Attitude and orbit control for satellite broadcasting missions

Abstract

This paper gives a broad introduction to the problems of attitude and orbit control of geostationary communications satellites. It specifically discusses the relationships between the satellite user’s requirements for a broadcasting mission and the design of the attitude and orbit control system. To put the subject in perspective, a brief review of past and present satellites is presented first. Then orbit control is described in terms of the forces that act on a satellite in geostationary orbit and the necessary station-keeping strategies. The design of attitude control systems for three-axis stabilised satellites is presented by considering the disturbance torques, attitude sensors and actuators and by identifying the various system problems and their solutions. Sources of error in pointing the satellite towards the earth are discussed together with the formulation of error budgets. Finally, the design approach for missions that require extremely accurate pointing is considered, and some remarks are given regarding the achievable accuracy for this class of satellite missions.