Star-sensor-based predictive Kalman filter for satellite attitude estimation

A real-time attitude estimation algorithm, namely the predictive Kalman filter, is presented. This algorithm can accurately estimate the three-axis attitude of a satellite using only star sensor measurements. The implementation of the filter includes two steps: first, predicting the torque modeling error, and then estimating the attitude. Simulation results indicate that the predictive Kalman filter provides robust performance in the presence of both significant errors in the assumed model and in the initial conditions.