Session
Technical Poster Session 7: Ground Systems & Operations
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Abstract
The Virtual Telescope for X-Ray Observations (VTXO) is part of a new generation of distributed component, long focal length telescopes which promise to provide orders of magnitude improvement in angular resolution in the X-ray band over the current state of the art. VTXO will include Phased Fresnel Lenses (PFL), which provide nearly diffraction-limited imaging, with around a 1 km focal length carried by the Optics Spacecraft (OSC), which will fly in a precision formation with the Detector Spacecraft (DSC) approximating a rigid telescope body, with the telescope achieving nearly 50 milli-arcsecond angular resolution in the 4.5 – 6.7 keV X-ray band [1]. In order to maintain the precise formation requirements, while pointing the telescope axis at the desired astronomical targets, one or both spacecraft will inherently be traveling on a non-natural orbit trajectory. These families of trajectories require one or both vehicles to maneuver regularly to maintain the desired path.
Document Type
Event
Navigation and Control Performance Utilizing Precision Formation Flying Along a Propellent Optimized Trajectory for the VTXO Mission
Utah State University, Logan, UT
The Virtual Telescope for X-Ray Observations (VTXO) is part of a new generation of distributed component, long focal length telescopes which promise to provide orders of magnitude improvement in angular resolution in the X-ray band over the current state of the art. VTXO will include Phased Fresnel Lenses (PFL), which provide nearly diffraction-limited imaging, with around a 1 km focal length carried by the Optics Spacecraft (OSC), which will fly in a precision formation with the Detector Spacecraft (DSC) approximating a rigid telescope body, with the telescope achieving nearly 50 milli-arcsecond angular resolution in the 4.5 – 6.7 keV X-ray band [1]. In order to maintain the precise formation requirements, while pointing the telescope axis at the desired astronomical targets, one or both spacecraft will inherently be traveling on a non-natural orbit trajectory. These families of trajectories require one or both vehicles to maneuver regularly to maintain the desired path.
