Modeling and control of interferometric formations in the vicinity of the collinear libration points

The modeling and control of a Fizeau-type interferometer in the elliptic, restricted three-body problem of the Sun and Earth-Moon Barycenter system, is the subject of this paper. The interferometer is in a quasi-periodic (Lissajous) orbit about the trans-terrestrial libration point. Control laws are derived for effective station-keeping, inertial and local pointing, and slewing maneuvers, as well as attitude maintenance of the spacecraft in the formation. These control laws are derived from candidate Lyapunov functions, each of which is proven to be globally and asymptotically stable. The approach in this paper couples the translational and attitude kinematics of the spacecraft, thereby leading to a more accurate representation of the system. Simulations are provided for various types of maneuvers.

Modeling and control of interferometric formations in the vicinity of the collinear libration points Conference Paper