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Satellite de-orbiting via controlled solar radiation pressure

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Abstract

The goal of the present research was to study the use of solar radiation pressure to place a satellite in an orbit that makes it to re-enter the atmosphere of the Earth. This phase of the mission is usual, since the orbital space around the Earth is crowded and all satellites have to be discarded after the end of their lifetimes. The technique proposed here is based on a device that can increase and decrease the area-to-mass ratio of the satellite when it is intended to reduce its altitude until a re-entry point is reached. Equations that predict the evolution of the eccentricity and semi-major axis of the orbit of the satellite are derived and can be used to allow the evaluation of the time required for the decay of the satellite. Numerical simulations are made, and they show the time required for the decay as a function of the area-to-mass ratio and the evolution of the most important orbital elements. The results show maps that indicate regions of fast decays as a function of the area-to-mass ratio and the initial inclination of the orbit of the satellite. They also confirmed the applicability of the equations derived here. The numerical results showed the role played by the evection and the Sun-synchronous resonances in the de-orbiting time.

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Notes

  1. CBERS: China-Brazil Earth Resources Satellite http://www.cbers.inpe.br/ingles/.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (Grants CNPq-151147/2014-0, CNPq-401595/2013-7, CNPq-304700/2009- 6, and CNPq-473387/2012-3). R.D., D.M.S., and A.F.B.A.P. also acknowledge support by Grants # 2014/02013-5, # 2014/22295-5, and # 2014/06688-7, São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) and CAPES. The anonymous reviewers are gratefully thanked for the very important suggestions that allowed the improvement in the manuscript.

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Author notes

  1. Georgi Smirnov

    Present address: Department of Mathematics and Applications, Centre of Physics, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais, São José dos Campos, Brazil

    Rogerio Deienno, Diogo Merguizo Sanchez, Antonio Fernando Bertachini de Almeida Prado & Georgi Smirnov

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  1. Rogerio Deienno
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  2. Diogo Merguizo Sanchez
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  3. Antonio Fernando Bertachini de Almeida Prado
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  4. Georgi Smirnov
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Correspondence to Rogerio Deienno.

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Deienno, R., Sanchez, D.M., de Almeida Prado, A.F.B. et al. Satellite de-orbiting via controlled solar radiation pressure. Celest Mech Dyn Astr 126, 433–459 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10569-016-9699-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10569-016-9699-7

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