A mission planning method for multi-satellite wide area observation

• Published in: International journal of advanced robotic systems Vol. 16; no. 6
• Main Authors: Ji, Hao-ran, Huang, Di
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.11.2019; Sage Publications Ltd; SAGE Publishing
• Subjects: Algorithms; Computer simulation; Deduction; Earth observations (from space); Flight simulation; Mission planning; Path planning; Satellite observation; satellite formation mission planning; remaining time allocation; Multi-satellite wide area observation; mission planning algorithms; path deduction
• ISSN: 1729-8806; 1729-8814
• DOI: 10.1177/1729881419890715

Space-based Earth observation is now developing rapidly because of the advantages in coverage, convenience, and flexibility. However, it is difficult for one single satellite to realize the quick observation of wide areas. In order to catch all the significant information of a wide area in a short time, multi-satellite observation mission would be proposed. In this article, a mission planning method for online multi-satellite wide area observation is established to serve future multi-satellite observation missions. Firstly, a method for area division is proposed, and the whole area is divided into subareas. Then the multi-satellite observation path planning is realized by a strategy of path deduction. After that, a remaining time allocation method to maximize the observation gazing time of each subarea is proposed. Finally, the algorithms for the whole mission planning process are provided. Numerical simulations show that the mission planning method is able to ensure the complete coverage of different wide target areas, with high reliability and low computational complexity.