How To...

Perform Stationkeeping Using an Automatic Sequence with Astrogator

The Automatic Sequence Browser feature of Astrogator is a versatile tool for modeling automated actions that are triggered in response to conditions of interest. One typical use of this feature is the performance of stationkeeping maneuvering. To use an Automatic Sequence to manage stationkeeping, take the following steps:

Click on the MCS toolbar to open the Automatic Sequence Browser and define the automatic sequence. To add a new, blank Automatic Sequence, click New. To create a copy of an existing Automatic Sequence, select it in the list and click Make Copy, or double-click it in the list. When you create a new or duplicate Automatic Sequence, you will be prompted to enter a Name and User Comment for it.

In the desired Propagate or Finite Maneuver segment, add Stopping Conditions to define the criteria for performing the Automatic Sequence.
If you add a "UserSelect" Stopping Condition, the User Calc Object field will become activated, allowing you to define a Stopping Condition based on a Calculation Object in the Astrogator Component Browser.

In the Sequence field, click to select the Automatic Sequence you want to execute when the Stopping Conditions have been met.

Set the Max Trip Times field to define the maximum number of times that you want the Stopping Conditions to be met before the segment stops propagating.

When the MCS is run and the Stopping Conditions are met, Astrogator will execute the Automatic Sequence and then continue propagating the segment - executing the Automatic Sequence each time the Stopping Conditions are met - until it reaches the value of the Max Trip Times field.