Ensuring Survivability of Spacecraft Attitude Control System at Failures in Flywheel Cluster

Abstract

A method for ensuring the survivability of a spacecraft attitude control system with minimally redundant cluster of the flywheels and magnetic actuator at the faults of any reaction wheels are presented. The results of computer simulation were obtained and it was found if any two of the four flywheels according to the General Electric scheme fail, digital control of the flywheel cluster and magnetic drive allows the land-survey satellite to maintain the ability for observation of given terrestrial targets.

Keywords

• satellite
• earth observation
• control system
• survivability