

    2018-03-01

    Many plasma measurement systems have been proposed and used onboard different satellites to characterize space plasma. Most of these systems employed the technique of Langmuir probes either using the single or double probes methods. Recent growth of lean satellites has positioned it on advantage to be used for space science missions using Langmuir probes because of its simplicity and convenience. However, single Langmuir probes are not appropriate to be used on lean satellites because of their limited conducting area which leads to spacecraft charging and drift of the instrument's electrical ground during measurement. Double Langmuir probes technique can overcome this limitation, as a measurement reference in relation to the spacecraft is not required. A double Langmuir probe measurement system was designed and developed at Kyushu Institute of Technology for HORYU-IV satellite, which is a 10 kg, 30 cm cubic class lean satellite launched into Low Earth Orbit on 17th February 2016. This paper presents the on-orbit performance and validation of the double Langmuir probe measurement using actual on-orbit measured data and computer simulations.

  12. Current-induced spin polarization in InGaAs and GaAs epilayers with varying doping densities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luengo-Kovac, M.; Huang, S.; Del Gaudio, D.; Occena, J.; Goldman, R. S.; Raimondi, R.; Sih, V.

    2017-11-01

    The current-induced spin polarization and momentum-dependent spin-orbit field were measured in InxGa1 -xAs epilayers with varying indium concentrations and silicon doping densities. Samples with higher indium concentrations and carrier concentrations and lower mobilities were found to have larger electrical spin generation efficiencies. Furthermore, current-induced spin polarization was detected in GaAs epilayers despite the absence of measurable spin-orbit fields, indicating that the extrinsic contributions to the spin-polarization mechanism must be considered. Theoretical calculations based on a model that includes extrinsic contributions to the spin dephasing and the spin Hall effect, in addition to the intrinsic Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling, are found to reproduce the experimental finding that the crystal direction with the smaller net spin-orbit field has larger electrical spin generation efficiency and are used to predict how sample parameters affect the magnitude of the current-induced spin polarization.

  13. Interaction between subdaily Earth rotation parameters and GPS orbits

    Science.gov (United States)

    Panafidina, Natalia; Seitz, Manuela; Hugentobler, Urs

    2013-04-01

    In processing GPS observations the geodetic parameters like station coordinates and ERPs (Earth rotation parameters) are estimated w.r.t. the celestial reference system realized by the satellite orbits. The interactions/correlations between estimated GPS orbis and other parameters may lead to numerical problems with the solution and introduce systematic errors in the computed values: the well known correlations comprise 1) the correlation between the orbital parameters determining the orientation of the orbital plane in inertial space and the nutation and 2) in the case of estimating ERPs with subdaily resolution the correlation between retrograde diurnal polar motion and nutation (and so the respective orbital elements). In this contribution we study the interaction between the GPS orbits and subdaily model for the ERPs. Existing subdaily ERP model recommended by the IERS comprises ~100 terms in polar motion and ~70 terms in Universal Time at diurnal and semidiurnal tidal periods. We use a long time series of daily normal equation systems (NEQ) obtaine from GPS observations from 1994 till 2007 where the ERPs with 1-hour resolution are transformed into tidal terms and the influence of the tidal terms with different frequencies on the estimated orbital parameters is considered. We found that although there is no algebraic correlation in the NEQ between the individual orbital parameters and the tidal terms, the changes in the amplitudes of tidal terms with periods close to 24 hours can be better accmodated by systematic changes in the orbital parameters than for tidal terms with other periods. Since the variation in Earth rotation with the period of siderial day (23.93h, tide K1) in terrestrial frame has in inertial space the same period as the period of revolution of GPS satellites, the K1 tidal term in polar motion is seen by the satellites as a permanent shift. The tidal terms with close periods (from ~24.13h to ~23.80h) are seen as a slow rotation of the

  14. Orbital angular momentum of general astigmatic modes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Visser, Jorrit; Nienhuis, Gerard

    2004-01-01

    We present an operator method to obtain complete sets of astigmatic Gaussian solutions of the paraxial wave equation. In case of general astigmatism, the astigmatic intensity and phase distribution of the fundamental mode differ in orientation. As a consequence, the fundamental mode has a nonzero orbital angular momentum, which is not due to phase singularities. Analogous to the operator method for the quantum harmonic oscillator, the corresponding astigmatic higher-order modes are obtained by repeated application of raising operators on the fundamental mode. The nature of the higher-order modes is characterized by a point on a sphere, in analogy with the representation of polarization on the Poincare sphere. The north and south poles represent astigmatic Laguerre-Gaussian modes, similar to circular polarization on the Poincare sphere, while astigmatic Hermite-Gaussian modes are associated with points on the equator, analogous to linear polarization. We discuss the propagation properties of the modes and their orbital angular momentum, which depends on the degree of astigmatism and on the location of the point on the sphere

  15. Programs To Optimize Spacecraft And Aircraft Trajectories

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brauer, G. L.; Petersen, F. M.; Cornick, D.E.; Stevenson, R.; Olson, D. W.

    1994-01-01

    POST/6D POST is set of two computer programs providing ability to target and optimize trajectories of powered or unpowered spacecraft or aircraft operating at or near rotating planet. POST treats point-mass, three-degree-of-freedom case. 6D POST treats more-general rigid-body, six-degree-of-freedom (with point masses) case. Used to solve variety of performance, guidance, and flight-control problems for atmospheric and orbital vehicles. Applications include computation of performance or capability of vehicle in ascent, or orbit, and during entry into atmosphere, simulation and analysis of guidance and flight-control systems, dispersion-type analyses and analyses of loads, general-purpose six-degree-of-freedom simulation of controlled and uncontrolled vehicles, and validation of performance in six degrees of freedom. Written in FORTRAN 77 and C language. Two machine versions available: one for SUN-series computers running SunOS(TM) (LAR-14871) and one for Silicon Graphics IRIS computers running IRIX(TM) operating system (LAR-14869).

  16. Weights assessment for orbit-on-demand vehicles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Macconochie, I. O.; Martin, J. A.; Breiner, C. A.; Cerro, J. A.

    1985-01-01

    Future manned, reusable earth-to-orbit vehicles may be required to reach orbit within hours or even minutes of a mission decision. A study has been conducted to consider vehicles with such a capability. In the initial phase of the study, 11 vehicles were sized for deployment of 5000 lbs to a polar orbit. From this matrix, two of the most promising concepts were resized for a modified mission and payload. A key feature of the study was the use of consistent mass estimating techniques for a broad range of concepts, allowing direct comparisons of sizes and weights.

  17. Subauroral Polarization Streams (SAPS) Duration as Determined From Van Allen Probe Successive Electric Drift Measurements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lejosne, Solène; Mozer, F. S.

    2017-09-01

    We examine a characteristic feature of the magnetosphere-ionosphere coupling, namely, the persistent and latitudinally narrow bands of rapid westward ion drifts called the subauroral polarization streams (SAPS). Despite countless works on SAPS, information relative to their durations is lacking. Here we report on the first statistical analysis of more than 200 near-equatorial SAPS observations based on more than 2 years of Van Allen Probe electric drift measurements. First, we present results relative to SAPS radial locations and amplitudes. Then, we introduce two different ways to estimate SAPS durations. In both cases, SAPS activity is estimated to last for about 9 h on average. However, our estimates for SAPS duration are limited either by the relatively long orbital periods of the spacecraft or by the relatively small number of observations involved. Fifty percent of the events fit within the time interval [0;18] hours.

  18. Ionizing radiation environment for the TOMS mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lauriente, M.; Maloy, J. O.; Vampola, A. L.

    1992-01-01

    The Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) will fly on several different spacecraft, each having an orbit which is approximately polar and 800-980 km in altitude. A description is given of the computer-based tools used for characterizing the spacecraft interactions with the ionizing radiation environment in orbit and the susceptibility requirements for ionizing radiation compatibility. The peak flux from the model was used to derive the expected radiation-induced noise in the South Atlantic Anomaly for the new TOMS instruments intended to fly on Advanced Earth Observatory System and Earth Probe.

  19. Thermal analysis for folded solar array of spacecraft in orbit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yang, W.H.; Cheng, H.E.; Cai, A.

    2004-01-01

    The combined radiation-conduction heat transfer in folded solar array was considered as a three-dimensional anisotropic conduction without inner heat source. The three-dimensional equivalent conductivity in cell plate were obtained. The especially discrete equation coefficients of the nodes on the surfaces of adjacent cell plates were deduced by utilizing the simplified radiation network among the two adjacent cell plate surfaces and the deep cold space. All the thermal influence factors on the temperature response of the folded solar array were considered carefully. SIP method was used to solve the discrete equation. By comparing the calculation results under three cases, the temperature response and the maximum average difference of the folded solar array was obtained during the period of throw-radome of the launch vehicle and spread of the folded solar array. The obtained result is a valuable reference for the selection of the launch time of the spacecraft

  20. Orbital Debris and NASA's Measurement Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Africano, J. L.; Stansbery, E. G.

