Dynamics and Stability of Sun-Driven Transfers from Low Earth to Geosynchronous Orbit

摘要

THE geosynchronous orbit (GEO) is in high demand; yet, it requires a considerable amount of fuel to reach. Common launch sites for GEO satellites include the Guiana Space Centre, the NASA Kennedy Space Center, and the Baikonur Cosmodrome (Baikonur). Without dogleg maneuvers after launching into a parking orbit, the minimum inclinations that can be reached for each launch site are 5, 28.5, and 51.5 deg, respectively. For launch sites at high latitudes, a large part of the fuel budget needs to be allocated to inclination changes Δi. In this Note, transfers will be designed from an initial, highly inclined circular orbit at a 185 km altitude to a geosynchronous orbit, which is an equatorial, circular orbit at an altitude of 35,786 km. To minimize this additional cost, several strategies have been developed in the past. They can be subdivided into two categories based on inclination change mechanism: maneuver based and gravitational perturbation based.