Combined roll-yaw spacecraft steering method for low earth orbit target trajectory compensation

摘要

For an antenna (22) on a satellite (10) in an inclined orbit about the Earth (13), cross-track motion resulting from the rotation of the Earth (13) can be reduced in antenna coordinates by yawing and/or rolling the antenna (22) (preferably by yawing and/or rolling the entire satellite (10), for example, by using a reaction wheel system) by an appropriate angle, which varies throughout the orbit (12) (Fig. 4). <IMAGE>