A team led by Professor Moshe Gelman from the Technion and Professor Mark Seiki from Cornell University focuses on developing a new method for controlling the angular position of satellites.
Avi Blizovsky
The US Air Force is today developing and testing a series of new satellites
With the help of the Space Research Institute at the Technion, new control methods were introduced
to his future satellites, to the inclination of the satellites in space.
Since 1957, the year the first satellite was launched, more than
26,000 satellites. Despite the widespread use of this type of space vehicle and despite
The many research resources invested in it, the methods for determining the angular position of
The satellite in its orbit are decades old methods. The awkwardness involved in the application
These methods mean that the launched satellites suffer from high weight
and higher production rates. However, a new development by a team from the Research Institute
The space in the Technion may solve a significant part of the problems that exist in the method
the current one. The team is led by Professor Moshe Gelman from the Technion and Professor
Mark Seiki from Cornell University, focuses on developing a new control method
The angular position of satellites.
Accurately controlling the satellite's angular position is critical to its operation
The successful one. For example, if the satellite's solar panels, which are used for it
As a power source, they will not be directed towards the sun, the energy to operate the satellite will run out.
If the transmitter installed in the satellite is not pointed towards the Earth, the signals
Broadcasts may not be received.
Most satellites are divided into two main groups: those that are all
time above one place on Earth and are called geosynchronous satellites,
That is, in coordination with a certain location on Earth and those that move
over different places on earth.
There are two main methods for controlling the satellite's angular position. the one,
The one accepted today is based on the principle of operation of a gyroscope. That is,
Constant rotation of the satellite body (or a part of it, called a drive wheel) in a way
which allows it to maintain tilt at a certain angle. This method is the most common
in the active satellites. The problem is that it is difficult to implement such a method in satellites
are very small and the cost of its implementation is relatively high.
Another control method has existed for decades, its use is relatively little
due to various limitations. The method is based on the use of electromagnetic rods
which are connected to the satellite and which are activated by signals generated in the computer
the satellite Because of the Earth's magnetic field, a repulsion or approximation is created
of the rods to direct the earth's magnetic field and thus movement
angular of the entire satellite. Intelligent use of electromagnetic rods
can be an efficient and cheaper method of maintaining the satellite's angular position
in its course.
The experiment currently being conducted at the Technion is based on this principle. The innovation in the experiment
It is in the use of new control methods that more intelligently utilize the
The existing knowledge about the Earth's magnetic field.
The connection between Professor Seiki and the Technion was created following the launch of the satellite
Gorwin-Texat, the Technion satellite that was launched into space in July 1998, but maybe
More importantly, what caused the partnership in the research was the willingness of the staff from the Technion
to carry out experiments that are considered relatively "bold" in the field of space exploration. according to
Professor Seiki, the space industry, despite its innovative image, tends
to conservatism. The reason for this is the fear of researchers and project managers
in the field, from failure. Usually the cost of such a failure can reach millions
Dollars.
The Technion satellite was launched in July 1998, one of the main goals of
The development, launch and operation of the satellite is to enable their implementation in the space of
New ideas, such as the one currently being developed. At the same time, are performed
Using the satellite, additional experiments may also create progress
significant amount of research in the field.
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