AOCS at Reflex: Guiding Satellites With Precision
In orbit, precision is everything.
At Reflex Aerospace, our Attitude and Orbit Control System (AOCS) ensures that every satellite we build is exactly where it needs to be in space. And, just as importantly, points exactly where it should. This subsystem governs a satellite’s orientation and trajectory, enabling payloads to operate at peak performance.
“Our job is to make sure the satellite is properly oriented in space and maintains the correct orbital trajectory,” explains Levi Vuylsteke, Lead AOCS Engineer at Reflex.
Behind that mission is a powerful fusion of technical mastery and program delivery. From high-fidelity simulations and control algorithms to on-board flight software, our AOCS team develops the complete technology stack.
Engineers like Gabriele Palumbo also play a vital role in keeping subsystem deliveries on track for projects like MIRI, our second satellite.
AOCS: More Than Just Keeping Satellites in Line
The AOCS consists of three main components:
Sensors: Used for attitude and orbit determination, such as star trackers, sun sensors, gyroscopes, magnetometers, Earth sensors, and GNSS. They provide information about the spacecraft’s orientation relative to celestial references (e.g., stars, the Sun, or Earth) and its position in orbit.
Algorithms: Guidance algorithms, calculating the attitude and orbit trajectory. Navigation algorithms, such as Kalman filters, which fuse data from multiple sensors to accurately estimate the spacecraft’s current state (position and attitude). Control algorithms, that determine the required control actions to achieve and maintain the desired orientation and trajectory.
Actuators: Reaction wheels, control moment gyros (CMGs), thrusters, and magnetic torquers, they give the needed torque or thrust to the spacecraft for fine and coarse attitude and orbit control.
The pointing accuracy of an AOCS subsystem can reach into the arc-second level when necessary, such as for high-precision Earth observation or astronomical pointing. To give you an idea, this means accurately hitting a one-meter target 200 km far away.
On the Cusp of Tomorrow
The future promises even more. Technologies such as deep learning and quantum-based sensor technologies promise vastly improved estimation of position and attitude. These technologies may redefine accuracy benchmarks in orbit and deliver unmatched confidence for payload pointing.
Bottom Line
In space, there’s no margin for error. And with a control system tailored to mission needs, there’s no limit to what Reflex can deliver for its customers.