Christopher W. T. Roscoe, Jacob D. Griesbach, Jason J. Westphal, Dean R. Hawes, and John P. Carrico, Jr., (Applied Defense Solutions, Columbia, Maryland)
Keywords: Formation Flying, Rendezvous Proximity Operations, Docking, Force Modeling, CubeSat, NanoSat
Abstract:
The state propagation accuracy resulting from different choices of gravitational force models and orbital perturbations is investigated for a pair of CubeSats flying in formation in low Earth orbit (LEO). Accurate on-board state propagation is necessary to autonomously plan maneuvers and perform proximity operations and docking safely. The ability to perform high-precision navigation is made especially challenging by the limited computer processing power available on-board the spacecraft. Propagation accuracy is investigated both in terms of the absolute (chief) state and the relative (deputy relative to chief) state. Different perturbing effects are quantified and related directly to important mission factors such as maneuver accuracy, fuel use (mission lifetime), and collision prediction/avoidance (mission safety).
Date of Conference: September 10-13, 2013
Track: Astrodynamics