AERO4701 Assignment 1 (30%), 2011 – Satellite Orbits

• This assignment is due on Monday 28th March, 2011 at 5pm by email to Ken
Ho (k.ho@acfr.usyd.edu.au).
• This assignment contributes 30% to your final mark.
• Late assignments will be deducted 20% (20 marks out of a possible 100) for
each day late, starting from 5pm on the day the assignment is due and
including weekends.
• Any special consideration requires you to go through the Special
Consideration form process. Only major illnesses/misadventures will be
considered.
• Minor Plagiarism will attract 0 marks for all those involved for the whole
assignment along with the issue being followed up with the T&L Director and
then onto the University Registrar. Likewise with major plagiarism except that
an automatic failure of the whole course will be sought. No assignment will be
marked unless the Student Plagiarism Compliance Sheet is filled out and
submitted (the sheet can be downloaded from this course’s website). The
compliance sheet should be handed to the tutor or lecturer during the lecture or
tutorial on the 29th March.
• This assignment should take the average student 35 hours to complete.

Objectives

• In this assignment you will learn how to simulate satellite orbits and
implement basic algorithms for orbit determination.
• You will research up on and learn about the connection between satellite
mission objectives and the orbital parameters, the effect of orbit perturbations
and the different methods for orbit determination of a real satellite system of
your choosing.

Submission

• You will email you assignment to Ken Ho (k.ho@acfr.usyd.edu.au) by 28th

March.
• You will provide one document/report file for the assignment. The report will
include the Sections “Question 1”, “Question 2”, “Question 3” and an
appendix with subsections for each question. Each of the first three sections
will contain the subsections “Introduction”, “Methodology” and
“Results/Discussion”.
• For each question you will submit working MATLAB code. For each
question make sure there is a main file named “mainQN.m” where N is the
question number. This script file will be run by the tutors during marking and
should run all of your code and produce all of your plots for the questions.
• All MATLAB code must be commented so that the code can be read and
understood without the aid of the report.
• If your code does not work, you will receive 0 marks for the code section of
the marking unless you provide an explanation in the report as to why it didn’t
work (blaming it on a MATLAB bug is not sufficient, I only want to hear
about real science or implementation issues).
 • Place all of you code for each question and your report in one .zip file. Name
the .zip file “SID_Assignment1.zip” where SID is you student number. Email
this file to the tutor when submitting the assignment.
• CC yourself in on the email you send and use it to check that you have sent all
of the files for each question. We will not follow you up if we find the code or
report missing from any of the questions in the email, and if it is not there, we
will assume you didn’t attempt that question.

Question 1 (35 %)

• In this question you will research into a satellite in LEO/MEO. The aim of the
question is to take the orbital parameters and simulate the satellites orbit and
to study why the orbit was chosen based on the mission objectives for the
satellite.
• Find a satellite used for Earth sensing or communications that is stationed in a
LEO or MEO. Find the orbital parameters of the satellite (you can get them
from data which is readily available on the web).
• Simulate the orbit of the satellite using the orbital parameters over a 24 hour
period. Implement the basic Keplerian orbital model. Compute the orbital
period, show 3D plots of the satellite’s orbit in an ECI frame and produce a
ground trace of the orbit (your MATLAB code should generate these plots and
they should also be provided in the appendix of you report).
• In the report describe the satellite chosen, discuss the relationship between the
mission of the satellite and the orbit properties (for example, but not limited
to, orbital period, Earth/Sun orientation, inclination and ground trace). Use
plots from your MATLAB code to demonstrate the orbital properties
described. Provide all of your plots in an appendix at the end of your report
and reference them in the body of your report. This section of the report has a
4 page limit (not including the appendix).

Question 1 Marking Scheme

Code (15/35) Code doesn’t work 0 Marks awarded

for code
Code works, is readable and commented 15 Marks
(Note: implementation must also be correct) awarded for code

Implementation Introduction: Talk about the satellite mission /5 Marks

and Report chosen.
(20/35)
Methodology: How the orbit elements were /3 Marks
obtained, how was the orbit simulated?
Discussion and Analysis: Discuss the /12 Marks
connection between satellite mission
objectives and the actual orbit chosen using
your MATLAB results.
Question 2 (40 %)

• In this question you will research into the actual systems and methods used to
determine the orbit of your satellite in Question 1.
• For your satellite in Question 1, choose a ground station location (latitude,
longitude and altitude) somewhere in view of the satellite. Produce range,
azimuth and elevation plots of the satellites trajectory over the sky above the
ground station (you MATLAB code should produce these plots and they
should be provided in your appendix). Note the maximum elevation of the
satellite and the percentage of time the satellite is in view over the 24 hour
period.
• Take several observations from your ground tracking station and use them to
predict the orbital parameters of the satellite. You should implement a
Herrick-Gibbs technique using three sets of range, azimuth and elevation
observations. Add tracking errors (range, azimuth and elevation errors) to your
simulated tracking readings and provide plots of the effect the errors have on
the accuracy of the predicted orbital parameters.
• In your report discuss the orbit determination and tracking of your satellite
system. Detail what real systems are used in practice (i.e.
radar/laser/optical/radio/other satellites), and their accuracy. Discuss your
tracking results, the effect of tracking errors and ways you could improve
tracking performance in light of error sources. This section of the report has a
4 page limit (not including the appendix).

Question 2 Marking Scheme

Code (15/40) Code doesn’t work 0 Marks awarded

for code
Code works, is readable and commented 15 Marks
(Note: implementation must also be correct) awarded for code

Implementation Introduction: Discuss the real sensors/systems /10 Marks

and Report used to track your satellite.
(25/40)
Methodology: Describe you methodology, /5 Marks
selection of ground station site, simulated
tracking errors and how this reflects on the real
system.
Discussion and Analysis: Discuss the results of /10 Marks
your orbit determination algorithm, effect of
tracking errors, how you could improve your
results.
Question 3 (25 %)

• In this question you will use the code developed in Question 1 to simulate a
manoeuvre of a LEO satellite into a GEO stationary orbit.
• Compute the orbital parameters of a Hohmann transfer orbit required to
transfer a satellite in an initial LEO orbit [a = 7100km, e = 0.05, i = 0, Ω = 0,
ω = 5o, Mo = 41o, to = 1h20m] into a GEO orbit [a = 42,164.137km, e = 0, i =
0, Ω = 0, ω = 0o, Mo = 0o, to = ???]. Note also that the desired longitude of the
satellite nadir point is 151o and the last time of vernal equinox alignment was
0h00m. Find the time at which the first and second burn manoeuvres should be
made.
• Use your code developed in Question 1 to simulate and provide plots of the
LEO, GEO and transfer orbits (Provide these plots as an output of your
MATLAB code and in your appendix).
• In your report write about you method for computing the transfer orbit and
demonstrate that you calculations for the transfer orbit are correct by
commenting on your results. This section of the report has a 2 page limit (not
including the appendix).

Question 3 Marking Scheme

Code (5/25) Code doesn’t work 0 Marks awarded

for code
Code works, is readable and commented 5 Marks awarded
(Note: implementation must also be correct) for code

Implementation Introduction: Talk briefly about the Hohmann /3 Marks

and Report transfer orbit and why it is used.
(20/25)
Methodology: How did you compute the /12 Marks
transfer orbit required? Provide the times for
which you would perform the two manoeuvres
in the Hohmann transfer.
Discussion and Analysis: Use your results to /5 Marks
demonstrate your transfer orbit is correct.