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A special issue of Aerospace (ISSN 2226-4310). This special issue belongs to the section "Astronautics & Space Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2021) | Viewed by 41636

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Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Fanghua Jiang

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Guest Editor

School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Interests: astrodynamics; orbit design and trajectory optimization for space exploration
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The dynamics and control for the orbit and attitude of spacecraft are fundamental to space missions both around the Earth and in deep space to and beyond the Moon. A spacecraft is generally known as a kind of man-made object that flies above the atmosphere of the Earth and far to the edge of the solar system. Although the dynamics and control of spacecraft is a traditional topic, space missions continue to be innovated, and new technologies are continuously being combined. Typical new missions include the satellite internet constellation Starlink, removal of low-Earth orbital debris, observation of gravitational waves, crewed missions to the Moon and Mars, asteroid mining and sampling return, Jovian system multiple encounter exploration, and multiple-spacecraft exploration. New technologies include novel solar sail propulsion, electric propulsion, low-energy transfer in multi-body gravitational field, novel resonant gravity assists and artificial intelligence, all of which significantly challenge the dynamics and control.

This Special Issue mainly focuses on the orbit and attitude dynamics and control of spacecraft. It is expected to include relevant new concepts, theories, models, methods, algorithms, techniques, discoveries, results, etc. Although overwhelmingly major innovation may be rare, improving traditional methods or techniques to effectively solve new problems, proposing new ones to skillfully solve old problems, and finding new interesting results in ordinary problems are all encouraged. Authors are invited to submit full research and review articles addressing (but not limited to) the following topics:

Spacecraft formation flying dynamics and control
Spacecraft constellation design and control
Orbit design of space mission with impulsive propulsion
Trajectory optimization of space mission with low-thrust propulsion
Earth observation mission planning
Near-earth debris removal
Dynamics and control of solar-sail spacecraft
Orbit dynamics in multi-body gravitational field
Artificial intelligence applied in dynamics and control of spacecraft
Observation of gravitational waves
Asteroid exploration
Jovian system exploration

Prof. Dr. Fanghua Jiang
Guest Editor

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Related Special Issue

Spacecraft Dynamics and Control (2nd Edition) in Aerospace (5 articles)

Published Papers (12 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 5289 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Free-Vertex Tetrahedral Finite-Element Representation and Its Use for Estimating Density Distribution of Irregularly-Shaped Asteroids

by Weidong Yin, Leizheng Shu, Yang Yu and Yu Shi

Aerospace 2021, 8(12), 371; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8120371 - 30 Nov 2021

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2458

Abstract

In this article, we present a free-vertex tetrahedral finite-element representation of irregularly shaped small bodies, which provides an alternative solution for estimating asteroid density distribution. We derived the transformations between gravitational potentials expressed by the free-vertex tetrahedral finite elements and the spherical harmonic functions. Inversely, the density of each free-vertex tetrahedral finite element can be estimated via the least-squares method, assuming a spherical harmonic gravitational function is present. The proposed solution is illustrated by modeling gravitational potential and estimating the density distribution of the simulated asteroid 216 Kleopatra. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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21 pages, 1155 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A New 3D Shaping Method for Low-Thrust Trajectories between Non-Intersect Orbits

by Tongxin Zhang, Di Wu, Fanghua Jiang and Hong Zhou

Aerospace 2021, 8(11), 315; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8110315 - 24 Oct 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1940

Abstract

This paper proposes a new shape-based method in spherical coordinates to solve three-dimensional rendezvous problems. Compared with the existing shape-based methods, the proposed method does not need parameter optimization. Moreover, it improves the flexibility of orbit fitting, greatly reduces the velocity increment and maximum thrust acceleration, and ensures the orbit safety to a certain extent. The shaping function can provide the initial estimate for numerical trajectory optimization and improve the convergence rate in a certain range when combined with the normalization method. The superiority of the proposed method over the existing methods is demonstrated by two numerical examples. Its effectiveness at initial estimation generation in the indirect optimization of a low-thrust trajectory is demonstrated by the third example. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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17 pages, 11656 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Two-Stage Pursuit Strategy for Incomplete-Information Impulsive Space Pursuit-Evasion Mission Using Reinforcement Learning

by Bin Yang, Pengxuan Liu, Jinglang Feng and Shuang Li

Aerospace 2021, 8(10), 299; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8100299 - 14 Oct 2021

