dynamic formations of space-based aperture arrays using cubeSats at lunar L1 libration point
- Paper number
IAC-14,B4,8,4,x26284
- Author
Dr. CHARLES LEE, California State University Fullerton, United States
- Coauthor
Mr. Kevin Gomez, California State University Fullerton, United States
- Coauthor
Dr. Alessandra Babuscia, Jet Propulsion Laboratory - California Institute of Technology, United States
- Coauthor
Dr. Kar-Ming Cheung, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)/Jet Propulsion Laboratory, United States
- Year
2014
- Abstract
The concept of involving CubeSat satellites in Deep-Space missions is getting increasingly popular and will be realized in the coming decade. Solar Observing Low-frequency Array for Radio Astronomy/Separated Antennas Reconfigurable Array (SOLARA/SARA), developed at MIT, is one among several proposed missions, where a Multiple-Input-Multiple-Output communication network of CubeSats would be deployed around the L1 libration point of the Earth-Moon system. Its primary objectives are to establish a space-based radio interferometry array of CubeSats to observe the evolution of solar weather and its interaction with Earth’s magnetosphere and to synthesize a large space-based aperture by beamforming the signals from the individual CubeSats in phase. Collectively SOLARA/SARA would consist of 20 six-unit CubeSats, flying in halo orbits while maintaining node-to-node distances in the range of 10-100 km. This paper addresses its geometric and flying formations and optimizes its configuration so that it could meet its mission objectives and requirements. In particular, a dynamical system model, which incorporates the relevant gravitational forces, is developed and implemented numerically to compute the trajectories of the SOLARA/SARA CubeSats. Different designs and formations of a single or multiple halo orbits will be presented along with stability, orbit sizes, long-term evolution of the constellations, and station-keeping cost.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
IAC-14,B4,8,4,x26284.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).
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