ATMOSPHERIC DRAG FORCE’S IMPACT ON LOW EARTH ORBITAL SATELLITE COMPONENTS DURING LOW SOLAR ACTIVITY

Abstract

Background: Atmospheric drag remains the dominant non-gravitational disturbance for satellites in low Earth orbit, even during solar-minimum conditions. Aim: This paper investigates how low solar activity affects orbital evolution and component-level loading for a representative LEO satellite. Methodology: A 100-kg spacecraft in a 6700 km semi-major-axis, e_0=0.020, i_0=120^∘orbit was propagated under NRLMSISE-00 densities with F_10.7=70sfu. Eight cases with different right ascensions of the ascending node for 25–30 h, and component-wise drag contributions were estimated. Results: Semi-major axis decreased by 30–37 km per day, yielding lifetimes of 5.7–8.4 days from ~320 km altitude. Changes in RAAN altered decay rate by ~50%. Solar arrays accounted for ~53% of drag force and ~87% of aerodynamic torque. Conclusion: Even under low solar activity, RAAN selection, area-to-mass ratio, and deployable geometry critically govern lifetime, station-keeping demand, and attitude-control requirements.