    2002-05-01

    Since the launch of Sputnik in 1957, the number of manmade objects in orbit around the Earth has dramatically increased. The United States Space Surveillance Network (SSN) tracks and maintains orbits on over nine thousand objects down to a limiting diameter of about ten centimeters. Unfortunately, active spacecraft are only a small percentage ( ~ 7%) of this population. The rest of the population is orbital debris or ``space junk" consisting of expended rocket bodies, dead payloads, bits and pieces from satellite launches, and fragments from satellite breakups. The number of these smaller orbital debris objects increases rapidly with decreasing size. It is estimated that there are at least 130,000 orbital debris objects between one and ten centimeters in diameter. Most objects smaller than 10 centimeters go untracked! As the orbital debris population grows, the risk to other orbiting objects, most importantly manned space vehicles, of a collision with a piece of debris also grows. The kinetic energy of a solid 1 cm aluminum sphere traveling at an orbital velocity of 10 km/sec is equivalent to a 400 lb. safe traveling at 60 mph. Fortunately, the volume of space in which the orbiting population resides is large, collisions are infrequent, but they do occur. The Space Shuttle often returns to earth with its windshield pocked with small pits or craters caused by collisions with very small, sub-millimeter-size pieces of debris (paint flakes, particles from solid rocket exhaust, etc.), and micrometeoroids. To get a more complete picture of the orbital-debris environment, NASA has been using both radar and optical techniques to monitor the orbital debris environment. This paper gives an overview of the orbital debris environment and NASA's measurement program.

  1. Star of AOXiang: An innovative 12U CubeSat to demonstrate polarized light navigation and microgravity measurement

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Xiaozhou; Zhou, Jun; Zhu, Peijie; Guo, Jian

    2018-06-01

    Most of the CubeSats have a volume range from 1U to 3U, which limits their applications due to the difficulty of miniaturizing payloads. To facilitate the needs on a larger but low-cost satellite platform, the AOXiang (AOX) project has been developed by Northwestern Polytechnical University (NPU). The primary objectives of AOX project are four-folds: 1) To demonstrate the world first 12U CubeSat Star of AOXiang and 12U orbit deployer which uses an innovative electromagnetic unlocking technology. 2) To investigate the feasibility of using polarized sunlight for spacecraft attitude determination and navigation, and perform microgravity research using a miniaturized gravimeter. 3) To test a fault tolerant on-board computer using the System On the Programmable Chip (SOPC) technology, and 4) To gain the experience from developing the CubeSat and the subsystems. The CubeSat was launched in June 2016. Now, the mission has achieved all the goals. This paper provides the detail information of the AOX project, with a focus on the introduction of the subsystems of the 12U CubeSat, the orbit deployer and the payloads. The recent in-orbit results of the first NPU are also presented. In addition to the educational objective that has been reached with more than 50 young scholars and students participated in the project.

  2. Galileo SSI Observations of Io During Orbits C30 I33

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keszthelyi, L.; Turtle, E.; McEwen, A.; Simonelli, D.; Geissler, P.; Williams, D.; Milazzo, M.; Radebaugh, J.; Jaeger, W.; Klaasen, K. P.

    2002-01-01

    New Galileo SSI imaging of Io from orbits C30 I33 will be presented. The aging Galileo spacecraft continues to produce spectacular new results, including the tallest volcanic plume yet found on Io. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

  3. Flexible spacecraft dynamics, control and guidance technologies by giovanni campolo

    CERN Document Server

    Mazzini, Leonardo

    2016-01-01

    This book is an up-to-date compendium on spacecraft attitude and orbit control (AOC) that offers a systematic and complete treatment of the subject with the aim of imparting the theoretical and practical knowledge that is required by designers, engineers, and researchers. After an introduction on the kinematics of the flexible and agile space vehicles, the modern architecture and functions of an AOC system are described and the main AOC modes reviewed with possible design solutions and examples. The dynamics of the flexible body in space are then considered using an original Lagrangian approach suitable for the control applications of large space flexible structures. Subsequent chapters address optimal control theory, attitude control methods, and orbit control applications, including the optimal orbital transfer with finite and infinite thrust. The theory is integrated with a description of current propulsion systems, with the focus especially on the new electric propulsion systems and state of the art senso...

  4. A Memory/Immunology-Based Control Approach with Applications to Multiple Spacecraft Formation Flying

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Liguo Weng

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper addresses the problem of formation control for multiple spacecrafts in Planetary Orbital Environment (POE. Due to the presence of diverse interferences and uncertainties in the outer space, such as the changing spacecraft mass, unavailable space parameters, and varying gravity forces, traditional control methods encounter great difficulties in this area. A new control approach inspired by human memory and immune system is proposed, and this approach is shown to be capable of learning from past control experience and current behavior to improve its performance. It demands much less system dynamic information as compared with traditional controls. Both theoretic analysis and computer simulation verify its effectiveness.

  5. Orbital simulation life tests of nickel hydrogen batteries with additional non-eclipse cycles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, P. J.; Donley, S. W.; Verrier, D. C.

    Nickel-hydrogen battery technology has established itself as the system of choice to provide energy storage on board Earth orbiting satellites. In addition to providing electrical power for the satellite during the periods the satellite's solar arrays are eclipsed by the Earth, applications are evolving (such as ion propulsion) where the battery is required to supplement the power supplied to the spacecraft by the solar panels in order to meet the peak power demands. In this paper, the results of a four-year accelerated life test programme, equivalent to more than 20 years in orbit, are reported. Additional non-eclipse cycles were added to both the eclipse and solstice seasons of each simulated spacecraft year. The results show that the additional discharges do not significantly effect the rates of performance degradation of the batteries.

  6. Anomalous Hall conductivity: Local orbitals approach

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Středa, Pavel

    2010-01-01

    Roč. 82, č. 4 (2010), 045115/1-045115/9 ISSN 1098-0121 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10100521 Keywords : anomalous Hall effect * Berry phase correction * orbital polarization momentum Subject RIV: BM - Solid Matter Physics ; Magnetism Impact factor: 3.772, year: 2010

  7. The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM Spacecraft Power System Design and Orbital Performance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dakermanji George

    2017-01-01

    The paper describes the power system design details, its performance to date and the lithium ion battery model that was developed for use in the energy balance analysis and is being used to predict the on-orbit health of the battery.

  8. Protection Spacelab from Meteoroid and Orbital Debris

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Shigui; Yan, Jun; Han, Zengyao

    2013-08-01

    As the first long-term on-orbit spacelab of China, TianGong-1 will stay aloft for 2 years. Its failure risk subjected to Meteoroid and Orbital Debris(M/OD) is hundreds of times higher than the risk of Shenzhou-5, Shenzhou-6 or Shenzhou-7, so the special M/OD protection designs have been applied. In order to reduce the penetration risk of radiator tube, the design of radiator has been modified by placing the tube at the side of radiator plate, and the new design does not affect the thermal control system without adding the mass. Secondly, Whipple structure is adopted in the two sides and front of spacecraft against M/OD impact.

  9. Development of Star Tracker System for Accurate Estimation of Spacecraft Attitude

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-12-01

    For a high- cost spacecraft with accurate pointing requirements, the use of a star tracker is the preferred method for attitude determination. The...solutions, however there are certain costs with using this algorithm. There are significantly more features a triangle can provide when compared to an...to the other. The non-rotating geocentric equatorial frame provides an inertial frame for the two-body problem of a satellite in orbit. In this

  10. A simulation of the Four-way lunar Lander-Orbiter tracking mode for the Chang'E-5 mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Fei; Ye, Mao; Yan, Jianguo; Hao, Weifeng; Barriot, Jean-Pierre

    2016-06-01

    The Chang'E-5 mission is the third phase of the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program and will collect and return lunar samples. After sampling, the Orbiter and the ascent vehicle will rendezvous and dock, and both spacecraft will require high precision orbit navigation. In this paper, we present a novel tracking mode-Four-way lunar Lander-Orbiter tracking that possibly can be employed during the Chang'E-5 mission. The mathematical formulas for the Four-way lunar Lander-Orbiter tracking mode are given and implemented in our newly-designed lunar spacecraft orbit determination and gravity field recovery software, the LUnar Gravity REcovery and Analysis Software/System (LUGREAS). The simulated observables permit analysis of the potential contribution Four-way lunar Lander-Orbiter tracking could make to precision orbit determination for the Orbiter. Our results show that the Four-way lunar Lander-Orbiter Range Rate has better geometric constraint on the orbit, and is more sensitive than the traditional two-way range rate that only tracks data between the Earth station and lunar Orbiter. After combining the Four-way lunar Lander-Orbiter Range Rate data with the traditional two-way range rate data and considering the Lander position error and lunar gravity field error, the accuracy of precision orbit determination for the Orbiter in the simulation was improved significantly, with the biggest improvement being one order of magnitude, and the Lander position could be constrained to sub-meter level. This new tracking mode could provide a reference for the Chang'E-5 mission and have enormous potential for the positioning of future lunar farside Lander due to its relay characteristic.

