Introduction to Astronautics

Astronautics
• The branch of aerospace engineering that
deals with flight outside the atmosphere
is termed as astronautics.
• Astronautics involves the basic concepts of
space flight, space stations, orbit
determination as well as rocket propulsion.
• Astronautics can be analyzed in three parts
- Ascent through the atmosphere
- Mission in space
- Planetary entry
 Definitions and Terminology
• For any object to be placed in an
orbit around the Earth, it is essential
for it to have a minimum velocity of
7.9 km/ sec
• If you want to have a mission to the
moon or beyond, or if you need to go
beyond the gravitational attraction of
earth, you will need to obtain a
minimum speed of 11 km/sec
• Once you get out of Earth’s
gravity, you will continue to travel
at that speed until you enter the
gravitational attraction of another
body.
 Definitions and Terminology
• When you are out in space,
there will be no atmosphere to
create any drag effects on your
space vehicle
• In order to escape Earth’s
atmospheric effects, you have to
be higher than 1000 km altitude.
• The time taken by a satellite to
execute one complete orbit is
called the period and it is shown
by τ
 Period of a Satellite

• The time taken by a satellite to

execute one complete orbit is
called the period and it is
shown by τ. Hence, if a satellite
rotates one orbit in 3 hours,
then its period is 3 hours
 Definitions and Terminology
• When you are out in space, there will be
no atmosphere to create any drag
effects on your space vehicle
• International treaties state that altitude
above 100 miles (160 km) is considered
space as flying below this altitude
requires that country’s permission.
• Most satellites are placed above 400 km
of altitude in orbit
• In order to fully escape Earth’s
atmospheric effects, you have to
be higher than 1000 km altitude.
 Definitions and Terminology
• Apogee is the highest altitude or point in
an orbit around the Earth
• Perigee is the lowest altitude or point in
an orbit around the Earth
• Aphelion is the highest point in an orbit of
an object around the sun (far from the sun)
• Perihelion is the lowest point in an orbit of
an object around the sun (close to sun)
Apogee – Perigee – Aphelion -
Perihelion
 Types of Orbits
• Geostationary orbit is when the satellite
or spacecraft is stationary in a single
position relative to the Earth
• Polar Orbit is an orbit in which your
spacecraft or your satellite crosses the orbits
in a longitudinal fashion. In a polar orbit, you
can circle the Earth several times.
• Highly Elliptical Orbit: When the satellite
passes Earth quickly and stays away from
Earth fixed in a distant location.
 LEO MEO HEO
• LEO is orbit with less then 1000 km altitude
• MEO is above 1000 KM to 10000 km
• HEO is above 10000 KM
 LEO
• LEO is Low Earth orbit and it is
considered as 160 km to 1000
km of altitude. Technically, in
Low Earth orbit, the drag effects
will always hinder operations.
• For example, ISS is in LEO
(around 386 km – 460 km) and
it needs its orbit readjusted by
the Space Shuttle or by its own
thrusters every 6 months or it
will fall down
• Satellites in LEO will have very
high speeds around 18,000
miles per hour
 Types of Orbits

