The intricacies of mission design and operations require innovative solutions. Ansys provides cutting-edge simulation software that combines advanced modeling, analysis, and training capabilities. Our software enables organizations to explore flight trajectories, determine orbits, analyze the performance of communication systems, plan station-keeping cycles, and conduct conjunction analyses.
Modern space missions demand a new level of precision in early-stage design, performance analysis, and optimization. That’s why the most visionary aerospace organizations turn to Ansys software to plan their missions with confidence — before anything ever leaves the ground. Here are a few of the advantages simulation offers innovators.
Minimize Risk Before Launch
Identify potential issues early by simulating mission designs upfront to avoid costly surprises down the line.
Optimize Your Full Mission
Space missions are notoriously challenging. Model operational environments and the interrelationships of assets with accurate, dynamic, physics-based simulations to validate system designs concerning the missions they must perform.
Assess Feasibility with Confidence
Model assets across multiple domains — land, sea, air, and space — to analyze system performance, and integrate with Ansys’ portfolio of multi-physics tools and solvers to achieve unmatched end-to-end modeling and simulation.
Respond in Real Time
Support early phase mission design and planning with simulated measurements and anticipate on-orbit operational needs to ensure safety of flight.
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Navigating the Challenges in Space Mission Planning
The planning process encompasses mission design, orbit simulation, spacecraft tracking, flight dynamics integration, support for lunar and Mars landings, geolocation of ground emitters, and preparation of applications for cloud deployment.
Launch Digital Mission Engineering with Ansys STK
Digital Mission Engineering starts with Ansys Systems Tool Kit (STK), our flagship product which provides the digital world for platform and subsystem models to be simulated and analyzed. STK enables engineers, operators, and analysts to connect modeling and simulation efforts across all phases of the engineering product life cycle.
ODTK offers precise orbit estimates throughout the mission life cycle, from design to operations. It enables cost-effective tracking simulations, customized reporting, and visualizations. With advanced filtering and automation features, ODTK enhances operator workflows and integration into larger systems, ensuring mission requirements are met.
Featured Ansys products and collections for space mission planning
Plan smarter missions with tools that simulate trajectories, optimize tracking, and connect design to real-time operations—all in one streamlined workflow.
Ansys Digital Mission Engineering (DME)
Connect design and operations in one workflow. Integrate real-time data, simulate mission impacts, and keep engineering and ops teams aligned from start to finish.
Ansys Orbit Determination Tool Kit (ODTK)
ODTK helps you maintain mission accuracy by processing real-world tracking data, estimating spacecraft position and velocity, analyzing uncertainty, and optimizing tracking strategies.
Design and simulate space missions in a 3D, physics-based environment. Plan complex trajectories, model constellations, analyze coverage, and evaluate mission trade-offs in real time.
Accelerate mission analysis with AI-driven tools. Automate ODTK result assessments, predict outcomes faster, and minimize manual tuning and analysis time.
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Optimize Spacecraft Mission Objective
Achieving the highest return on investment for a satellite mission requires precise planning and resource optimization.
Our Solutions
Integrated Optimization Routines
STK's Astrogator utilizes SNOPT (Sparse Nonlinear OPTimizer) and IPOPT (Interior Point OPTimizer) to optimize orbit parameters.
Designing for the Unknown
Innovations must address the core challenges of designing spacecraft that survive launch, withstand harsh space environments, and thrive in deep space.
Navigating Risk and Resilience
Space is congested, contested, and high-risk. Avoiding collisions, ensuring uptime, and maximizing performance under pressure is essential.
Key Benefits
Reduce Fuel Consumption
Focus on efficient trajectory design to extend mission lifespan and increase operational payloads.
Improve Efficiency
Automate the trajectory optimization processes for more effective mission planning.
Assess Trade-offs
Enable quick evaluation of competing constraints to ensure informed decision-making.
Dynamic Planning
Develop adaptable mission strategies to respond to new conditions and objectives.
Enhance Awareness
Use advanced trajectory visualization to provide situational clarity
Mission & Trajectory Design
Efficiently develop, optimize, and validate flight-ready trajectories while minimizing costs, enabling rapid maneuver planning, analyzing subsystem impacts, and supporting missions across VLEO, GEO, Lunar/Cislunar, and Deep Space orbit regimes.
Our Solutions
Segmented Trajectory Design
Ansys STK/Astrogator® enables a flexible design process for various missions.
Maneuver Evaluation
Assess maneuver pointing and thrusting strategies for mission feasibility.
Advanced Search and Optimization
Use search profiles, differential correctors, and powerful optimizers, such as SNOPT and IPOPT.
High-Fidelity Force Modeling
Use customizable force models to account for mission-specific perturbations and environmental factors.
Customized Mission Components
Define engine models, propagators, fuel tank characteristics, stopping conditions, and other key parameters.
Key Benefits
Automate Trajectory Design
Automate trajectory design, reducing manual calculations and iteration time for faster mission planning.
Improve Efficiency
Perform more efficient trade studies by quickly evaluating multiple mission scenarios with built-in optimization tools.
Assess Propulsion Trade-offs
Accurately assess propulsion, delta-v, and maneuver constraints early in the design process for improved feasibility analysis.
Dynamic Planning
Reduce operational risk by simulating complex trajectories to ensure mission success before execution.
Seamless Integration
Seamlessly integrate with external analysis tools for a more complete mission design workflow.
Orbital Maintenance
Satellites require frequent maneuvers for orbit maintenance due to perturbing forces like drag and solar radiation pressure, necessitating strategic planning for optimal timing and execution to extend operational lifetimes.
Our Solutions
Automated Maneuver Planning
Determine and execute station-keeping maneuvers based on defined requirements.