  11. Terahertz radiation by subpicosecond spin-polarized photocurrent originating from Dirac electrons in a Rashba-type polar semiconductor

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kinoshita, Yuto; Kida, Noriaki; Miyamoto, Tatsuya; Kanou, Manabu; Sasagawa, Takao; Okamoto, Hiroshi

    2018-04-01

    The spin-splitting energy bands induced by the relativistic spin-orbit interaction in solids provide a new opportunity to manipulate the spin-polarized electrons on the subpicosecond timescale. Here, we report one such example in a bulk Rashba-type polar semiconductor BiTeBr. Strong terahertz electromagnetic waves are emitted after the resonant excitation of the interband transition between the Rashba-type spin-splitting energy bands with a femtosecond laser pulse circularly polarized. The phase of the emitted terahertz waves is reversed by switching the circular polarization. This suggests that the observed terahertz radiation originates from the subpicosecond spin-polarized photocurrents, which are generated by the asymmetric depopulation of the Dirac state. Our result provides a way for the current-induced terahertz radiation and its phase control by the circular polarization of incident light without external electric fields.

  12. Objectives of a prospective Ukrainian orbiter mission to the moon

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shkuratov, Yu. G.; Lytvynenko, L. M.; Shulga, V. M.; Yatskiv, Ya. S.; Vidmachenko, A. P.; Kislyulk, V. S.

    2003-06-01

    Ukraine has launch vehicles that are able to deliver about 300 kg to lunar orbit. A future Ukrainian lunar program may propose a polar orbiter. This orbiter should fill principal information gaps in our knowledge about the Moon after the Clementine and Lunar Prospector missions and future missions like Smart-1, Lunar-A, and Selene. We consider that this can be provided by radar studies of the Moon with supporting optical photopolarimetric observations from lunar polar orbit. These experiments allow one to better understand global structure of the lunar surface at a wide range of scales, from microns to kilometers. We propose three instruments for the prospective lunar orbiter. They are a synthetic aperture imaging radar, ground-penetrating radar, and imaging UV-spectropolarimeter. The main purpose of the synthetic aperture imaging radar experiment is to study with high-resolution (50 m) permanently shadowed sites in the lunar polar regions. These sites are cold traps for volatiles, and have a potential for resource utilization. Possible presence of water ice in the regolith in the sites makes them interesting for long-term manned bases on the Moon. Radar and optical imaging and mapping of other interesting regions could be also planned. Multi-frequency, multi-polarization sounding of the lunar surface with ground-penetrating radar can provide data about internal structure of the lunar surface from meters to several hundred meters deep. The ground-penetrating radar can be used for measuring megaregolith properties, detection of cryptomaria, and studies of internal structure of the largest craters. Modest spatial resolution (50 m) of the imaging UV-spectropolarimeter should provide total coverage (or coverage of a large portion) of the lunar surface in oblique viewing at large phase angles. Polarization degree at large (>90°) phase angles bears information about characteristic size of the regolith particles. Additional experiments could use the synthetic aperture

  13. Validation of early GOES-16 ABI on-orbit geometrical calibration accuracy using SNO method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Fangfang; Shao, Xi; Wu, Xiangqian; Kondratovich, Vladimir; Li, Zhengping

    2017-09-01

    The Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) onboard the GOES-16 satellite, which was launched on 19 November 2016, is the first next-generation geostationary weather instrument in the west hemisphere. It has 16 spectral solar reflective and emissive bands located in three focal plane modules (FPM): one visible and near infrared (VNIR) FPM, one midwave infrared (MWIR), and one longwave infrared (LWIR) FPM. All the ABI bands are geometeorically calibrated with new techniques of Kalman filtering and Global Positioning System (GPS) to determine the accurate spacecraft attitude and orbit configuration to meet the challenging image navigation and registration (INR) requirements of ABI data. This study is to validate the ABI navigation and band-to-band registration (BBR) accuracies using the spectrally matched pixels of the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) M-band data and the ABI images from the Simultaneous Nadir Observation (SNO) images. The preliminary results showed that during the ABI post-launch product test (PLPT) period, the ABI BBR errors at the y-direction (along the VIIRS track direction) is smaller than at the x-direction (along the VIIRS scan direction). Variations in the ABI BBR calibration residuals and navigation difference to VIIRS can be observed. Note that ABI is not operational yet and the data is experimental and still under testing. Effort is still ongoing to improve the ABI data quality.

  14. Distant retrograde orbits and the asteroid hazard

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perozzi, Ettore; Ceccaroni, Marta; Valsecchi, Giovanni B.; Rossi, Alessandro

    2017-08-01

    Distant Retrograde Orbits (DROs) gained a novel wave of fame in space mission design because of their numerous advantages within the framework of the US plans for bringing a large asteroid sample in the vicinity of the Earth as the next target for human exploration. DROs are stable solutions of the three-body problem that can be used whenever an object, whether of natural or artificial nature, is required to remain in the neighborhood of a celestial body without being gravitationally captured by it. As such, they represent an alternative option to Halo orbits around the collinear Lagrangian points L1 and L2. Also known under other names ( e.g., quasi-satellite orbits, cis-lunar orbits, family- f orbits) these orbital configurations found interesting applications in several mission profiles, like that of a spacecraft orbiting around the small irregularly shaped satellite of Mars Phobos or the large Jovian moon Europa. In this paper a basic explanation of the DRO dynamics is presented in order to clarify some geometrical properties that characterize them. Their accessibility is then discussed from the point of view of mission analysis under different assumptions. Finally, their relevance within the framework of the present asteroid hazard protection programs is shown, stressing the significant increase in warning time they would provide in the prediction of impactors coming from the direction of the Sun.

  15. Lightning measurements from the Pioneer Venus Orbiter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scarf, F. L.; Russell, C. T.

    1983-01-01

    The plasma wave instrument on the Pioneer Venus Orbiter frequently detects strong and impulsive low-frequency signals when the spacecraft traverses the nightside ionosphere near periapsis. These particular noise bursts appear only when the local magnetic field is strong and steady and when the field is oriented to point down to the ionosphere thus; the signals have all characteristics of lightning whistlers. We have tried to identify lightning sources between the cloud layers and the planet itself by tracing rays along the B-field from the Orbiter down toward the surface. An extensive data set, consisting of measurements through Orbit 1185, strongly indicates a clustering of lightning sources near the Beta and Phoebe Regios, with an additional significant cluster near the Atla Regio at the eastern edge of Aphrodite Terra. These results suggest that there are localized lightning sources at or near the planetary surface.

  16. Large Scale Experiments on Spacecraft Fire Safety

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urban, David; Ruff, Gary A.; Minster, Olivier; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos; Tien, James S.; Torero, Jose L.; Legros, Guillaume; Eigenbrod, Christian; Smirnov, Nickolay; Fujita, Osamu; hide

    2012-01-01

    Full scale fire testing complemented by computer modelling has provided significant knowhow about the risk, prevention and suppression of fire in terrestrial systems (cars, ships, planes, buildings, mines, and tunnels). In comparison, no such testing has been carried out for manned spacecraft due to the complexity, cost and risk associated with operating a long duration fire safety experiment of a relevant size in microgravity. Therefore, there is currently a gap in knowledge of fire behaviour in spacecraft. The entire body of low-gravity fire research has either been conducted in short duration ground-based microgravity facilities or has been limited to very small fuel samples. Still, the work conducted to date has shown that fire behaviour in low-gravity is very different from that in normal gravity, with differences observed for flammability limits, ignition delay, flame spread behaviour, flame colour and flame structure. As a result, the prediction of the behaviour of fires in reduced gravity is at present not validated. To address this gap in knowledge, a collaborative international project, Spacecraft Fire Safety, has been established with its cornerstone being the development of an experiment (Fire Safety 1) to be conducted on an ISS resupply vehicle, such as the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) or Orbital Cygnus after it leaves the ISS and before it enters the atmosphere. A computer modelling effort will complement the experimental effort. Although the experiment will need to meet rigorous safety requirements to ensure the carrier vehicle does not sustain damage, the absence of a crew removes the need for strict containment of combustion products. This will facilitate the possibility of examining fire behaviour on a scale that is relevant to spacecraft fire safety and will provide unique data for fire model validation. This unprecedented opportunity will expand the understanding of the fundamentals of fire behaviour in spacecraft. The experiment is being

  17. Filter Strategies for Mars Science Laboratory Orbit Determination

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thompson, Paul F.; Gustafson, Eric D.; Kruizinga, Gerhard L.; Martin-Mur, Tomas J.

    2013-01-01

    The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft had ambitious navigation delivery and knowledge accuracy requirements for landing inside Gale Crater. Confidence in the orbit determination (OD) solutions was increased by investigating numerous filter strategies for solving the orbit determination problem. We will discuss the strategy for the different types of variations: for example, data types, data weights, solar pressure model covariance, and estimating versus considering model parameters. This process generated a set of plausible OD solutions that were compared to the baseline OD strategy. Even implausible or unrealistic results were helpful in isolating sensitivities in the OD solutions to certain model parameterizations or data types.

