Satellite Orbit, Friction Acceleration Function

2 views (last 30 days)
Hello, how can I write a code that calculates friction force acceleration for a satellite orbiting the Earth? (Especially for NRLMSISE-00 Atmosphere Model) I have a code that does orbit calculations numerically, but I should integrate this friction force function too..
Thank you

Accepted Answer

Bjorn Gustavsson
Bjorn Gustavsson on 31 Aug 2020
Recently I've good experiences using this tool: RKN1210 - A 12th/10th order Runge-Kutta-Nyström integrator
It is sightly different that the matlab-native ODE-integrating functions, but only slightly. It integrates second-order ODEs with high accuracy - which is what you have. The only thing you have to do is to include a drag-force into your equations of motion. Typically that is proportional to the square of the relative velocity between the space-craft and the atmosphere and proportional to the mass-density, you will first have to determine the relative velocity and the mass-density as a function of satellite position and time. That should be doable with calls to NRLmsis inside your equation of motion. The RKN1210 package comes with illustrating examples.
HTH

More Answers (1)

James Tursa
James Tursa on 31 Aug 2020
See this link for an example that uses atmospheric drag with a satellite (in this case a satellite falling to Earth):

Categories

Find more on Reference Applications in Help Center and File Exchange

Community Treasure Hunt

Find the treasures in MATLAB Central and discover how the community can help you!

Start Hunting!