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In-Flight Attitude Perturbation Estimation for Earth-Orbiting Spacecraft

The Journal of the Astronautical Sciences volume 57, pages 633–665 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

This paper presents four innovative techniques, three Kalman-based and one observer-based, to estimate environmental perturbation torques acting on an Earth-orbiting spacecraft. The Kalman-based techniques all use simple generic models for the state dependence of the perturbation, and for estimating the unknown coefficients included in these generic mathematical formulations. The observer-based technique is developed with the nonlinear disturbance observer theory. The proposed strategies are validated in numerical simulations and are traded-off in terms of estimation accuracy and computational load requirement. Then, the most suitable estimation technique is combined with a batch least square filter algorithm to yield a perturbation estimation system with low computational load, which can be implemented onboard a spacecraft. Finally, the proposed estimation strategy is applied to a realistic gyroless Earth-orbiting spacecraft mission: the European Space Agency’s Project for Onboard Autonomy (PROBA)-2 mission. Ultimately, the selected estimation strategy will be implemented onboard the PROBA-2 spacecraft for in-flight validation. All strategies proposed in this article are general and are applicable to any Earth-orbiting spacecraft.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. NGC Aerospace Ltd., Sherbrooke, Québec, J1J 2C3, Canada

    Steve Ulrich (Engineer, Guidance, Navigation, Control and Member AAS), Jimmy Côté (President) & Jean de Lafontaine (Member AAS)

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  1. Steve Ulrich
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  2. Jimmy Côté
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  3. Jean de Lafontaine
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Correspondence to Steve Ulrich.

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Ulrich, S., Côté, J. & de Lafontaine, J. In-Flight Attitude Perturbation Estimation for Earth-Orbiting Spacecraft. J of Astronaut Sci 57, 633–665 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03321520

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03321520

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