  18. Galileo spacecraft solid-state imaging system view of Antarctica

    Science.gov (United States)

    1990-01-01

    Galileo spacecraft solid-state imaging system view of Antarctica was taken during its first encounter with the Earth. This color picture of Antarctica is part of a mosaic of pictures covering the entire polar continent showing the Ross Ice Shelf and its border with the sea and mountains poking through the ice near the McMurdo Station. From top to bottom, the frame looks across about half of Antarctica. View provided by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) with alternate number P-37297.

  19. A Mars orbiter/rover/penetrator mission for the 1984 opportunity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hastrup, R.; Driver, J.; Nagorski, R.

    1977-01-01

    A point design mission is described that utilizes the 1984 opportunity to extend the exploration of Mars after the successful Viking operations and provide the additional scientific information needed before conducting a sample return mission. Two identical multi-element spacecraft are employed, each consisting of (1) an orbiter, (2) a Viking-derived landing system that delivers a heavily instrumented, semi-autonomous rover, and (3) three penetrators deployed from the approach trajectory. Selection of the orbit profiles requires consideration of several important factors in order to satisfy all of the mission goals.

  20. Spacecraft radiator systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anderson, Grant A. (Inventor)

    2012-01-01

    A spacecraft radiator system designed to provide structural support to the spacecraft. Structural support is provided by the geometric "crescent" form of the panels of the spacecraft radiator. This integration of radiator and structural support provides spacecraft with a semi-monocoque design.

  1. A simultaneous estimation of the mass of Mars and its natural satellites, Phobos and Deimos, from the orbital perturbations on the Mariner 9, Viking 1, and Viking 2 orbiters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lemoine, F. G.; Smith, D. E.; Fricke, S. K.; Mccarthy, J. J.

    1993-01-01

    The natural satellites of Mars, Phobos and Deimos, caused perturbations on the orbits of the Mariner 9, and the Viking spacecraft that were used to estimate the satellite masses. The Viking spacecraft were specifically targeted to make close flybys (within a few hundred kilometers) of Phobos in February 1977 and of Deimos in October 1977. These close encounters were used to estimate the moon's gravitational constant, GM (the universal constant of gravitation multiplied by the satellite mass). However, the Viking and Mariner 9 spacecraft made numerous flybys of Phobos and Deimos at distances of a few thousand kilometers. The tracking data from these more 'distant' encounters were processed to estimate the masses of Mars, Phobos, and Deimos.

  2. Efficient spin filtering in a disordered semiconductor superlattice in the presence of Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Khayatzadeh Mahani, Mohammad Reza; Faizabadi, Edris

    2008-01-01

    The influence of the Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling on spin polarization by tunneling through a disordered semiconductor superlattice was investigated. The Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling causes the spin polarization of the electron due to transmission possibilities difference between spin up and spin down electrons. The electron tunneling through a zinc-blende semiconductor superlattice with InAs and GaAs layers and two variable distance In x Ga (1-x) As impurity layers was studied. One hundred percent spin polarization was obtained by optimizing the distance between two impurity layers and impurity percent in disordered layers in the presence of Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling. In addition, the electron transmission probability through the mentioned superlattice is too much near to one and an efficient spin filtering was recommended

  3. Development and experimentation of LQR/APF guidance and control for autonomous proximity maneuvers of multiple spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bevilacqua, R.; Lehmann, T.; Romano, M.

    2011-04-01

    This work introduces a novel control algorithm for close proximity multiple spacecraft autonomous maneuvers, based on hybrid linear quadratic regulator/artificial potential function (LQR/APF), for applications including autonomous docking, on-orbit assembly and spacecraft servicing. Both theoretical developments and experimental validation of the proposed approach are presented. Fuel consumption is sub-optimized in real-time through re-computation of the LQR at each sample time, while performing collision avoidance through the APF and a high level decisional logic. The underlying LQR/APF controller is integrated with a customized wall-following technique and a decisional logic, overcoming problems such as local minima. The algorithm is experimentally tested on a four spacecraft simulators test bed at the Spacecraft Robotics Laboratory of the Naval Postgraduate School. The metrics to evaluate the control algorithm are: autonomy of the system in making decisions, successful completion of the maneuver, required time, and propellant consumption.

  4. A spacecraft's own ambient environment: The role of simulation-based research

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ketsdever, Andrew D. [University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Colorado Springs, CO (United States); Gimelshein, Sergey [University of Southern California, Department of Astronautical Engineering, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

    2014-12-09

    Spacecraft contamination has long been a subject of study in the rarefied gas dynamics community. Professor Mikhail Ivanov coined the term a spacecraft's 'own ambient environment' to describe the effects of natural and satellite driven processes on the conditions encountered by a spacecraft in orbit. Outgassing, thruster firings, and gas and liquid dumps all contribute to the spacecraft's contamination environment. Rarefied gas dynamic modeling techniques, such as Direct Simulation Monte Carlo, are well suited to investigate these spacebased environments. However, many advances were necessary to fully characterize the extent of this problem. A better understanding of modeling flows over large pressure ranges, for example hybrid continuum and rarefied numerical schemes, were required. Two-phase flow modeling under rarefied conditions was necessary. And the ability to model plasma flows for a new era of propulsion systems was also required. Through the work of Professor Ivanov and his team, we now have a better understanding of processes that create a spacecraft's own ambient environment and are able to better characterize these environments. Advances in numerical simulation have also spurred on the development of experimental facilities to study these effects. The relationship between numerical results and experimental advances will be explored in this manuscript.

  5. Photo-Induced Electron Spin Polarization in a Narrow Band Gap Semiconductor Nanostructure

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Peter, A. John; Lee, Chang Woo

    2012-01-01

    Photo-induced spin dependent electron transmission through a narrow gap InSb/InGa x Sb 1−x semiconductor symmetric well is theoretically studied using transfer matrix formulism. The transparency of electron transmission is calculated as a function of electron energy for different concentrations of gallium. Enhanced spin-polarized photon assisted resonant tunnelling in the heterostructure due to Dresselhaus and Rashba spin-orbit coupling induced splitting of the resonant level and compressed spin-polarization are observed. Our results show that Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling is dominant for the photon effect and the computed polarization efficiency increases with the photon effect and the gallium concentration

  6. Evidence for a new geomagnetic reversal from lava flows in Idaho: discussion of short polarity reversals in the Brunhes and late Matuyama Polarity Chrons

    Science.gov (United States)

    Champion, D.E.; Lanphere, M.A.; Kuntz, M.A.

    1988-01-01

    K-Ar ages and paleomagnetic data for basalt samples from a new core hole (site E) at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) indicate that the age of the reversed polarity event recorded in Snake River Plain lavas is older than 465 ?? 50 ka (1000 years before present) reported previously by Champion et al. (1981). A review of data documenting short reversal records from volcanic and sedimentary rocks shows that there is evidence for eight polarity subchrons in the Brunhes and two besides the Jaramillo in the late Matuyama. These 10 short subchrons begin to indicate the many short events that Cox (1968) hypothesized must exist if polarity interval lengths have a Poisson distribution. The mean sustained polarity interval length since late Matuyama Chron time is 90 000 years. The similarity of this number with the 105-year period of the Earth's orbital eccentricity suggests anew that linkage between geomagnetic, paleoclimatic, and possible underlying Earth orbital parameters should be evaluated. -from Authors

  7. Single Stage To Orbit Minimum Requirements Through Numerical Simulation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Teixeira, E.

    It is widely known that producing a single stage to orbit spacecraft is no easy task. It is also understood that it will be the first steady step towards spacecraft that operate in much the same way as today's airliners. This, in turn is believed to decrease the economical cost of reaching space through more efficient use of a single vehicle and higher launch rates. Space is then open to the common man, either through tourism or as a transportation medium. This paper is yet another study on the physical requirements of a SSTO spacecraft. It will begin with simple assumptions and gradually build up accuracy until reaching the use of a numerical simulation tool, so as to provide the necessary insight into it. The curvature of the Earth, its gravitational field, the exhaust pressure loss and atmospheric drag are a few of the considerations that the simulation takes into account. No attention was give to the actual details of the spacecraft such as propulsion type(s), winged or lifting body (aerodynamics), active or passive cooling (thermodynamics), stability and control. All these subsystems are considered to be included into the construction mass. The drag model is a simple textbook approximation and the propulsion force is given by a hypothetical propellant and engine so as to produce the assumed range of specific impulse. Even the construction mass is supposed to be futuristic so as to reach the lowest specified values. Not only vertical take-off will be simulated but also horizontal launching from altitude (from a towing aircraft, for example). The result of the paper shows the relationship between the construction mass and the specific impulse of a given spacecraft if it is to reach low earth orbit. This paper thus aims at bringing some light to the controversial discussion of how to make these vehicles a reality. The simulation program (Matlab) is available to students.

  8. Polarization of photoelectrons produced from atoms by synchrotron radiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hughes, V.W.; Lu, D.C.; Huang, K.N.

    1981-01-01

    The polarization of photoelectrons from stoms has proved to be an important tool for studying correlation effects in atoms, as well as relativistic effects such as the spin-orbit interaction. Extensive experimental and theoretical studies have been made of the Fano effect, which is the production of polarized electrons by photoionization of unpolarized atoms by circularly polarized light. The experiments have dealt mostly with alkali atoms and with photon energies slightly above the ionization thresholds. Measurements that could be made to utilize polarized radiation are discussed

  9. Lunar Gravity-Assist Maneuver As a Way of Reducing the Orbit Amplitude in the Spectrum-Röntgen-Gamma Project

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kovalenko, I. D.; Eismont, N. A.