Flexible Maneuver Execution
Specify maneuvers manually or trigger them automatically when conditions are met.
Flexible Orbit Maintenance Strategies
Users create the strategy that best meets their operational and hardware requirements.
Key Benefits
Conditioned Maneuvering
Trigger station-keeping maneuvers at predefined conditions to maintain the desired orbit constraints or trigger as needed in case of special events such as collision avoidance.
Enhanced Visualization
Detailed reporting, graphing, and visualization of key metrics such as fuel consumption, ΔV budget, and orbit maintenance performance.
Orbit Monitoring
Post-maneuver orbit can be used in regular STK analysis to check for conjunctions, communications performance, or access times.
Constellation Orbit Management
Satellites require frequent maneuvers for orbit maintenance due to perturbing forces like drag and solar radiation pressure, necessitating strategic planning for optimal timing and execution to extend operational lifetimes.
Our Solutions
Efficient Constellation Modeling
Satellite Collection Object can model vast constellations efficiently.
Integrated Tools
Integrated Analysis Tools allow constellation-wide assessments, including deck access, coverage, conjunction analysis, and communication performance.
Astrogater Access
Access to Astrogator can be used for individual satellite orbit management.
Key Benefits
All-in-One Constellation Management
Efficient constellation management from orbit maintenance and collision risk assessment to sensor and interference analysis, all in one tool.
Improve Analysis
Enable additional analysis, such as automated station-keeping, drift correction, and collision avoidance planning.
Contingency Planning
Ability to run trade studies and contingency planning in case of unexpected events.
Spacecraft State Estimate from Tracking Data
Accurate satellite position knowledge is crucial for analyzing past data and planning future missions. Estimating its state from tracking data is difficult due to noise, errors, and biases.
Our Solutions
Comprehensive Tracking Data Processing
ODTK processes numerous tracking data types from ground and space-based trackers.
Initial State Estimation Methods
Initializing the filter with initial orbit determination (IOD) and least squares techniques.
Advanced Filtering Techniques
Utilizes multiple filter types with a matched smoother for optimal data processing.
Proven Across All Orbit Regimes
Successfully used for planning and operations from VLEO to GEO, cislunar, lunar, and interplanetary trajectories.
Key Benefits
Accurate Estimates
Provide accurate orbit estimates with realistic covariance and numerous uncertainty parameters, including measurement biases, atmospheric density, and solar radiation pressure.
Tracking Enablement
Enable tracking data processing through maneuvers, with maneuver estimation and refinement capabilities.
Comprehensive Reporting
Comprehensive reporting and graphing library for in-depth analysis.
Automated Workflows
Can be automated for operational workflows and trade studies.
Satellite and Tracking System Calibration
Calibrate and maintain sensors and software for precise tracking measurements. Recalibrate periodically to address drift and noise and optimize resources to efficiently manage computing power, personnel, and operational time during calibration efforts.
Our Solutions
Measurement Data Processing
Estimate stochastic parameters of tracking stations by processing measurement data.
Refine Calibration Accuracy
Compare against a precise reference ephemeris when available to refine calibration accuracy.
Isolate Station Properties
Use well-characterized objects such as GPS or ILRS-tracked satellites to isolate and fine-tune tracking station properties.
Improve Efficiency
Combine data from multiple satellites to improve efficiency.
Key Benefits
Accurate Estimates
Improve measurement accuracy by solving for biases and refining sensor models.
Optimized Operational Efficiency
Optimize operational efficiency by reducing recalibration efforts.
High Precision Processing
Leverage high-precision processing with a state-of-the-art sequential filter and matched smoother.
Long-Term Reliability
Enable long-term reliability by continuously fine-tuning sensor parameters based on real-world data.
Payload and Ground Station Schedule
Effective task management is essential for satellite missions, balancing high-priority tasks with lower ones while considering interconnected operations, resource constraints, and adapting to environmental changes for optimal signal quality.
Our Solutions
STK Object Integration
Imports STK objects as scheduling resources with STK Scheduler, including computed intervals such as access, lighting, and orbital events to define resource availability.
Flexible Scheduling Algorithms
Provides several built-in algorithms that can add custom solutions.
Customizable Scheduling Metrics
Customize focus based on priority, task count, and duration with Configurable Figure of Merit
Comprehensive Schedule Validation
Ensures compliance by checking for accommodation, timeslot/duration conflicts, and capacity violations.
Complete API
Seamless integration into larger systems and automation of daily scheduling.
Key Benefits
Optimized Scheduling
Optimize asset scheduling for all mission tasks.
Integrated Results
Provide integrated results through Gantt charts, histograms, and reports, with visualization in Ansys Systems Tool Kit® (STK®).
Complex Problem Solving
Solve complex multi-satellite and constellation scheduling problems efficiently, reducing processing time from hours to minutes.
Spacecraft Anomaly Resolution
The process involves identifying spacecraft anomalies' root causes, assessing their impact on missions, developing mitigation strategies for success, and training teams through simulations of various anomaly scenarios.
Our Solutions
Integrated STK
Analyze and visualize spacecraft state by integrating available data into STK.
Pinpoint Descrepancies
Compare expected vs. actual behavior to pinpoint discrepancies.
Validate Strategies
Simulate and validate resolution strategies before implementation.
Key Benefits
3D Visualization
3D visualization of spacecraft state and environment for enhanced anomaly diagnosis.
Key Elements Display
Display key elements such as 3D models, sensors, Sun direction, nadir, and other critical vectors.
Realistic Training Scenarios
Generate realistic training scenarios for operations teams.
Validate Before Execution
Ensure mission continuity by validating proposed resolutions before execution.