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 3682

Abstract

This paper presents a novel and robust two-stage pursuit strategy for the incomplete-information impulsive space pursuit-evasion missions considering the J2 perturbation. The strategy firstly models the impulsive pursuit-evasion game problem into a far-distance rendezvous stage and a close-distance game stage according to the perception range of the evader. For the far-distance rendezvous stage, it is transformed into a rendezvous trajectory optimization problem and a new objective function is proposed to obtain the pursuit trajectory with the optimal terminal pursuit capability. For the close-distance game stage, a closed-loop pursuit approach is proposed using one of the reinforcement learning algorithms, i.e., the deep deterministic policy gradient algorithm, to solve and update the pursuit trajectory for the incomplete-information impulsive pursuit-evasion missions. The feasibility of this novel strategy and its robustness to different initial states of the pursuer and evader and to the evasion strategies are demonstrated for the sun-synchronous orbit pursuit-evasion game scenarios. The results of the Monte Carlo tests show that the successful pursuit ratio of the proposed method is over 91% for all the given scenarios. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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16 pages, 2973 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Orbital Design and Control for Jupiter-Observation Spacecraft

by Chunsheng Jiang, Yongjie Liu, Yu Jiang and Hengnian Li

Aerospace 2021, 8(10), 282; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8100282 - 1 Oct 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2571

Abstract

This paper investigates the evolution of orbits around Jupiter and designs a sun-synchronous repeating ground track orbit. In the dynamical models, the leading terms of the Jupiter’s oblateness are J₂ and J₄ terms. A reasonable range of ground track repetition parameter Q is given and the best observation orbit elements are selected. Meanwhile, the disturbing function acting on the navigation spacecraft is the atmospheric drag and the third body. The law of altitude decay of the spacecraft’s semimajor orbit axis caused by the atmospheric drag is studied, and the inclination perturbation caused by the sun’s gravity is analyzed. This paper designs a semimajor axis compensation strategy to maintain the orbit’s repeatability and proposes an initial inclination prebiased strategy to limit the local time at the descending node in a permitted range. In particular, these two methods are combined in the context of sun-synchronous repeating ground track orbit for better observation of the surface of Jupiter. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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19 pages, 1871 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Multisatellite Flyby Inspection Trajectory Optimization Based on Constraint Repairing

by Chenyuan Peng, Jin Zhang, Bing Yan and Yazhong Luo

Aerospace 2021, 8(9), 274; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8090274 - 21 Sep 2021

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2368

Abstract

With the rapid development of on-orbit services and space situational awareness, there is an urgent demand for multisatellite flyby inspection (MSFI) that can obtain information about a large number of space targets with little fuel consumption in a short time. There are two kinds of constraints, namely inspection constraints (ICs) at each flyby point and transfer process constraints (TPCs) in the actual mission. Further considering the influence of discrete and continuous variables such as inspection sequence, time, and maneuver scheme, it is complex and difficult to solve MSFI. To optimize it efficiently, the task flow and the problem model are defined firstly. Then, the algorithm framework based on constraint repairing is given, which contains repair methods of the ICs and the TPCs. Finally, the proposed method is compared with the nonrepair optimization method in two numerical examples. The results indicate that when the constraints are hard to meet, it is better and more efficient than the nonrepair method. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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21 pages, 7073 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Gimballed Control Moment Gyroscope Cluster Design for Spacecraft Attitude Control

by Charalampos Papakonstantinou, Vaios Lappas and Vassilis Kostopoulos

Aerospace 2021, 8(9), 273; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8090273 - 21 Sep 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 4787