    2018-04-01

    Spectrum-Röntgen-Gamma (SRG) is a space observatory designed to observe astrophysical objects in the X-ray range of the electromagnetic spectrum. SRG is planned to be launched in 2019 by a Proton-M launch vehicle with a DM3 upper stage. The spacecraft will be delivered to an orbit around the Sun-Earth collinear libration point L2 located at a distance of 1.5 million km from the Earth. Although the SRG launch scheme has already been determined at present, in this paper we consider an alternative spacecraft transfer scenario using a lunar gravity-assist maneuver. The proposed scenario allows a oneimpulse transfer from a low Earth orbit to a small-amplitude orbit around the libration point to be performed while fulfilling the technical constraints and the scientific requirements of the mission.

  10. Laboratory Spacecraft Data Processing and Instrument Autonomy: AOSAT as Testbed

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lightholder, Jack; Asphaug, Erik; Thangavelautham, Jekan

    2015-11-01

    Recent advances in small spacecraft allow for their use as orbiting microgravity laboratories (e.g. Asphaug and Thangavelautham LPSC 2014) that will produce substantial amounts of data. Power, bandwidth and processing constraints impose limitations on the number of operations which can be performed on this data as well as the data volume the spacecraft can downlink. We show that instrument autonomy and machine learning techniques can intelligently conduct data reduction and downlink queueing to meet data storage and downlink limitations. As small spacecraft laboratory capabilities increase, we must find techniques to increase instrument autonomy and spacecraft scientific decision making. The Asteroid Origins Satellite (AOSAT) CubeSat centrifuge will act as a testbed for further proving these techniques. Lightweight algorithms, such as connected components analysis, centroid tracking, K-means clustering, edge detection, convex hull analysis and intelligent cropping routines can be coupled with the tradition packet compression routines to reduce data transfer per image as well as provide a first order filtering of what data is most relevant to downlink. This intelligent queueing provides timelier downlink of scientifically relevant data while reducing the amount of irrelevant downlinked data. Resulting algorithms allow for scientists to throttle the amount of data downlinked based on initial experimental results. The data downlink pipeline, prioritized for scientific relevance based on incorporated scientific objectives, can continue from the spacecraft until the data is no longer fruitful. Coupled with data compression and cropping strategies at the data packet level, bandwidth reductions exceeding 40% can be achieved while still downlinking data deemed to be most relevant in a double blind study between scientist and algorithm. Applications of this technology allow for the incorporation of instrumentation which produces significant data volumes on small spacecraft

  11. Dynamics of Orbits near 3:1 Resonance in the Earth-Moon System

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dichmann, Donald J.; Lebois, Ryan; Carrico, John P., Jr.

    2013-01-01

    The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) spacecraft is currently in a highly elliptical orbit around Earth with a period near 3:1 resonance with the Moon. Its orbit is oriented so that apogee does not approach the Moon. Simulations show this orbit to be remarkably stable over the next twenty years. This article examines the dynamics of such orbits in the Circular Restricted 3-Body Problem (CR3BP). We look at three types of periodic orbits, each exhibiting a type of symmetry of the CR3BP. For each of the orbit types, we assess the local stability using Floquet analysis. Although not all of the periodic solutions are stable in the mathematical sense, any divergence is so slow as to produce practical stability over several decades. We use Poincare maps with twenty-year propagations to assess the nonlinear stability of the orbits, where the perturbation magnitudes are related to the orbit uncertainty for the IBEX mission. Finally we show that these orbits belong to a family of orbits connected in a bifurcation diagram that exhibits exchange of stability. The analysis of these families of period orbits provides a valuable starting point for a mission orbit trade study.

  12. Comparison of ground-based and Viking Orbiter measurements of Martian water vapor - Variability of the seasonal cycle

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jakosky, B. M.; Barker, E. S.

    1984-01-01

    Earth-based observations of Mars atmospheric water vapor are presented for the 1975-1976, 1977-1978, and 1983 apparitions. Comparisons are made with near-simultaneous spacecraft measurements made from the Viking Orbiter Mars Atmospheric Water Detection experiment during 1976-1978 and with previous earth-based measurements. Differences occur between the behavior in the different years, and may be related to the Mars climate. Measurements during the southern summer in 1969 indicate a factor of three times as much water as is present at this same season in other years. This difference may have resulted from the sublimation of water from the south polar residual cap upon removal of most or all of the CO2 ice present; sublimation of all of the CO2 ice during some years could be a result of a greater thermal load being placed on the cap due to the presence of differing amounts of atmospheric dust.

  13. The HIA instrument on board the Tan Ce 1 Double Star near-equatorial spacecraft and its first results

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Rème

    2005-11-01

    Full Text Available On 29 December 2003, the Chinese spacecraft Tan Ce 1 (TC-1, the first component of the Double Star mission, was successfully launched within a low-latitude eccentric orbit. In the framework of the scientific cooperation between the Academy of Sciences of China and ESA, several European instruments, identical to those developed for the Cluster spacecraft, were installed on board this spacecraft. The HIA (Hot Ion Analyzer instrument on board the TC-1 spacecraft is an ion spectrometer nearly identical to the HIA sensor of the CIS instrument on board the 4 Cluster spacecraft. This instrument has been specially adapted for TC-1. It measures the 3-D distribution functions of the ions between 5 eV/q and 32 keV/q without mass discrimination. TC-1 is like a fifth Cluster spacecraft to study the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere and to study geomagnetic storms and magnetospheric substorms in the near equatorial plane. HIA was commissioned in February 2004. Due to the 2 RE higher apogee than expected, some in-flight improvements were needed in order to use HIA in the solar wind in the initial phase of the mission. Since this period HIA has obtained very good measurements in the solar wind, the magnetosheath, the dayside and nightside plasma sheet, the ring current and the radiation belts. We present here the first results in the different regions of the magnetosphere and in the solar wind. Some of them are very new and include, for example, ion dispersion structures in the bow shock and ion beams close to the magnetopause. The huge interest in the orbit of TC-1 is strongly demonstrated.

  14. The HIA instrument on board the Tan Ce 1 Double Star near-equatorial spacecraft and its first results

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Rème

    2005-11-01

    Full Text Available On 29 December 2003, the Chinese spacecraft Tan Ce 1 (TC-1, the first component of the Double Star mission, was successfully launched within a low-latitude eccentric orbit. In the framework of the scientific cooperation between the Academy of Sciences of China and ESA, several European instruments, identical to those developed for the Cluster spacecraft, were installed on board this spacecraft.

    The HIA (Hot Ion Analyzer instrument on board the TC-1 spacecraft is an ion spectrometer nearly identical to the HIA sensor of the CIS instrument on board the 4 Cluster spacecraft. This instrument has been specially adapted for TC-1. It measures the 3-D distribution functions of the ions between 5 eV/q and 32 keV/q without mass discrimination.

    TC-1 is like a fifth Cluster spacecraft to study the interaction of the solar wind with the magnetosphere and to study geomagnetic storms and magnetospheric substorms in the near equatorial plane.

    HIA was commissioned in February 2004. Due to the 2 RE higher apogee than expected, some in-flight improvements were needed in order to use HIA in the solar wind in the initial phase of the mission. Since this period HIA has obtained very good measurements in the solar wind, the magnetosheath, the dayside and nightside plasma sheet, the ring current and the radiation belts. We present here the first results in the different regions of the magnetosphere and in the solar wind. Some of them are very new and include, for example, ion dispersion structures in the bow shock and ion beams close to the magnetopause. The huge interest in the orbit of TC-1 is strongly demonstrated.

  15. The Rosetta Mission - Where no Spacecraft has gone before

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2015-01-01

    This Talk will provide an overview on the Scientific Highlights of the Rosetta Mission. After travelling through the Solar System for nearly 10 years Rosetta arrived at its main target, Comet 67/P Churyumov-Gerasimenko, in August 2014. Following an initial characterisation of the Comet, the lander unit Philae touched down on the partly active Nucleus on November 12 of the same year. The data acquired from the numerous instruments onboard the Spacecraft provides a unique insight into the properties of the Comets. While most of the measurements and processing of the data are still ongoing, the results from the Mission provide continuous surprises to the scientific community. While the Lander has been reactivated with some difficulties after a few months of inactivity due to low insolation levels, the Orbiter is pursuing its main mission objectives until the end of its extended Mission in Autumn 2016. During the long journey, the Spacecraft had encountered Earth, Mars and two Asteroids ( 2867 Šteins and 21 Lu...

