Patent ID: 7832688

Claim:
A spacecraft operable in an inclined orbit with respect to Earth's equator, comprising: at least one solar array rotatable about a pitch axis of the spacecraft; a receive antenna; a transmit antenna comprising an antenna attitude adjuster; at least one radiator panel; a spacecraft attitude adjustor; and a logic module comprising instructions to determine an angle θ for offsetting an attitude of the spacecraft by the angle θ with respect to a pitch axis of the nominal orientation, to determine an angle φ b for offsetting the attitude of the spacecraft by the angle φ b with respect to a roll axis of the spacecraft, and to determine a roll angle φ a for offsetting the receive antenna and the transmit antenna at the roll angle φ a with respect to the spacecraft, wherein a roll rotation angle φ is a combination of the angle φ b and the roll angle φ a , wherein the spacecraft is configured such that the spacecraft has a nominal orientation in which a yaw axis of the spacecraft, the roll axis of the spacecraft, and the at least one radiator panel are substantially parallel to Earth's equatorial plane, in which the pitch axis of the spacecraft is substantially parallel to Earth's polar axis, in which the Nadir vector is in a yaw-pitch plane of the spacecraft, and in which the transmit antenna and receive antenna are oriented at angle φ nom , wherein the antenna attitude adjustor and the spacecraft attitude adjustor are configured to correct an attitude of the transmit antenna to maintain a desired degree of the receive antenna and the transmit antenna steered toward a coverage region on Earth's surface, by offsetting the attitude of the spacecraft by the angle θ with respect to the pitch axis of the nominal orientation and by the angle φ b with respect to the roll axis of the spacecraft, and by offsetting the receive antenna and the transmit antenna at the roll angle φ a with respect to the spacecraft.