Low Earth Orbit is used for things that we want to visit often with the
Space Shuttle, like the Hubble Space Telescope and the International
Space Station. This is convenient for installing new instruments, fixing
things that are broken, and inspecting damage. It is also about the
only way we can have people go up, do experiments, and return in a
relatively short time
 Low Earth Orbit Disadvantages
• The first disadvantage is that there is still some
atmospheric drag. Even though the amount of
atmosphere is far too little to breath, there is
enough to place a small amount of drag on the
satellite or other object. As a result, over time these
objects slow down and their orbits slowly decay
• The second disadvantage has to do with how
quickly a satellite in LEO goes around the Earth.
As you can imagine, a satellite traveling 18,000
miles per hour or faster does not spend very long
over any one part of the Earth at a given time
 MEO
• MEO is Middle Earth
Orbit is a special orbit
that is beyond LEO.
• MEO is usually defined
as 1001 Km – 10000
Km in most literature.
However, previously
it was defined as high
as 10,000 km
 HEO
• HEO is High Earth orbit
• HEO is defined as orbit above
10000 km in most literature. It
extends to 40,000 km altitude.
• Mostly in HEO, the drag effects
would be non existent. Hence,
HEO will have a more stable
orbit free from atmospheric
effects, but also it will require
much more energy to put there
LEO – MEO - HEO
 Geosynchronous/ Geostationary
Orbit
• Satellite has to be placed approximately 22,000
miles (36,000 km) away from the surface of the
Earth in order to remain in a GEO orbit
 Geosynchronous/Geostationary Orbit
• By positioning a satellite so that it has infinite
dwell time over one spot on the Earth, we can
constantly monitor the weather in one location,
provide reliable telecommunications service, and
even beam television signals directly to your house
• The down side of a geosynchronous orbit is that it
is more expensive to put something that high up
and not possible to repair it from the shuttle
• So you only put something in GEO if you really
need to have it in the same location in the sky at all
times.
 Polar Orbit
• These orbits have an
inclination near 90 degrees.
This allows the satellite to
see virtually every part of
the Earth as the Earth
rotates underneath it. It
takes approximately 90
minutes for the satellite to
complete one orbit.
Polar / Geostationary Orbit
 Heliosynchronous Orbit
• These orbits allows a satellite to pass over a section of the Earth at
the same time of day. Since there are 365 days in a year and 360
degrees in a circle, it means that the satellite has to shift its orbit
by approximately one degree per day. These satellites orbit at an
altitude between 700 to 800 km
• These orbits are used for satellites that need a constant amount
of sunlight
 Highly Elliptical Orbit
• An object in orbit about Earth moves much faster
when it is close to Earth than when it is farther away.
• If the orbit is very elliptical, the satellite will spend
most of its time near apogee (the furthest point in its
orbit) where it moves very slowly.
Various Satellite Orbits
GPS Satellite Coverage
 Types of Satellites
• Weather Satellites
• Communications Satellites
• Observation Satellites
• Navigation / GPS Satellites
• Military Satellites
• Nanosatellites / Microsatellites
• Remote Sensing Satellites
 Angle of Inclination
• Angle of inclination is the angle that the
satellite makes against the Earth’s axis
Angle of Inclination
Satellite Orbits
 Transfer Orbits
• The type of orbit that is used to transfer
the satellite from one orbit to another
 Zenith and Nadir
• Zenith is the direction toward the satellite
• Nadir is the direction toward Earth
 Lagrange Points
• Lagrange points are locations in space where
gravitational forces and the orbital motion of a
body balance each other
 Roche Limit
• The Roche limit sometimes
referred to as the Roche
radius, is the distance within
which a celestial body, held
together only by its own
gravity, will disintegrate due to
a second celestial body's tidal
forces exceeding the first body's
gravitational self-attraction.
• Typically, the Roche limit applies
to a satellite's disintegrating due
to tidal forces induced by
its primary, the body about
which it orbits LR is the Roche
limit, from the planet’s center
• RP is the planet’s radius
• LR is the Roche limit, from the
planets center.
 Problem
• For the Earth-Moon system, what is the Roche
Limit if R = 6,378 km, ρM = 5.5 gm/cm3 and ρm =
2.5 gm/cm3?
• ANSWER

Fortunately our moon is at a distance of 363,000 km (perigee)

and is steadily moving farther away by 3 centimeters per year
 Kepler’s Laws
• Kepler’s Law holds for any satellite or natural
body in orbit
• A Satellite will have an elliptical path around
its center of attraction
• In equal times, the areas swept by the radius
vector of a satellite are the same. (As a satellite
moves near its parent object, it will move faster)
• The periods of any two satellites around the
same planet are related to their semimajor axis.
(As a satellite has a larger orbit, it will move
more slowly)
Kepler Laws
 Gravitational Force on a Object
• The Law of Universal Gravitation was
discovered by Isaac Newton which states
that the gravitational force between two
masses varies inversely as the square of the
distance between their centers.
• Where G is the Universal Constant
in G = 6.67 x 10^-11 m^3/kgs^2
F  GmM
2
r
 Newton’s Laws
• Newton's First Law: A body will remain at
rest or in motion in a straight line unless
acted upon by a force.
• Newton's Second Law: Change in motion is
proportional to the applied force and
parallel to it.
• Newton's Third Law: To every action there
is an equal and opposite reaction.
 Sample Satellite Orbits
• Intelsat : 35,786 km : 3.07 km/s : 24 hours
• ICO: 10,255 km : 4.8954 km/s : 5 hr 56 min
• Iridium: 780 km : 7.46 km/s : 1 hr 40 min
 Prograde and Retrograde Orbit
• Prograde orbit is in
the same direction as
the primary's
rotation
• Retrograde orbit is
one in which a
satellite moves in a
direction opposite
to the rotation of its
primary
 Reentry of a Spacecraft
• A spacecraft orbiting around the Earth
will have a very large kinetic energy and a
corresponding high velocity if 8500 m/sec
• These speeds correspond to very high
Mach numbers of 30 or more as they enter
the atmosphere
• Hence, a spacecraft on reentry will have a
large reentry speed causing problems with
stability as well as heating of the body
 Types of Reentry Paths
• Ballistic Entry where the vehicle has little or no
aerodynamic lift. The impact point is
predetermined by the conditions at first reentry
point. The pilot has no control over the landing
position. Besides the space shuttle all other
spacecraft reenter on a ballistic path.
• Skip Entry in which the spacecraft skips like a stone
• Glide Entry in which the spacecraft comes in high
with 30 or 4o degrees of angle of attack. The
vehicle can be piloted. The best example is the
space shuttle.
 Concerns for Reentry
• Aerodynamic Heating
• Maximum Deceleration
• For safety of the occupants, the maximum
deceleration should not exceed 10 gs or
10 times the acceleration of gravity
• The aerodynamic heating of the vehicle
should be low enough to maintain tolerable
temperatures inside the spacecraft