  16. Man-Made Debris In and From Lunar Orbit

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Nicholas L.; McKay, Gordon A. (Technical Monitor)

    1999-01-01

    During 1966-1976, as part of the first phase of lunar exploration, 29 manned and robotic missions placed more than 40 objects into lunar orbit. Whereas several vehicles later successfully landed on the Moon and/or returned to Earth, others were either abandoned in orbit or intentionally sent to their destruction on the lunar surface. The former now constitute a small population of lunar orbital debris; the latter, including four Lunar Orbiters and four Lunar Module ascent stages, have contributed to nearly 50 lunar sites of man's refuse. Other lunar satellites are known or suspected of having fallen from orbit. Unlike Earth satellite orbital decays and deorbits, lunar satellites impact the lunar surface unscathed by atmospheric burning or melting. Fragmentations of lunar satellites, which would produce clouds of numerous orbital debris, have not yet been detected. The return to lunar orbit in the 1990's by the Hagoromo, Hiten, Clementine, and Lunar Prospector spacecraft and plans for increased lunar exploration early in the 21st century, raise questions of how best to minimize and to dispose of lunar orbital debris. Some of the lessons learned from more than 40 years of Earth orbit exploitation can be applied to the lunar orbital environment. For the near-term, perhaps the most important of these is postmission passivation. Unique solutions, e.g., lunar equatorial dumps, may also prove attractive. However, as with Earth satellites, debris mitigation measures are most effectively adopted early in the concept and design phase, and prevention is less costly than remediation.

  17. Near real-time geocoding of SAR imagery with orbit error removal.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Smith, A.J.E.

    2003-01-01

    When utilizing knowledge of the spacecraft trajectory for near real-time geocoding of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images, the main problem is that predicted satellite orbits have to be used, which may be in error by several kilometres. As part of the development of a Dutch autonomous mobile

  18. A high-energy (35-500 MeV) proton monitor for the Gravity Probe-B Mission

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McKenna-Lawlor, S. E-mail: stil@may.ie; Rusznyak, Peter; Buchman, Sasha; Shestople, Paul; Thatcher, John

    2003-02-11

    An innovative fault tolerant, high-energy particle monitor designed to record protons in the range 35-500 MeV when in polar orbit aboard NASA's Gravity Probe B spacecraft, is described. This device, which is configured to provide continuous, reliable operation in the hostile particle environment traversed by the spacecraft, can potentially be used either as an onboard monitor or as a scientific experiment.

  19. Verification of possible asymmetry of polarization of thermal neutrons reflected by a mirror

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Okorokov, A.I.; Runov, V.V.; Gukasov, A.G.; Shchebetov, A.F.

    1976-01-01

    Experiments with a polarizing neutron guide do not confirm the neutron polarization asymmetry observed previously by Berndorfer for neutrons traversing a polarizing neutron guide. In connection with the spin-orbit effects a verification is carried out on single reflection of neutrons by magnetic or nonmagnetic mirrors. With an accuracy of 10 -4 -10 -3 no polarization asymmetry is observed

  20. Radio occultation studies of the Venus atmosphere with the Magellan spacecraft. 2: Results from the October 1991 experiments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jenkins, Jon M.; Steffes, Paul G.; Hinson, David P.; Twicken, Joseph D.; Tyler, G. Leonard

    1994-01-01

    On October 5 and 6, 1991, three dual-frequency ingress radio occultation experiments were conducted at Venus during consecutive orbits of the Magellan spacecraft. The radio signals probed a region of the atmosphere near 65 deg N, with a solar zenith angle of 108 deg, reaching below 35 km at 3.6 cm, and below 34 km at 13 cm (above a mean radius of 6052 km). The high effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) of the Magellan spacecraft and highly successful attitude maneuvers allowed these signals to probe deeper than any previous radio occultation experiment and also resulted in the most accurate thermal and sulfuric acid vapor abundance profiles ever obtained at Venus through radio occultation techniques. The performance of the spacecraft and the experiment design are discussed in an accompanying paper. Average electron density profiles retrieved from the data possess peaks between 2600 and 6000/cu cm, well below typical values of 10,000/cu cm retrieved in 1979 by Pioneer Venus at similar solar zenith angles. Other basic results include vertical profiles of temperature, pressure, and density in the neutral atmosphere, 13- and 3.6-cm absorpttivity, and H2SO4 (g) abundance below the main cloud layer. H2SO4 (g) becomes significant below 50 km, reaching peaks between 18 and 24 ppm near 39 km before dropping precipitously below 38 km. These sharp decreases confirm the thermal decomposition of sulfuric acid vapor below 39 km. Since the Venus atmosphere rotated approximately 10 deg between experiments, the data contain information about the horizontal variability of the atmosphere. All derived profiles exhibit significant variations from orbit to orbit, indicating the presence of dynamical processes between 33 and 200 km. In particular, the orbit-to-orbit variations in temperature and in H2SO4 (g) abundance appear to be correlated, suggesting that a common mechanism may be responsible for the observed spatial variations.

  1. Contrast in low-cost operational concepts for orbiting satellites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walyus, Keith D.; Reis, James; Bradley, Arthur J.

    2002-12-01

    Older spacecraft missions, especially those in low Earth orbit with telemetry intensive requirements, required round-the-clock control center staffing. The state of technology relied on control center personnel to continually examine data, make decisions, resolve anomalies, and file reports. Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is a prime example of this description. Technological advancements in hardware and software over the last decade have yielded increases in productivity and operational efficiency, which result in lower cost. The re-engineering effort of HST, which has recently concluded, utilized emerging technology to reduce cost and increase productivity. New missions, of which NASA's Transition Region and Coronal Explorer Satellite (TRACE) is an example, have benefited from recent technological advancements and are more cost-effective than when HST was first launched. During its launch (1998) and early orbit phase, the TRACE Flight Operations Team (FOT) employed continually staffed operations. Yet once the mission entered its nominal phase, the FOT reduced their staffing to standard weekday business hours. Operations were still conducted at night and during the weekends, but these operations occurred autonomously without compromising their high standards for data collections. For the HST, which launched in 1990, reduced cost operations will employ a different operational concept, when the spacecraft enters its low-cost phase after its final servicing mission in 2004. Primarily due to the spacecraft"s design, the HST Project has determined that single-shift operations will introduce unacceptable risks for the amount of dollars saved. More importantly, significant cost-savings can still be achieved by changing the operational concept for the FOT, while still maintaining round-the-clock staffing. It"s important to note that the low-cost solutions obtained for one satellite may not be applicable for other satellites. This paper will contrast the differences between

  2. Autonomous Phase-Space Mapping and Navigation for Spacecraft Operations in Extreme Orbital Environments

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The objective of the proposed research is to generate a suite of algorithms for the autonomous navigation of highly nonlinear orbital regimes. These algorithms must...

  3. X-Ray Detection and Processing Models for Spacecraft Navigation and Timing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheikh, Suneel; Hanson, John

    2013-01-01

    The current primary method of deepspace navigation is the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN). High-performance navigation is achieved using Delta Differential One-Way Range techniques that utilize simultaneous observations from multiple DSN sites, and incorporate observations of quasars near the line-of-sight to a spacecraft in order to improve the range and angle measurement accuracies. Over the past four decades, x-ray astronomers have identified a number of xray pulsars with pulsed emissions having stabilities comparable to atomic clocks. The x-ray pulsar-based navigation and time determination (XNAV) system uses phase measurements from these sources to establish autonomously the position of the detector, and thus the spacecraft, relative to a known reference frame, much as the Global Positioning System (GPS) uses phase measurements from radio signals from several satellites to establish the position of the user relative to an Earth-centered fixed frame of reference. While a GPS receiver uses an antenna to detect the radio signals, XNAV uses a detector array to capture the individual xray photons from the x-ray pulsars. The navigation solution relies on detailed xray source models, signal processing, navigation and timing algorithms, and analytical tools that form the basis of an autonomous XNAV system. Through previous XNAV development efforts, some techniques have been established to utilize a pulsar pulse time-of-arrival (TOA) measurement to correct a position estimate. One well-studied approach, based upon Kalman filter methods, optimally adjusts a dynamic orbit propagation solution based upon the offset in measured and predicted pulse TOA. In this delta position estimator scheme, previously estimated values of spacecraft position and velocity are utilized from an onboard orbit propagator. Using these estimated values, the detected arrival times at the spacecraft of pulses from a pulsar are compared to the predicted arrival times defined by the pulsar s pulse

  4. Geometric phase due to orbit-orbit interaction: rotating LP11 modes in a two-mode fiber

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pradeep Chakravarthy, T.; Naik, Dinesh N.; Viswanathan, Nirmal K.

    2017-10-01

    Accumulation of geometric phase due to non-coplanar propagation of higher-order modes in an optical fiber is experimentally demonstrated. Vertically-polarized LP11 fiber mode, excited in a horizontally-held, torsion-free, step-index, two-mode optical fiber, rotates due to asymmetry in the propagating k-vectors, arising due to off-centered beam location at the fiber input. Perceiving the process as due to rotation of the fiber about the off-axis launch position, the orbital Berry phase accumulation upon scanning the launch position in a closed-loop around the fiber axis manifests as rotational Doppler effect, a consequence of orbit-orbit interaction. The anticipated phase accumulation as a function of the input launch position, observed through interferometry is connected to the mode rotation angle, quantified using the autocorrelation method.

