Satellite Communication
5EC5-14
UNIT-2
Orbital Mechanics
2.1 Orbital equations
2.2 Kepler's laws
2.3 Apogee and Perigee for an elliptical orbit
2.4 Evaluation of velocity, orbital period, angular velocity of a satellite.
2.5 Concepts of Solar day and Sidereal day.
2.1 Orbital equation:
[Link]'s laws:
2.2.1 Kepler’s First Law:
Keplers first law states that the path followed by a satellite around the primary will be an ellipse.
An ellipse has two focal points shown as F1 and F2 in Fig. The center of mass of the two-body
system is always centered on one of the foci
• Focus – one of two special points on
the major axis of an ellipse.
• Foci – plural of focus
F1+F2 is always
the same on
any point on
the ellipse
• The semimajor axis of the ellipse is
denoted by a,
and the semiminor axis, by b. The eccentricity e is given by
Eccentricity is the degree of flatness of satellite orbit e = c/a (e = 0 for circle)
c = center to focus
a = half of major axis/Semi-major axis
2.2.2 KepIer’s Second Law: (Law of equal Area)
The line joining the planet to the sun sweeps out equal
areas in equal intervals of time.
The area from one time to another time is equal to
another area with the same time interval.
Facts:
Planet moves faster when closer to the sun.
Force acting on the planet increases as distance decreases
and planet accelerates in its orbit
Planet moves slower when farther from the sun.
2.2.3 KepIer’s Third Law:
The square of the period of any planet is proportional to the cube of the semi-major
of its axis.
T² α a³
T = orbital period in years
a = semi-major axis in astronomical unit (AU)
It Can calculate how long it take (period) for planets to orbit if semimajor axis is
known.
Astronomical unit – AU
AU is the mean distance between Earth and the Sun
1 AU ≈ 1.5 x 108 km ≈ 9.3 x 107 miles
Examples of 3rd Law:
Calculating the orbital period of 1AU
T² = a³
T² = (1)³ = 1
T = 1 year
Calculating the orbital period of 4AU
T² = a³
T² = (4)³ = 64
T = 8 years
2.3 Apogee and Perigee for an elliptical orbit:
Apogee: The point of satellite farthest from earth.
Perigee: The point of satellite closest approach to earth.
Different Types of Orbit:
Difference between Geostationary, Geosynchronous and polar satellite:
(90 degree)
LOS Communication
2.4 Evaluation of velocity, orbital period, angular velocity of a satellite:
Satellites are made to revolve in an orbit at a height of few hundred kilometres. At this
altitude, the friction due to air is negligible. The satellite is carried by a rocket to the
desired height and released horizontally with a high velocity, so that it remains moving
in a nearly circular orbit. The horizontal velocity that has to be imparted to a satellite at
the determined height so that it makes a circular orbit around the planet is called
orbital velocity. Let us assume that a satellite of mass m moves around the Earth in a
circular orbit of radius r with uniform speed vo. Let the satellite be at a height h from
the surface of the Earth. Hence, r = R+h, where R is the radius of the Earth.
Time period of a satellite:
Time taken by the satellite to complete one revolution round the Earth is called time period.
2.5 Concepts of Solar day and Sidereal day:
A solar day is the time it takes for the Earth to rotate about its axis so that
the Sun appears in the same position in the sky.
A sidereal day is the time it takes for the Earth to rotate about its axis so that the
distant stars appear in the same position in the sky. The sidereal day is ~4 minutes
shorter than the solar day.
The sidereal day is the time it takes for the Earth to complete one rotation about its axis
with respect to the ‘fixed’ stars. By fixed, we mean that we treat the stars as if they
were attached to an imaginary celestial sphere at a very large distance from the Earth.
a sidereal day lasts for 23 hours 56 minutes 4.091 seconds, which is slightly shorter
than the solar day measured from noon to noon. Our usual definition of an Earth day is
24 hours, so the sidereal day is 4 minutes faster. This means that a particular star will
rise 4 minutes earlier every night.
