Aeronautics and astronautics – Spacecraft – Spacecraft formation – orbit – or interplanetary path
Patent
1990-05-25
1993-04-06
Marmer, Charles A.
Aeronautics and astronautics
Spacecraft
Spacecraft formation, orbit, or interplanetary path
244164, B64G 110
Patent
active
051996723
ABSTRACT:
The effect of orbit plane precession is used to place a plurality of satellites into one or more desired orbit planes. The satellites are distributed within each desired orbit plane in a selected configuration. The satellites are transported into orbit on one or more frame structures referred to as "pallets". When more than one pallet is used, they are placed on top of each other in a "stack". After the stack of the pallets has been launched into an initial, elliptical orbit, the pallets are separated sequentially from the stack at selected time intervals. Thrust is applied to transfer a first pallet from the initial orbit to a first, circular orbit, wherein the initial and first orbits are in planes that process at different predetermined initial and first rates, respectively. After waiting for a predetermined time while the initial orbit plane and the first orbit plane precess with respect to each other, thrust is applied to the next pallet to transfer it into a next, circular orbit in a next orbit plane, wherein the precession rate of the next orbit plane also is different from the initial precession rate of the initial orbit plane. The foregoing step is repeated until the satellites on the respective pallets have been sequentially deployed into the desired orbit planes. The satellites on each pallet are then separated from the pallet simultaneously, but at different rates to achieve separation among the satellites within each orbit.
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Beidleman Neal J.
King Jan A.
Marmer Charles A.
Mattix Carla
Orbital Sciences Corporation
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