Archives: Glossary Terms

TSTI Admin No Comments April 6, 2026

Mission Planning and Analysis

Planning mission timelines and sequencing of events, analyzing trade-offs between competing technical options and, defining flight rulesDetailed procedures for normal and contingency operations that operators and engineers created during the mission design, manufacture, and tests. They describe how every subsystem should work and list the steps to take in every conceivable situation to save the […]

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TSTI Admin No Comments October 7, 2024

Newton’s 2nd Law

Newton’s Second Law of MotionA rotating object’s spin rate. We use the right-hand rule to determine its direction. More states that the timeThe time between successive passages of the Sun overhead, which is from noon one day to noon the next day. Because Earth’s orbit around the Sun is slightly elliptical, this time varies slightly […]

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TSTI Admin No Comments April 10, 2026

orbit

The oval-shaped pathThe elliptical-shaped path a satellite takes in going from one circular orbit to another as part of a Hohmann Transfer. More that a spacecraft follows. OrbitsThe study of the moving objects under the influence of gravity from another body. Astrodynamicists design orbits and study how gravity affects them. More come in various shapes […]

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TSTI Admin No Comments October 7, 2024

origin

Defines a physically identifiable starting pointThe job of the attitude determination and control subsystem (ADCS) is to keep its spacecraft pointed in the right direction. More for the coordinate systemA frame of reference that engineers use as a foundation for describing an object’s motion. Coordinate systems have a center point (origin), two or three axis […]

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TSTI Admin No Comments October 7, 2024

out-gassing

The release of trapped gases and evaporated material from spacecraft in orbit. The released gases can coat electronic surfaces and sensor lenses, causing electrical problems and blurred observations.

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TSTI Admin No Comments April 10, 2026

parking orbit

A temporary orbitThe oval-shaped path that a spacecraft follows. Orbits come in various shapes and sizes, but each one has a purpose: to let the spacecraft do its job. Higher orbits require more propellant to get a spacecraft there. More for a spacecraft before transferring to its mission orbit. A spacecraft may need checkout timeThe […]

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