Flight Dynamics Services

For the preparation of projects, the requirements for the flight dynamics system are analyzed and an operational system is designed, implemented and validated. A mission analysis is performed, which examines flight dynamics aspects of the mission. After training and simulation, the Flight Dynamics team operates the installed system during the mission and supports the project with analyses as necessary. FDS can also support customers in providing flight dynamics services, cross-validation support, etc.

To execute these tasks, the group has developed a series of software tools, which can support mission analysis as well as flight dynamics operations. While operating satellites and maintaining its in-house developed software tools, the FDS team is continuously conducting research and further-developing its tools, ensuring a state-of-the-art FDS that is constantly updated and extended for new mission types.

Below, some of the typically requested flight dynamics functionalities are briefly described. For a more detailed information or additional tasks please reach out to us (see contact info below).

Mission Analysis

Typically, our mission analysis tasks are focused on:

• Launch window computation
• First contacts / signal acquisition (influence of injection errors)
• Orbit maneuver strategies for target orbit acquisition and positioning, both for conventional and low-thrust propulsion
• Orbit maintenance and reconfiguration, including:
• Station-keeping, re-location and co-location
• Reference orbit optimization, i.e. for repeat-ground-track missions
• Formation and constellation control
• Collision risk and collision avoidance operations concept
• Orbital events (eclipses, ground-station visibility, sensor events etc.)
• Attitude analysis
• Life expectancy
• Re-entry

Orbit Determination

• Orbit determination based on tracking-data
• Orbit determination and relative navigation based on GNSS navigation data
• Precise orbit determination and relative navigation based on GNSS raw observations
• Calibration of orbit maneuvers
• Provision of products for science/customers, e.g. precise orbit ephemeris data
• In-flight GNSS characterization, e.g. GNSS receiver performance evaluation

Support of Satellite Operations

• Orbit and attitude predictions
• Prediction of orbit-related events (shadow, elevation, sensor events, etc.) for mission operations and mission planning
• Support of ground-station network operations (prediction of the satellite position for tracking-antennas, visibilities, sun interference, etc.)
• Generation of commands for the support of the on-board AOCS (orbit propagator, attitude guidance profiles, variable model parameters, etc.)

Orbit Monitoring and Control

• LEO and MEO target orbit acquisition and maintenance
• Reference orbit optimization and precise repeat ground-track orbit control
• Formation flying and constellation control
• Optimization of maneuvers for GEO-transfer with chemical or electrical propulsion
• Station-keeping, re-location and co-location
• Re-orbiting and de-orbiting

Attitude Determination and Attitude Analysis

• Precise satellite attitude determination
• Provision of products for science/customers, e.g. attitude ephemeris data
• Analysis of sensor data (observation errors, correction of mounting matrices, etc.)
• Computation of attitude profiles for satellite commanding
• Visibility conditions for optical communication (satellite-satellite, satellite-ground)

Conjunction Assessment and Collision Avoidance