Non-Propulsive Payload Deployment for Efficient On-Orbit Servicing of Mega-Constellations

Abstract

The prevailing assumption holds that on-orbit servicing (OOS) of mega-constellations is infeasible due to prohibitive fuel consumption incurred by multiple rendezvous maneuvers across vast and dispersed satellite populations. To address this challenge, a novel OOS architecture termed Non-Propulsive Payload Deployment (NPD) is proposed in this paper. Within this framework, a service spacecraft (SSc) ejects micro-payload spacecraft (PSc) into transfer orbits, after which the PSc autonomously rendezvous with target spacecraft (TSc). Since propulsion is required only for the minimal mass of the PSc, maneuvering fuel consumption is significantly reduced. This paper develops a phase-based approximation algorithm to resolve the scheduling problems arising from cumulative recoil-induced orbital perturbations. Numerical simulations for a constellation of over 100 satellites demonstrate that this algorithm reduces computation time by over 90% while maintaining ejection velocity errors below 1%. Further analysis yields an analytical formula for evaluating the deployment capability of the NPD system, providing planning estimates with less than 2% error within low Earth orbit (LEO) regimes. Finally, a case study of the Starlink Gen2 constellation confirms that the NPD system consumes less than 1/50 of the propellant required by conventional methods, enabling efficient multi-plane servicing via J2 perturbation.