Autonomous interplanetary navigation using full-disk solar imaging

Autonomous navigation; Deep space; Image processing; Interplanetary missions; Onboard estimation; Spacecraft; Sun-based navigation; Full disks; Ground stations; Images processing; Interplanetary mission; Interplanetary navigation; Solar imaging; Aerospace Engineering; Astronomy and Astrophysics; Space and Planetary Science

Abstract :

[en] This paper introduces a novel method for autonomous interplanetary navigation leveraging full-disk solar imaging. The growing number of small satellites in simultaneous deep-space missions has determined congestion issues in ground stations, demanding alternatives methods to radiometric tracking to be developed for orbit determination. The navigation approach of this study utilizes the apparent size of the Sun captured through white-light imaging to estimate the spacecraft's distance from the Sun, combined with centroid information for determining the relative position vector, provided spacecraft attitude is known. The image processing pipeline employed to extract the solar diameter and centroid from images, as well as the navigation filter formulation to sequentially estimate the spacecraft's orbit in deep space, are presented in this paper. The methodology has been tested along a representative interplanetary trajectory, demonstrating promising performance in both position and velocity estimates, allowing the tracking of a reference orbit in deep space onboard satellites. This method may prove useful for initial orbit determination, orbit recovery, contingency, or as back-up to radiometric tracking, thus off-loading ground stations and shifting navigation routines onboard satellites.

Disciplines :

Aerospace & aeronautics engineering

Author, co-author :

FRANZESE, Vittorio ; University of Luxembourg > Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SNT) > SPASYS

External co-authors :

Language :

English

Title :

Autonomous interplanetary navigation using full-disk solar imaging

Publication date :

15 July 2025

Journal title :

Advances in Space Research

ISSN :

0273-1177

eISSN :

1879-1948

Publisher :

Elsevier Ltd

Volume :

Issue :

Pages :

865 - 877

Peer reviewed :

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

Additional URL :

https://api.elsevier.com/content/article/PII:S0273117725004296?httpAccept=text/xml

Available on ORBilu :

since 05 December 2025

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