PAGE CONTENTS
Objectives
The project objectives are:
- To define collocation requirements and station keeping strategies for geostationary satellites,
- To develop a software tool and a GNCDE-compatible template in MATLAB,
- To execute simulated test scenarios.
Challenges
During the last decade, electric propulsion has become a good alternative to traditional chemical satellite propulsion, also for large and small GEO platforms. Two of the most promising technologies are Ion Gridded Engines and Hall Effect Thrusters due to their high specific impulse compared to chemical thrusters.
The project provides all the elements needed to assess, design and test a collocation strategy based on electrical propulsion for geo satellites.
Plan
The project is organised in 3 steps:
- In the first step, perturbation, satellite and electrical propulsion models are studied and a selection is performed on the models to be used. The length of this phase is approximately 4 months.
- In the second one, requirements for collocation and station keeping for electrical propulsion systems are identified. The length of this phase is approximately 3 months.
- In the third and final step, acquired knowledge is used to produce a new tool for collocation manoeuvre calculations and strategy definition. Additionally, a simulator will be developed in order to test the designed strategy. The length of this phase is approximately 5 months.
Current Status
A set of activities have been performed:
- A deep literature collection and review both for perturbation, satellite and electrical propulsion models using internal and external documentation,
- A review of existing internal software models, including routines for manoeuvre calculation, perturbation models and satellites and propulsion models,
- The results achieved so far have been already documented and are being revised.