Repositioning of geostationary spacecraft - Chemical and electric propulsion options

Minimum-fuel station-change for geostationary satellites using low-thrust considering perturbations

“…(12) and (13) constitute an approximation, because λ¯0, λ¯f , andā are replaced by λ 0 , λ f , and a c , respectively, in deriving Eqs. (12) and (13). This assumption is valid because the longitude change caused by the J 22 perturbation is still small relative to the total longitude change, and the semimajor axis change is also small compared to the synchronous semimajor axis of the GEO.…”

“…1 and 2, respectively, show the variation in semimajor axis and longitude induced by the J 22 perturbation as a function of transfer duration predicted by Eqs. (13) and (12). The longitude intervals in three cases are examined: 0-60°, 60-120°, and 120-180°.…”

“…Free and Babuska [13] made a general survey of practical station relocation in geostationary orbit, making use of then-available on-board electric propulsion. The thrustcoast-thrust station relocation maneuver is used for minimizing the fuel consumption in a given fixed transfer time.…”

Design of Next-Generation All-Electric Telecommunication Satellites

“…Hybrid satellites employ both chemical and electric thrusters; they use chemical thrusters for performing orbit transfers and use electric propulsion for stationkeeping. [1][2][3] The use of electric thrusters for primary propulsion activities like orbit-raising would save significant amount of fuel owing to the superior propellant management of electric thrusters, and would also enable the development of all-electric satellites that use electric thrusters to execute all propulsive duties. Fuel saved during orbit-raising could lead to the design of smaller and lighter satellites that have lower launch costs.…”