General equations of motion of a satellite in a gravitational gradient field.

Richard H. Frick, T. B. Garber

ResearchPublished 1959

A development of the general equations of motion for a satellite, including both orbital motion and rotation about the center of mass of the vehicle. It is found that these two elements of motion are coupled, so that for extremely eccentric orbits, the vehicle begins to tumble relative to the instantaneous vertical.

Document Details

Citation

Chicago Manual of Style

Frick, Richard H. and T. B. Garber, General equations of motion of a satellite in a gravitational gradient field. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1959. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_memoranda/RM2527.html.
BibTeX RIS

This publication is part of the RAND research memorandum series. The research memorandum series, a product of RAND from 1948 to 1973, included working papers meant to report current results of RAND research to appropriate audiences.

This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.

RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.