Date of Award

Fall 12-6-2023

Access Type

Thesis - Open Access

Degree Name

Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering

Department

Aerospace Engineering

Committee Chair

David Canales

Committee Advisor

David Canales

First Committee Member

Troy Henderson

Second Committee Member

Eduardo Rojas

Third Committee Member

Joan Ruiz-de-Azua

Abstract

The advancement of 5G and Internet-of-Things technologies has presented new challenges for telecommunications providers. One of the challenges is integrating these technologies with present networks. A solution has been found in low-Earth orbit satellite constellations. On one hand, this method increases coverage and reduces costs, but on the other it raises new problems like how to efficiently manage large constellations of spacecraft. This thesis introduces the Constellation Management System, developed in collaboration with i2Cat foundation. This novel tool is composed of two modules: the simulator and the scheduler. The former propagates satellite motion and computes visibility events to various targets across the globe, while the latter utilizes this information to generate an optimized task plan for all nodes in the network. The simulator is the focus of this work. Testing conducted in this investigation using several scenarios demonstrates the simulator's accuracy in both propagation and window determination. A new Lambert's solver employing the Theory of Functional Connections is developed, using functional interpolation to integrate the perturbed dynamics and boundary conditions directly into the formulation. The TFC framework allows the development of a faster, more robust algorithm compared to current methods.

Additional Files
DefenseForm_Criscola.pdf (368 kB)
Committee Approval Form
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