Astrodynamics
Apart from the fact the it Is impossible to known the position of movement object (Heisenberg principle), spacecraft are acted upon by influential gravitational forces which tend deviate the direction of the vehicle and generate lots of induce drag. Beside every body is in motion . do is it to determine the location and speed of spacecraft?
Hi, today very precise gravitational models are available. It is clear that the drag force (for low-earth orbit spacecrafts) is more complex to know as it depends on solar activity and also on the exact orientation of the spacecraft. Orbit determination based on measurements remains necessary to determine the exact position and velocity at a given period.
It falls under the topic of Orbit Determination (OD). A good textbook on this topic is "Statistical Orbit Determination", by Bob Schutz, Byron Tapley, George H. Born.
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