Diffuse reflection with incomplete accommodation is the favored gas–surface interaction
model for calculating the drag coefficient of satellites in low Earth orbit, where drag is the …

Autonomous formation flight enables new satellite missions for novel applications. The cost
and limits of propulsion systems can be overcome if environmental resources are being …

Nanosatellites have gained considerable presence in low Earth orbits wherein the
atmospheric interaction with exposed surfaces plays a fundamental role in the evolution of …

The ability to determine the thermosphere mass density response to geomagnetic
disturbances is of critical importance in understanding how energy deposited in the …

This paper defines a method to estimate the mean neutral density of the thermosphere given
many satellites of the same form factor travelling in similar regions of space. A priori …

ABSTRACT LEO trajectory modeling is a fundamental aerospace capability and has
applications in many areas of aerospace, such as maneuver planning, sensor scheduling, re …

A company report1) forecasts a growth in the number of the planning small satellite projects
despite the shortage of launch opportunities. Low Earth Orbit (LEO) is one of the most …

Recently very low Earth orbit (VLEO) below 450km has become popular for individual
spacecraft missions and large spacecraft constellations due to several mission benefits such …

A gridded ion thruster running on two different propellants (Xenon and Iodine) and sited
within a 3U CubeSat satellite, is modelled in a Low-Earth-Orbit (altitude 400 km), using a …

Using several small, unconnected satellites flying in formation rather than a single
monolithic satellite has many advantages. As an example, separate optical systems can be …