  5. Development of preliminary design concept for a multifunction display and control system for the Orbiter crew station. Task 4: Design concept recommendation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spiger, R. J.; Farrell, R. J.; Holcomb, G. A.

    1982-01-01

    Application of multifunction display and control systems to the NASA Orbiter spacecraft offers the potential for reducing crew workload and improving the presentation of system status and operational data to the crew. A design concept is presented for the application of a multifunction display and control system (MFDCS) to the Orbital Maneuvering System and Electrical Power Distribution and Control System on the Orbiter spacecraft. The MFDCS would provide the capability for automation of procedures, fault prioritization and software reconfiguration of the MFDCS data base. The MFDCS would operate as a stand-alone processor to minimize the impact on the current Orbiter software. Supervisory crew command of all current functions would be retained through the use of several operating modes in the system. Both the design concept and the processes followed in defining the concept are described.

  6. Thermal simulations of the STIX instrument for ESA Solar Orbiter mission

    Science.gov (United States)

    Białek, Agata; Severyn, Karol; Grassmann, Kamil; Orleańskii, Piotr; Skup, Konrad R.; Arnold, Nicolas; Gröbelbauer, Hans-Peter; Hurford, Gordon J.; Krucker, Samuel; Bauer, Svend-Marian; Mann, Gottfied; Önel, Hakan; Bernet, Adeline; Blecha, Luc; Grimm, Oliver; Limousin, Olivier; Martignac, Jerome; Meuris, Aline

    2013-07-01

    The ESA Solar Orbiter mission, planned to be launched in 2017, is going to study the Sun with ten different instruments including the Spectrometer/Telescope for Imaging X-rays - STIX. The thermal environment on the elliptical orbit around the Sun - 0.28 AU at perihelion and 0.952 AU at aphelion - is extreme, where at one point of the orbit is very hot, while on another very cold. That makes the requirements for the heat fluxes exchanged between each instrument and the spacecraft, as well as between the instrument - subsystems, very restrictive. Here the authors discuss the thermal design with respect to the defined requirements and present the results of the thermal analyses performed with ESATAN TMS software.

  7. Lunar true polar wander inferred from polar hydrogen.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Siegler, M A; Miller, R S; Keane, J T; Laneuville, M; Paige, D A; Matsuyama, I; Lawrence, D J; Crotts, A; Poston, M J

    2016-03-24

    The earliest dynamic and thermal history of the Moon is not well understood. The hydrogen content of deposits near the lunar poles may yield insight into this history, because these deposits (which are probably composed of water ice) survive only if they remain in permanent shadow. If the orientation of the Moon has changed, then the locations of the shadowed regions will also have changed. The polar hydrogen deposits have been mapped by orbiting neutron spectrometers, and their observed spatial distribution does not match the expected distribution of water ice inferred from present-day lunar temperatures. This finding is in contrast to the distribution of volatiles observed in similar thermal environments at Mercury's poles. Here we show that polar hydrogen preserves evidence that the spin axis of the Moon has shifted: the hydrogen deposits are antipodal and displaced equally from each pole along opposite longitudes. From the direction and magnitude of the inferred reorientation, and from analysis of the moments of inertia of the Moon, we hypothesize that this change in the spin axis, known as true polar wander, was caused by a low-density thermal anomaly beneath the Procellarum region. Radiogenic heating within this region resulted in the bulk of lunar mare volcanism and altered the density structure of the Moon, changing its moments of inertia. This resulted in true polar wander consistent with the observed remnant polar hydrogen. This thermal anomaly still exists and, in part, controls the current orientation of the Moon. The Procellarum region was most geologically active early in lunar history, which implies that polar wander initiated billions of years ago and that a large portion of the measured polar hydrogen is ancient, recording early delivery of water to the inner Solar System. Our hypothesis provides an explanation for the antipodal distribution of lunar polar hydrogen, and connects polar volatiles to the geologic and geophysical evolution of the Moon

  8. Effects of finite coverage on global polarization observables in heavy ion collisions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lan, Shaowei; Lin, Zi-Wei; Shi, Shusu; Sun, Xu

    2018-05-01

    In non-central relativistic heavy ion collisions, the created matter possesses a large initial orbital angular momentum. Particles produced in the collisions could be polarized globally in the direction of the orbital angular momentum due to spin-orbit coupling. Recently, the STAR experiment has presented polarization signals for Λ hyperons and possible spin alignment signals for ϕ mesons. Here we discuss the effects of finite coverage on these observables. The results from a multi-phase transport and a toy model both indicate that a pseudorapidity coverage narrower than | η | value for the extracted ϕ-meson ρ00 parameter; thus a finite coverage can lead to an artificial deviation of ρ00 from 1/3. We also show that a finite η and pT coverage affect the extracted pH parameter for Λ hyperons when the real pH value is non-zero. Therefore proper corrections are necessary to reliably quantify the global polarization with experimental observables.

  9. Polar observations of electron density distribution in the Earth’s magnetosphere. 2. Density profiles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Laakso

    2002-11-01

    Full Text Available Using spacecraft potential measurements of the Polar electric field experiment, we investigate electron density variations of key plasma regions within the magnetosphere, including the polar cap, cusp, trough, plasmapause, and auroral zone. The statistical results were presented in the first part of this study, and the present paper reports detailed structures revealed by individual satellite passes. The high-altitude (> 3 RE polar cap is generally one of the most tenuous regions in the magnetosphere, but surprisingly, the polar cap boundary does not appear as a steep density decline. At low altitudes (1 RE in summer, the polar densities are very high, several 100 cm-3 , and interestingly, the density peaks at the central polar cap. On the noonside of the polar cap, the cusp appears as a dense, 1–3° wide region. A typical cusp density above 4 RE distance is between several 10 cm-3 and a few 100 cm-3 . On some occasions the cusp is crossed multiple times in a single pass, simultaneously with the occurrence of IMF excursions, as the cusp can instantly shift its position under varying solar wind conditions, similar to the magnetopause. On the nightside, the auroral zone is not always detected as a simple density cavity. Cavities are observed but their locations, strengths, and sizes vary. Also, the electric field perturbations do not necessarily overlap with the cavities: there are cavities with no field disturbances, as well as electric field disturbances observed with no clear cavitation. In the inner magnetosphere, the density distributions clearly show that the plasmapause and trough densities are well correlated with geomagnetic activity. Data from individual orbits near noon and midnight demonstrate that at the beginning of geomagnetic disturbances, the retreat speed of the plasmapause can be one L-shell per hour, while during quiet intervals the plasmapause can expand anti-earthward at the same speed. For the trough region, it is found

  10. Small Orbital Stereo Tracking Camera Technology Development

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gagliano, L.; Bryan, T.; MacLeod, T.

    On-Orbit Small Debris Tracking and Characterization is a technical gap in the current National Space Situational Awareness necessary to safeguard orbital assets and crew. This poses a major risk of MOD damage to ISS and Exploration vehicles. In 2015 this technology was added to NASAs Office of Chief Technologist roadmap. For missions flying in or assembled in or staging from LEO, the physical threat to vehicle and crew is needed in order to properly design the proper level of MOD impact shielding and proper mission design restrictions. Need to verify debris flux and size population versus ground RADAR tracking. Use of ISS for In-Situ Orbital Debris Tracking development provides attitude, power, data and orbital access without a dedicated spacecraft or restricted operations on-board a host vehicle as a secondary payload. Sensor Applicable to in-situ measuring orbital debris in flux and population in other orbits or on other vehicles. Could enhance safety on and around ISS. Some technologies extensible to monitoring of extraterrestrial debris as well To help accomplish this, new technologies must be developed quickly. The Small Orbital Stereo Tracking Camera is one such up and coming technology. It consists of flying a pair of intensified megapixel telephoto cameras to evaluate Orbital Debris (OD) monitoring in proximity of International Space Station. It will demonstrate on-orbit optical tracking (in situ) of various sized objects versus ground RADAR tracking and small OD models. The cameras are based on Flight Proven Advanced Video Guidance Sensor pixel to spot algorithms (Orbital Express) and military targeting cameras. And by using twin cameras we can provide Stereo images for ranging & mission redundancy. When pointed into the orbital velocity vector (RAM), objects approaching or near the stereo camera set can be differentiated from the stars moving upward in background.

  11. Isospin dependence of the spin-orbit splitting in nuclei

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Isakov, V.I.

    2007-01-01

    The analysis has been made of experimental data on level spectra, single-nucleon transfer reactions near closed shells, and data on polarization effects in charge-exchange (p, n) reactions between isoanalogous states of nuclei with even A. It is concluded that there is a significant difference between the spin-orbit splittings of neutrons and protons in identical orbitals. This conclusion is confirmed in the frame work of different theoretical approaches [ru

  12. A localized swarm of low-resource CubeSat-class spacecraft for auroral ionospheric science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clayton, R.; Lynch, K. A.; Gayetsky, L.; Guinther, J.; Slagle, A.; Currey, S.

