Solar System and out bound

http://eyes.nasa.gov/


very cool app and seems to be real time

Manny

Originally posted by menace71
http://eyes.nasa.gov/


very cool app and seems to be real time

Manny

I'm still exploring, but its really nice so far.
The spacecraft I looked at, have their solar panels facing the sun, but their dishes do not face the earth. Does anyone know if they re-orient every time they wish to transmit?

Have a look at 216 kleopatra. Its shaped like a bone.

Originally posted by twhitehead
I'm still exploring, but its really nice so far.
The spacecraft I looked at, have their solar panels facing the sun, but their dishes do not face the earth. Does anyone know if they re-orient every time they wish to transmit?

I'm not sure I would think the arrays or antennas have to face generally towards earth not sure.

Manny

Dawn's solar Panels are facing the sun but the array is facing down or 90° almost


Manny

Does anyone know how they reorient? Is it done with gyroscopes, or rockets?

Originally posted by twhitehead
Does anyone know how they reorient? Is it done with gyroscopes, or rockets?

They use microburster rockets and gyro's but some forms of gyro's don't use moving parts but rely instead on doppler shifting light beams inside fiber optic cables that produce a change in frequency related to changes in orientation.

Originally posted by sonhouse
They use microburster rockets and gyro's but some forms of gyro's don't use moving parts but rely instead on doppler shifting light beams inside fiber optic cables that produce a change in frequency related to changes in orientation.

Those are gyros to detect orientation. Do they ever use gyros to actually move the spacecrafts orientation? I am just thinking that the fuel requirements would be significantly lower if you could use electric power from the solar cells rather than microbursts of fuel.

I guess I should do my own research. This is what I have found so far:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reaction_wheel
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Control_moment_gyroscope

Another interesting one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetorquer

Originally posted by twhitehead
Those are gyros to detect orientation. Do they ever use gyros to actually move the spacecrafts orientation? I am just thinking that the fuel requirements would be significantly lower if you could use electric power from the solar cells rather than microbursts of fuel.

I guess I should do my own research. This is what I have found so far:
http://en.wik ...[text shortened]... /Control_moment_gyroscope

Another interesting one:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetorquer

The Kepler spacecraft was put out of commission by reaction wheel failures. They talk about this on the Wikipedia page in the section Spacecraft history. I think the advantage over rockets is that you get fine control.