Orbital control strategy for a CubeSat satellite equipped with a solar sail for Earth-Mars communications during solar conjunctions

Abstract

This paper presents a mission concept that enables Earth-Mars communications resistant to periods of solar conjunction by using CubeSat satellites equipped with a solar sail. The dynamics of the satellite is modeled separately in the respective Earth-Sun and Mars-Sun Restricted Three Body Problem (RTBP), modified to include the solar radiation pressure effect exerted on the sail. Due to the non-linearities presented on this model, we numerically determine the location of the non-eclipsed equilibrium points parameterized by the sail orientation through a continuation method. These are the points where two CubeSat nanosatellites equipped with a solar sail could be placed. The instability of these equilibrium points makes it necessary to implement a control strategy to keep the satellite's trajectory close to equilibrium by constantly changing the orientation of the sail. To prove the robustness of the strategy, some numerical simulations have been performed for a given period of mission.