[guide-user] Re: satellite tracking
Markus G. Kempf Jan 26, 2000
Rereading my posting, the conclusion was not totally clear.
1. Drive rate control does not help, if the mount is of the equatorial
or altazimutal type. Example: MIR as observed at 48deg. latitude
crosses the sky near the zenith, then near the celestial north pole
and again near the zenith.
2. GUIDE should provide a new satellite position with a variable rate.
(2Hz for the braindead MEADE TCS and maybe 18Hz for Mels TCS)
3. The TCS should handle the positions in an optimum way. That is compute
the best interception path, constantly updating it with new positions
and predicting future positions. (with satellites, we do know the
future, making it possible to compute the best possible way, but it
makes the TCS very complicated. Much of control theory was developed
to better intercept and track moving things :-( )
Markus Kempf