Analytic solution for satellite attitude acquisition by angular momentum transfer

Angular momentum transfer maneuvers to stabilize the direction of communications satellites in geosynchronous orbits have to date been effectively treated using numerical approximation techniques.

An alternative analytic method is shown here based on the mathematical techniques developed by Volterra in his study of rigid body rotations having internal motion. This method is direct and is a good analytic alternative for those people working in the field who are familiar with elliptic functions.