Coupled trajectory and attitude stability of displaced orbits

Coupled trajectory and attitude stability of displaced solar orbits is studied by using sailcraft with a kind of two-folding construction with two unequal rectangular plates forming a right angle. Three-dimensional coupled trajectory and attitude equations are developed for the coupled dynamical system, and the results show that all three types of displaced solar orbits widely referenced can be achieved through selecting an appropriate size of the two-folding sail. An anal- ysis of the corresponding linear stability of the trajectory and attitude coupled system is carried out, and both trajectory and attitude linearly stable orbits are found to exist in a small range of parameters, whose non-linear stability is then examined via numerical simulations. Finally, passively stable orbits are found to have weak stability, and such passive means of station-keeping are attractive and useful in practice because of its simplicity.