Orbit Injection Considerations for Cluster Flight of Nanosatellites

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Orbit Injection Considerations for Cluster Flight of Nanosatellites

Wen, Changxuan / Zhang, Hao / Gurfil, Pini

Cluster flight is defined as the operation of multiple cooperative satellites under minimum and maximum distance constraints. Unlike traditional orbit injection of multiple noncooperative satellites, judicious constraints should be imposed on the orbit injection of a cluster. Moreover, the orbital injection should enable a fuel-efficient cluster establishment maneuver. This study develops constraints for the orbit injection of a satellite cluster. Evaluation of feasible orbit injection scenarios is performed. Particular launch vehicles and a concomitant set of orbital injection scenarios are found, which are the most suitable for long-term operation of a cluster. In addition, an efficient cluster establishment control method is developed, which prevents the cluster from drifting apart too rapidly. Several orbit injection scenarios are simulated and their feasibility for a planned cluster flight mission is evaluated. It is shown that both the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle and the Dnepr launcher can be used. In addition, a new customized release procedure is developed, which guarantees cross-track separation among the satellites, a desirable feature in a number of practical missions.