Coupled Orbit-Attitude Dynamics of Tethered-SPS

Abstract

In this paper, a dynamic model for long-term on-orbit operation of the tethered solar power satellite (Tethered-SPS) is established. Because the Tethered-SPS is a super-large and super-flexible structure, the coupling among the orbit, attitude, and structure vibration of the system should be considered in comparison with the traditional spacecraft dynamic models. Based on the absolute nodal coordinate formulation (ANCF), the dynamic equation of the Tethered-SPS is established by Hamiltonian variational principle, and the dual equations of the Hamiltonian system are established by introducing generalized momentum through Legendre transformation. The symplectic Runge–Kutta method is used for numerical simulation, and the validation of the modeling method is verified by a numerical example. The effects of orbital altitude, initial attitude angle, length of solar panel, and orbital eccentricity on the orbit and attitude of the Tethered-SPS are analyzed. The numerical simulation results show that the effect of orbital altitude and length of solar panel on the orbital error of midpoint of beam is small. However, the initial attitude angle has a significant effect on the orbital error of midpoint of solar panel. The effect of the length of solar panel on the attitude angle of the system is not significant, but orbital altitude, orbital eccentricity, and initial attitude angle of the system severely affect the attitude angle of the system. Then, the stability of the system is affected.