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arXiv · 1703.05831

Estimating the thermally induced acceleration of the New Horizons spacecraft

André G. C. Guerra·Frederico Francisco·Paulo J. S. Gil·Orfeu Bertolami
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Abstract

Residual accelerations due to thermal effects are estimated through a model of the New Horizons spacecraft and a Monte Carlo simulation. We also discuss and estimate the thermal effects on the attitude of the spacecraft. The work is based on a method previously used for the Pioneer and Cassini probes, which solve the Pioneer anomaly problem. The results indicate that after the encounter with Pluto there is a residual acceleration of the order of $10^{-9}~\mathrm{m/s^2}$, and that rotational effects should be difficult, although not impossible, to detect.

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BibTeXRIS

André G. C. Guerra, Frederico Francisco, Paulo J. S. Gil, Orfeu Bertolami. 2017-11-02. Estimating the thermally induced acceleration of the New Horizons spacecraft. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevd.95.124027

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