Abstract

This paper addresses the problem of singularity avoidance in a cluster of four Single-Gimbal Control Moment Gyroscopes (SGCMGs) in a pyramid configuration when used for the attitude control of a satellite by introducing a new gimballed control moment gyroscope (GCMG) cluster scheme. Four SGCMGs were used in a pyramid configuration, along with an additional small and simple stepper motor that was used to gimbal the full cluster around its vertical (z) axis. Contrary to the use of four variable-speed control moment gyroscopes (VSCMGs), where eight degrees of freedom are available for singularity avoidance, the proposed GCMG design uses only five degrees of freedom (DoFs), and a modified steering law was designed for the new setup. The proposed design offers the advantages of SGCMGs, such as a low weight, size, and reduced complexity, with the additional benefit of overcoming the internal elliptic singularities, which create a minor attitude error. A comparison with the four-VSCMG cluster was conducted through numerical simulations, and the results indicated that the GCMG design was considerably more efficient in terms of power while achieving a better gimbal configuration at the end of the simulation, which is essential when it is desired for different manoeuvres to be consecutively executed. Additionally, for a nano-satellite of a few kilograms, the results prove that it is feasible to manufacture the GCMG concept by using affordable and lightweight commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) stepper motors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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26 pages, 6083 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Reaction Wheel Imbalances on Attitude and Stabilization Accuracy

by Stepan Tkachev, Yaroslav Mashtakov, Danil Ivanov, Dmitry Roldugin and Mikhail Ovchinnikov

Aerospace 2021, 8(9), 252; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8090252 - 6 Sep 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 4218

Abstract

In this paper, the study of stabilization accuracy of a satellite equipped with a set of reaction wheels (RW) is presented. The model of motion takes into account possible static and dynamic reaction wheel imbalances. Due to the complexity of the model, which leads to the numerical issues, the effects of dynamic and static imbalances on inertial stabilization are studied analytically. As a result, estimations of the attitude and stabilization accuracy are presented in closed form. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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20 pages, 2077 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Adaptive Tracking Method for Non-Cooperative Continuously Thrusting Spacecraft

by Juqi Yin, Zhen Yang and Yazhong Luo

Aerospace 2021, 8(9), 244; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8090244 - 3 Sep 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2202

Abstract

Performance of the traditional Kalman filter and its variants can seriously degrade when they are used to track a non-cooperative continuously thrusting spacecraft. To overcome this shortcoming, an adaptive tracking method for relative state estimation of a non-cooperative target is proposed based on the interacting multiple model (IMM) algorithm. First, built upon a current statistical jerk (CSJerk) model, a robust CSJerk filtering (RCSJF) algorithm is developed, which can address the issue of low estimation accuracy and instability of traditional approaches at the moments when the spacecraft starts and ends thrusting. Second, the developed RCSJF algorithm is further used to form the model set of the IMM by incorporating different maximum jerk values, based on which an adaptive tracking method is presented that can track a non-cooperative target with different maneuvering levels. Simulation results show that the proposed method can effectively track the target across all thrusts levels under the conditions considered, and the convergence performance of the proposed method is improved in comparison to the CSJerk-based extended Kalman filter, especially at the start and end time of the maneuver. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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21 pages, 7851 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Stereo Vision-Based Relative Position and Attitude Estimation of Non-Cooperative Spacecraft

by Liang Chang, Jixiu Liu, Zui Chen, Jie Bai and Leizheng Shu

Aerospace 2021, 8(8), 230; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8080230 - 20 Aug 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3874

Abstract

In on-orbit services, the relative position and attitude estimation of non-cooperative spacecraft has become the key issues to be solved in many space missions. Because of the lack of prior knowledge about manual marks and the inability to communicate between non-cooperative space targets, the relative position and attitude estimation system poses great challenges in terms of accuracy, intelligence, and power consumptions. To address these issues, this study uses a stereo camera to extract the feature points of a non-cooperative spacecraft. Then, the 3D position of the feature points is calculated according to the camera model to estimate the relationship. The optical flow method is also used to obtain the geometric constraint information between frames. In addition, an extended Kalman filter is used to update the measurement results and obtain more accurate pose optimization results. Moreover, we present a closed-loop simulation system, in which the Unity simulation engine is employed to simulate the relative motion of the spacecraft and binocular vision images, and a JetsonTX2 supercomputer is involved to conduct the proposed autonomous relative navigation algorithm. The simulation results show that our approach can estimate the non-cooperative target’s relative pose accurately. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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21 pages, 7497 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Three-Axes Attitude Control of Solar Sail Based on Shape Variation of Booms

by Feng Zhang, Shengping Gong and Hexi Baoyin

Aerospace 2021, 8(8), 198; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8080198 - 23 Jul 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3327

Abstract

Actively controlling the attitude of the solar sail is necessary to adjust the solar radiation pressure force for trajectory transfer and orbit control. The special configuration of the solar sail makes it very important to develop a unique attitude control strategy that differs from traditional methods. An attitude control method, based on shape variation of booms, is proposed in this manuscript. Firstly, we derive the equations to calculate the solar radiation pressure force and torque of the deformed solar sail. Then, the factors affecting forces and torques are analyzed. Finally, PD control law is applied to realize the three-axis attitude control for the solar sail. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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15 pages, 4111 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Some Special Types of Orbits around Jupiter

by Yongjie Liu, Yu Jiang, Hengnian Li and Hui Zhang

Aerospace 2021, 8(7), 183; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8070183 - 8 Jul 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2763

Abstract

This paper intends to show some special types of orbits around Jupiter based on the mean element theory, including stationary orbits, sun-synchronous orbits, orbits at the critical inclination, and repeating ground track orbits. A gravity model concerning only the perturbations of

J_{2}

[...] Read more.

J_{2}

and

J_{4}

terms is used here. Compared with special orbits around the Earth, the orbit dynamics differ greatly: (1) There do not exist longitude drifts on stationary orbits due to non-spherical gravity since only

J_{2}

and

J_{4}

terms are taken into account in the gravity model. All points on stationary orbits are degenerate equilibrium points. Moreover, the satellite will oscillate in the radial and North-South directions after a sufficiently small perturbation of stationary orbits. (2) The inclinations of sun-synchronous orbits are always bigger than 90 degrees, but smaller than those for satellites around the Earth. (3) The critical inclinations are no-longer independent of the semi-major axis and eccentricity of the orbits. The results show that if the eccentricity is small, the critical inclinations will decrease as the altitudes of orbits increase; if the eccentricity is larger, the critical inclinations will increase as the altitudes of orbits increase. (4) The inclinations of repeating ground track orbits are monotonically increasing rapidly with respect to the altitudes of orbits. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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20 pages, 993 KiB

Open AccessArticle

\({\mathcal{L}_1}\) Adaptive Loss Fault Tolerance Control of Unmanned Hypersonic Aircraft with Elasticity

by Zhaoying Li and Shuai Shi

Aerospace 2021, 8(7), 176; https://doi.org/10.3390/aerospace8070176 - 29 Jun 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2310

Abstract

This paper investigates the fault tolerance control of hypersonic aircrafts with

L_{1}

adaptive control method in the presence of loss of actuator effectiveness fault. The hypersonic model considers the uncertainties caused by the features of nonlinearities and couplings. Elasticity is taken into [...] Read more.

This paper investigates the fault tolerance control of hypersonic aircrafts with

L_{1}

L_{1}

adaptive controller and an altitude

L_{1}

adaptive controller are designed to control flexible hypersonic vehicle model with actuator loss fault. A PID controller is designed as well for comparison. Finally, the simulation results are used to analyze the effectiveness of the controller. Compared to the results of PID controller,

L_{1}

controllers have better performance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spacecraft Dynamics and Control)

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