Control of Magnetic Space Tug

Abstract Magnetic tugging of a target satellite without thrust capacity can be interesting in various contexts. In this paper, the dynamics of such a 2-satellites formation is derived and linearised about a nominal configuration which is not necessarily constant. Analytical expressions are given for the different forces and torques differentials. Two LQ-based controllers are given, depending on the capacity of the target to control its own attitude. Linear simulations of the closed loop system are realised and compared with the full order non-linear model. The results obtained are promising and consistent with previous research