Space mission design and operations

EE-585

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Course summary

Space Mission Design & Operations

Dr Thibault Kuntzer


The objective of this course is to present and consolidate the concepts of design and execution of space missions beyond the Earth's atmosphere. Numerous examples will be presented and the concepts will be reinforced by exercice sessions.


Friday 12
Why space?, near-Earth environment
• Course admin
• Why do we go to space?
• Review of laws of mechanics and notions of energy
• Earth’s atmosphere and magnetic field
• The radiation environment
 Lecture 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 19

  

Orbital mechanics
• Gravitational well
• Escape velocity
• Reference frames and calendars
• The two body problem and Kepler’s laws
• Orbital motion
 Lecture

 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 26

Orbital classes
• Space weather and the Sun activity cycle
• Orbital regimes
• Ground track
• Atmospheric drag and lifetime
• Non-keplerian effects and special orbits (incl Sun-Synchronous)

Lecture


08.15-10.00 ELA1

Friday 03
Spacecraft dynamics
• Orbital manoeuvres (Hohmann, small Δv in LEO, plane change)
• Orbit determination
• Launch and early orbit phase, positioning and station-keeping

 Lecture

 		 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 10
Exercise session 1
 Exercises 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 17
Spacecraft interaction, object population in
Earth’s orbit

• Phasing
• Rendezvous, proximity operations and docking (RPOD) and relative motion
• Motivation for RPO(D)
• The resident space object population and the debris problem

 Lecture 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 24


No course - Week off                                         



 
 

Friday 31
Exercise session 2

 Exercises
 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 07
Interplanetary trajectories
• The deep space environment
• Sphere of influence
• Interplanetary trajectories
• Aerobraking

 Lecture

 		 08.15-10.00  ELA1


Friday 14
Interplanetary trajectories, spacecraft propulsion
• Gravity assists
• Lunar trajectories
• Propulsion systems

 Lecture

 		 08.15-10.00  ELA1


Friday 21
Exercise session 3

 Exercises08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 28
Launch, critical subsystems
• Attitude control
• Power generation
• Ascent to orbit, re-entries

 Lecture

 		 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 05
Constellations, Operations
• Deploying tethers in space
• New space vs old space
• Spacecraft constellations
• Major actors in the space industry
• Spacecraft operations

 Lecture

 		 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 12
Human spaceflight
• Guest lecture by astronaut Claude Nicollier

 Lecture

 		 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Friday 19
Exercise session 4
 Exercises 08.15-10.00  ELA1

Exam session