Optimal Cluster Flight Orbit Design Method For Fractionated Spacecraft Based On Relative Orbital Elements

Abstract

This paper presents a fuel-optimal cluster flight orbit design method for fractionated spacecraft in terms of relative orbital elements (especially by using the geometrically intuitive form called relative eccentricity and inclination vectors (E/I vectors)). Firstly, the requirements for cluster flight orbit in case of fractionated spacecraft are proposed, and then the fuel-optimal objective and two constraints including maximum relative distance limit and passive safety requirement are formulated in terms of relative orbital elements(ROE). Based on the ROE theory, the optimal cluster flight orbit design problem is recognized as the optimal deployment issue for relative E/I vectors of each member satellite in the cluster. Finally, the genetic algorithm (GA) is adopted to solve the constrainted optimization probelm. Numerical simulations are conducted to verify the proposed optimal cluster flight orbit design method and the changing cluster flight relative geometries with respect to different constrainted parameters are analyzed.