Coupled attitude-orbit dynamics and control for an electric sail in a heliocentric transfer mission.

ABSTRACT: The paper discusses the coupled attitude-orbit dynamics and control of an electric-sail-based spacecraft in a heliocentric transfer mission. The mathematical model characterizing the propulsive thrust is first described as a function of the orbital radius and the sail angle. Since the solar wind dynamic pressure acceleration is induced by the sail attitude, the orbital and attitude dynamics of electric sails are coupled, and are discussed together. Based on the coupled equations, the flight control is investigated, wherein the orbital control is studied in an optimal framework via a hybrid optimization method and the attitude controller is designed based on feedback linearization control. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy, a transfer problem from Earth to Mars is

SUBMITTER: Huo M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4423971 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature