Orbital Mechanics Two-Body Model for Educational Purposes

Szakács, Tamás (2025) Orbital Mechanics Two-Body Model for Educational Purposes. REPÜLÉSTUDOMÁNYI KÖZLEMÉNYEK (1997-TŐL), 36 (2). pp. 61-72. ISSN 1417-0604

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Abstract

Teaching celestial mechanics is a highly rewarding task, as there is hardly a student who is not intrigued by how celestial bodies move across the sky, how an Earth-orbiting satellite stays in orbit, or how one can travel to the Moon, Mars, or further in the solar system and beyond. Even with only high school-level mathematics and physics knowledge, one can understand and describe key operations such as orbit insertion, orbital manoeuvres, and the concepts of escape velocities. To aid the teaching of the subject “Orbital Mechanics”, I developed a model in the Matlab/Simulink environment, which is suitable for demonstrating these tasks, providing illustrations, and verifying homework. I emphasised keeping the model simple and easy to use while making it interesting for students. Additionally, it serves as a tool for practicing the use of Matlab/Simulink.

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