Orbital Mechanics for Engineering Students

Professor Curtis is former professor and department chair of Aerospace Engineering at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He is a licensed professional engineer and is the author of two textbooks (Orbital Mechanics 3e, Elsevier 2013, and Fundamentals of Aircraft Structural Analysis, McGraw Hill 1997). His research specialties include continuum mechanics, structures, dynamics, and orbital mechanics.

• 1. Dynamics of Point Masses2. The Two-Body Problem3. Orbital Position as a Function of Time4. Orbits in Three Dimensions5. Preliminary Orbit Determination6. Orbital Maneuvers7. Relative Motion and Rendezvous8. Interplanetary Trajectories9. Lunar Trajectories10. Introduction to Orbital Perturbations11. Rigid Body Dynamics12. Spacecraft Attitude Dynamics13. Rocket Vehicle DynamicsAppendixA Physical DataB A Road MapC Numerical Integration of the N-Body Equations of MotionD MATLAB ScriptsE Gravitational Potential of a Sphere F Computing the Difference Between Nearly Equal NumbersG Direction Cosine Matrix in Terms of the Unit Quaternion