An Optimal Control Based Estimator for Maneuver and Natural Dynamics Reconstruction

With overcrowding threatening the safety of Earth’s orbital environment, methods for tracking and understanding the motions of objects in orbit have become very important. This paper details an estimation algorithm that incorporates optimal control for the purposes of Maneuver Detection and Reconstruction. In this context, maneuver refers to any unmodeled acceleration: active spacecraft thrusting, unmodeled force, mismodeled force, etc. This estimation algorithm is composed of three components each of which is detailed in this paper. The first component is an estimator akin to a Kalman Algorithm, but with additional properties for more accurate tracking and reconstructing maneuvers through the generation of optimal control policies. The other two components are a maneuver detection algorithm that relies on measurement residuals, and a maneuver reconstruction algorithm that estimates mismodeled parameters for atmospheric drag and solar radiation pressure perturbations. The complete algorithm is demonstrated numerically in a simulation of a LEO spacecraft with mismodeled dynamics subject to independent tracking measurements.