Orbit analysis for Seasat-A

Abstract

Seasat-A is a NASA earth satellite for measuring global ocean dynamics from space. The instruments on the spacecraft will provide data on wave height and direction, surface wind speed and direction, ice fields, ocean surface topography and atmospheric water content. This paper is concerned with the orbit analysis for Seasat-A. The first topic is the selection of the orbit which best satisfies the measurement objectives of the various instruments. The maintenance of this orbit under drag and other perturbations is also discussed. The second topic is precision orbit determination analysis which is required to achieve ocean topography objectives of the mission.