Geosynchronous Orbit Design

[cdeaglejr]

This HP Prime program calculates the equilibrium longitudes and radii of geosynchronous satellites based on the EGM96 gravity model of degree (zonals) and order (tesserals) 3. These are the four Earth-relative locations where the proper combination of geocentric radius and east longitude will minimize the longitudinal drift of satellites located at these points.

The algorithms implemented in this software are based on the numerical techniques described in the following two articles:

“East-west Stationkeeping Requirements of Nearly Synchronous Satellites Due to Earth’s Triaxiality and Luni-Solar Effects”, A. Kamel, D. Ekman and R. Tibbitts, Celestial Mechanics 8 (1973) 129-148.

“On the Orbital Eccentricity Control of Synchronous Satellites”, A. Kamel and C. Wagner, The Journal of the Astronautical Sciences, Vol. XXX, No. 1, pp. 61-73, January-March, 1982.