Experiment pointing control during space shuttle sortie missions

The pointing and stability problems of the space shuttle sortie mission are examined from the standpoint of basic shuttle capability and the techniques that could be used for improving this capability to accommodate a maximum number of experiments. Augmentation of the basic shuttle control system is proposed to provide an acceptable pointing environment. A stabilized reference base is recommended as a general pointing instrument for certain earth observation and astronomy experiments. Simulation results are presented which were obtained by modeling the Skylab Experiment Pointing Control (EPC) system on a thruster controlled shuttle.