University of Colorado Boulder
Kinematics: Describing the Motions of Spacecraft
University of Colorado Boulder

Kinematics: Describing the Motions of Spacecraft

Hanspeter Schaub

Instructor: Hanspeter Schaub

24,880 already enrolled

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Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
4.9

(325 reviews)

Advanced level
Designed for those already in the industry
Flexible schedule
Approx. 28 hours
Learn at your own pace
94%
Most learners liked this course
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
4.9

(325 reviews)

Advanced level
Designed for those already in the industry
Flexible schedule
Approx. 28 hours
Learn at your own pace
94%
Most learners liked this course

What you'll learn

  • Differentiate a vector as seen by another rotating frame and derive frame dependent velocity and acceleration vectors

  • Apply the Transport Theorem to solve kinematic particle problems and translate between various sets of attitude descriptions

  • Add and subtract relative attitude descriptions and integrate those descriptions numerically to predict orientations over time

  • Derive the fundamental attitude coordinate properties of rigid bodies and determine attitude from a series of heading measurements

Details to know

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Assessments

36 assignments

Taught in English

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This course is part of the Spacecraft Dynamics and Control Specialization
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There are 4 modules in this course

This module covers particle kinematics. A special emphasis is placed on a frame-independent vectorial notation. The position velocity and acceleration of particles are derived using rotating frames utilizing the transport theorem.

What's included

13 videos3 assignments

This module provides an overview of orientation descriptions of rigid bodies. The 3D heading is here described using either the direction cosine matrix (DCM) or the Euler angle sets. For each set the fundamental attitude addition and subtracts are discussed, as well as the differential kinematic equation which relates coordinate rates to the body angular velocity vector.

What's included

18 videos1 reading10 assignments

This module covers modern attitude coordinate sets including Euler Parameters (quaternions), principal rotation parameters, Classical Rodrigues parameters, modified Rodrigues parameters, as well as stereographic orientation parameters. For each set the concepts of attitude addition and subtraction is developed, as well as mappings to other coordinate sets.

What's included

29 videos18 assignments

This module covers how to take an instantaneous set of observations (sun heading, magnetic field direction, star direction, etc.) and compute a corresponding 3D attitude measure. The attitude determination methods covered include the TRIAD method, Devenport's q-method, QUEST as well as OLAE. The benefits and computation challenges are reviewed for each algorithm.

What's included

13 videos5 assignments1 peer review

Instructor

Instructor ratings
5.0 (101 ratings)
Hanspeter Schaub
University of Colorado Boulder
10 Courses33,399 learners

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Recommended if you're interested in Physics and Astronomy

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4.9

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