satellitemoves

Satellitemoves is a term used in orbital mechanics and mission design to describe the planned sequence of maneuvers that adjust a satellite’s orbit, attitude, or ground track. The concept encompasses transfers, plane changes, altitude adjustments, and phasing maneuvers that collectively achieve a desired orbital state or mission objective. While the phrase is encountered in some educational materials and engineering discussions, it is not a formal standard term in major space agencies’ glossaries and is often used informally to refer to maneuver planning workflows.

In practice, satellitemoves involve determining target orbital parameters, estimating delta-v requirements, and sequencing propulsion events to meet mission constraints. Typical components include orbital transfers (such as Hohmann-like routes or bi-elliptic transfers), plane changes to align with a desired ground track or rendezvous objective, altitude maintenance or expansion for constellations, and phasing or parking orbits to synchronize with other assets. Propulsion type, propulsion efficiency, and spacecraft limitations influence maneuver design, as do perturbations from Earth’s oblateness, atmospheric drag, and third-body effects.

Applications span mission design for individual satellites, constellation maintenance and reconfiguration, collision avoidance, deorbit strategies, and attitude- or orbit-keeping tasks. Planning tools often use orbit propagators, numerical optimization, and delta-v budgeting to simulate outcomes and assess robustness under uncertainty. As a general concept, satellitemoves emphasizes the choreography of multiple maneuvers to achieve a coordinated orbital objective rather than a single thrust event.

See also orbital maneuver, delta-v, rendezvous, attitude control, constellation management.