    2012-12-01

    In interesting and dynamic auroral ionospheric plasmas, single-point in situ measurements are insufficient. Changes in measurements recorded from a single probe can be ascribed to either changes in position or to changes over time, and gradient scales can only be inferred. A localized array of sensors deployed as a low-resource swarm from a main deployer, can address these issues. We consider two aspects of designing such a swarm: (a) maintaining the localization in a low-cost manner, and (b) creating an extremely low-resource spacecraft by taking advantage of commercially available technologies. For a few-week low-altitude mission, STK (SatelliteToolKit) studies show that with proper deployment, an array of CubeSat-class spacecraft near 350 km altitude can regroup once per orbit to within a few 10s of km. Kepler's laws and Hill's equations allow us to put constraints on the capability of the deployer needed, in order to deploy the array with a minimal component of the ejection velocity along the orbital track. In order to keep the cost of each spacecraft low, we are exploring commercially available technologies such as Arduino controllers and video-game sensors. The Arduino on each payload will take in information from the sensors on the payload, and will send the information to a DNT-900MHz local area communications system. We show an example experiment measuring river flows on the Connecticut river, and discuss the design of our payload swarm.

  13. An Analysis of 20 Years of Space Weathering Effects on the Boeing 376 Spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Frith, James; Anz-Meador, Phillip; Cowardin, Heather; Buckalew, Brent; Lederer, Susan

    2015-01-01

    The Boeing HS-376 spin stabilized spacecraft was a popular design that was launched continuously into geosynchronous orbit starting in 1980, with the last launch occurring in 2003. Over 50 of the HS-376 buses were produced to fulfill a variety of different communication missions for countries all over the world. The design of the bus is easily approximated as a telescoping cylinder that is covered with solar cells and an Earth-facing antenna that is despun at the top of the cylinder. The similarity in design and the number of spacecraft launched over a long period of time make the HS-376 a prime target for studying the effects of solar weathering on solar panels as a function of time. A selection of primarily non-operational HS-376 spacecraft launched over a 20-year time period were observed using the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope on Mauna Kea and multi-band, near-infrared photometry produced. Each spacecraft was observed for an entire night cycling through ZYJHK filters and time-varying colors produced to compare near-infrared color as a function of launch date. The resulting analysis shown here may help in the future to set launch date constraints on the parent object of unidentified debris objects or other unknown spacecraft.

  14. A novel emergency system for low earth orbit satellites using Galileo GNSS

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Gill, E.K.A.; Helderweirt, A.

    2010-01-01

    Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites have a limited direct contact time with the stations of their ground segment. This fundamentally constraints a timeliness reaction of the mission control center in case of emergency situations onboard the LEO spacecraft. To enable such a rapid reaction to emergency

  15. Spin Orbit Torque in Ferromagnetic Semiconductors

    KAUST Repository

    Li, Hang

    2016-06-21

    Electrons not only have charges but also have spin. By utilizing the electron spin, the energy consumption of electronic devices can be reduced, their size can be scaled down and the efficiency of `read\\' and `write\\' in memory devices can be significantly improved. Hence, the manipulation of electron spin in electronic devices becomes more and more appealing for the advancement of microelectronics. In spin-based devices, the manipulation of ferromagnetic order parameter using electrical currents is a very useful means for current-driven operation. Nowadays, most of magnetic memory devices are based on the so-called spin transfer torque, which stems from the spin angular momentum transfer between a spin-polarized current and the magnetic order parameter. Recently, a novel spin torque effect, exploiting spin-orbit coupling in non-centrosymmetric magnets, has attracted a massive amount of attention. This thesis addresses the nature of spin-orbit coupled transport and torques in non-centrosymmetric magnetic semiconductors. We start with the theoretical study of spin orbit torque in three dimensional ferromagnetic GaMnAs. Using the Kubo formula, we calculate both the current-driven field-like torque and anti-damping-like torque. We compare the numerical results with the analytical expressions in the model case of a magnetic Rashba two-dimensional electron gas. Parametric dependencies of the different torque components and similarities to the analytical results of the Rashba two-dimensional electron gas in the weak disorder limit are described. Subsequently we study spin-orbit torques in two dimensional hexagonal crystals such as graphene, silicene, germanene and stanene. In the presence of staggered potential and exchange field, the valley degeneracy can be lifted and we obtain a valley-dependent Berry curvature, leading to a tunable antidamping torque by controlling the valley degree of freedom. This thesis then addresses the influence of the quantum spin Hall

  16. Two-craft Coulomb formation study about circular orbits and libration points

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inampudi, Ravi Kishore

    This dissertation investigates the dynamics and control of a two-craft Coulomb formation in circular orbits and at libration points; it addresses relative equilibria, stability and optimal reconfigurations of such formations. The relative equilibria of a two-craft tether formation connected by line-of-sight elastic forces moving in circular orbits and at libration points are investigated. In circular Earth orbits and Earth-Moon libration points, the radial, along-track, and orbit normal great circle equilibria conditions are found. An example of modeling the tether force using Coulomb force is discussed. Furthermore, the non-great-circle equilibria conditions for a two-spacecraft tether structure in circular Earth orbit and at collinear libration points are developed. Then the linearized dynamics and stability analysis of a 2-craft Coulomb formation at Earth-Moon libration points are studied. For orbit-radial equilibrium, Coulomb forces control the relative distance between the two satellites. The gravity gradient torques on the formation due to the two planets help stabilize the formation. Similar analysis is performed for along-track and orbit-normal relative equilibrium configurations. Where necessary, the craft use a hybrid thrusting-electrostatic actuation system. The two-craft dynamics at the libration points provide a general framework with circular Earth orbit dynamics forming a special case. In the presence of differential solar drag perturbations, a Lyapunov feedback controller is designed to stabilize a radial equilibrium, two-craft Coulomb formation at collinear libration points. The second part of the thesis investigates optimal reconfigurations of two-craft Coulomb formations in circular Earth orbits by applying nonlinear optimal control techniques. The objective of these reconfigurations is to maneuver the two-craft formation between two charged equilibria configurations. The reconfiguration of spacecraft is posed as an optimization problem using the

  17. Pickup ion processes associated with spacecraft thrusters: Implications for solar probe plus

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Clemens, Adam, E-mail: a.j.clemens@qmul.ac.uk; Burgess, David [School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, London (United Kingdom)

    2016-03-15

    Chemical thrusters are widely used in spacecraft for attitude control and orbital manoeuvres. They create an exhaust plume of neutral gas which produces ions via photoionization and charge exchange. Measurements of local plasma properties will be affected by perturbations caused by the coupling between the newborn ions and the plasma. A model of neutral expansion has been used in conjunction with a fully three-dimensional hybrid code to study the evolution and ionization over time of the neutral cloud produced by the firing of a mono-propellant hydrazine thruster as well as the interactions of the resulting ion cloud with the ambient solar wind. Results are presented which show that the plasma in the region near to the spacecraft will be perturbed for an extended period of time with the formation of an interaction region around the spacecraft, a moderate amplitude density bow wave bounding the interaction region and evidence of an instability at the forefront of the interaction region which causes clumps of ions to be ejected from the main ion cloud quasi-periodically.

  18. Bell’s measure and implementing quantum Fourier transform with orbital angular momentum of classical light

    Science.gov (United States)

    Song, Xinbing; Sun, Yifan; Li, Pengyun; Qin, Hongwei; Zhang, Xiangdong

    2015-01-01

    We perform Bell’s measurement for the non-separable correlation between polarization and orbital angular momentum from the same classical vortex beam. The violation of Bell’s inequality for such a non-separable classical correlation has been demonstrated experimentally. Based on the classical vortex beam and non-quantum entanglement between the polarization and the orbital angular momentum, the Hadamard gates and conditional phase gates have been designed. Furthermore, a quantum Fourier transform has been implemented experimentally. PMID:26369424

  19. Mechanically Reconfigurable Single-Arm Spiral Antenna Array for Generation of Broadband Circularly Polarized Orbital Angular Momentum Vortex Waves.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Long; Zhou, Xiaoxiao

    2018-03-23

    In this paper, a mechanically reconfigurable circular array with single-arm spiral antennas (SASAs) is designed, fabricated, and experimentally demonstrated to generate broadband circularly polarized orbital angular momentum (OAM) vortex waves in radio frequency domain. With the symmetrical and broadband properties of single-arm spiral antennas, the vortex waves with different OAM modes can be mechanically reconfigurable generated in a wide band from 3.4 GHz to 4.7 GHz. The prototype of the circular array is proposed, conducted, and fabricated to validate the theoretical analysis. The simulated and experimental results verify that different OAM modes can be effectively generated by rotating the spiral arms of single-arm spiral antennas with corresponding degrees, which greatly simplify the feeding network. The proposed method paves a reconfigurable way to generate multiple OAM vortex waves with spin angular momentum (SAM) in radio and microwave satellite communication applications.

  20. South Polar Polygons

    Science.gov (United States)

    2005-01-01

    4 July 2005 This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a polgyon-cracked surface, into which deep, somewhat kidney-bean-shaped pits have formed. These are landscapes of the martian south polar residual cap. This view was captured during May 2005. Location near: 86.9oS, 5.1oW Image width: 1.5 km (0.9 mi) Illumination from: upper left Season Southern Spring