Local Maneuvering
Thinsat displacement distance versus time is approximately 4 microns per second squared. A thinsat can maneuver these distances in the given period of time:
time |
accelerate |
move and stop |
degrees of orbit |
1 second |
1 micron |
|
|
1 minute |
4 millimeters |
|
|
5 minutes |
36 centimeters |
|
|
20 minutes |
6 meters |
|
|
1 hour |
52 meters |
|
|
4 hours |
800 meters |
|
|
24 hours |
30 kilometers |
0.14 degrees |
|
3 days |
135 kilometers |
0.6 degrees |
|
1 week |
730 kilometers |
3.3 degrees |
|
1 month |
14K kilometers |
63 degrees |
|
52 days |
40K kilometers |
180 degrees |
If the wavelength is 8mm and the ground antenna is 500mm across, the aperture is about 0.5 degrees. So, in 3 days a thinsat can move from one aperture to the next, and in 52 days it can move anywhere in the m288 orbit.