The following graphs show the decrease in average height (km) of ARISSat and the fall rate (km/day) since the launch on 08/03/2011 and until 21/11/2011. The calculations are made by me from the daily Keplerian data. It is clearly visible the irregularity of the fall rate, due to variations in solar flux, which cause variations in the density of the atmosphere and therefore in drag.
http://www.qsl.net/py4zbz/arissat.htm#r 73 de Roland PY4ZBZ. _______________________________________________ Sent via [email protected]. Opinions expressed are those of the author. Not an AMSAT-NA member? Join now to support the amateur satellite program! Subscription settings: http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/amsat-bb
