Mangalyaan was programmed to navigate autonomously

by indophile Fri Sep 26, 2014 12:55 pm

and pave the way for future smart satellites.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Mars-Orbiter-Mission-to-spawn-a-generation-of-smart-satellites/articleshow/43364220.cms

by rawemotions Sat Sep 27, 2014 9:49 am

indophile wrote:and pave the way for future smart satellites.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Mars-Orbiter-Mission-to-spawn-a-generation-of-smart-satellites/articleshow/43364220.cms

Thanks! Finally I got atleast part of the answer to the question on navigation.
This might explain how it determines the general direction and orientation. However I can be laterally off by a 10000 KM and still be looking at the same orientation. More information is required to completely understand position location of the MOM. I am guessing that it involves tri-laterization using three ground stations, but I am not sure about the resolution we can get with that, since it needs time sync between the time base of Satellite time and ground station time, with accurate clocks running all the four (three ground stations and satellite clock)

" To stay on course, MOM used the star-gazer to look at constellations of six to 10 stars every microsecond and compare them with preloaded patterns. "Distant stars are relatively stationary," he says. MOM continuously matched the patterns and, in relation to the constellations, determined its position and direction. That's autonomy.

Mangalyaan was programmed to navigate autonomously

Mangalyaan was programmed to navigate autonomously

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