Analysis of Effects of Area-to-Mass Ratio on the Errors in the Prediction of the Orbit of an IGSO Satellite through the Solar Radiation-Pressure Model

The solar radiation pressure is one of the key parameters in precision orbit determination of a high-altitude satellite. It is important to precisely model the solar radiation pressure in precision orbit determination and orbit prediction. The author presents an analysis of the effects of area-to-mass ratio on the errors in the prediction of the orbit of an IGSO satellite using the solar radiation-pressure model. Assuming that the relative error for area-to-mass ratio is 20%, the author uses simulations and show the following results. (1) During the first 16 hours in a day the prediction errors of both the x and z components of position tend to be smaller than those in the y component. (2) However, during the last 8 hours in a day, it appears that errors in the x, y, and z components tend to be much more divergent, especially in the z component. The simulations have also shown the prediction errors of x, y, and z components of velocity are at most 1mm/s.