Various Methods of Controlling the Deployment of a Tethered Satellite

Abstract

The deployment of a subsatellite from a mother spaceship moving on a circular orbit is a delicate operation for a tethered satellite system because this process leads to an unstable motion with respect to the stable radial relative equilibrium of such a system if the tether length is kept constant. Therefore, simulation tools for the implementation of stabilizing control are needed. Usually linear control, for example Kissel's law, is implemented. In this paper, we introduce an optimal control strategy to simulate the force controlled deployment of a tethered satellite from a spaceship. We compare this strategy with free deployment, deployment controlled by Kissel's law and an approach making use of the concept of “targeting” used in the controlling chaos approach.