Snezana Mitrovic Minic
Simon Fraser University
Canada
Title: Mission Operations Optimization: Is Capital Investment Needed to Increase Throughputs and Profits?
Biography
Biography: Snezana Mitrovic Minic
Abstract
Maximization of resource utilization in satellite industry can be achieved through application of Operations Research and Optimization methodologies. More than 25% percent increase may be reachable even without capital investment. This talk presents two scheduling problems arising in Satellite Mission Operations. Planning and image acquisition scheduling for an outward-looking satellite that monitor’s resident space object and space debris is a complex optimization problem. With several hundred thousands of pieces of space debris in the Earth orbits, tracking the debris for advanced planning of satellite Manoeuvres to avoid collisions is becoming very important. The other planning problem deals with rapid scheduling performed on-board optical satellite that could provide enhanced and more accurate cloud avoidance in image acquisitions. Scheduling problems in satellite industry are characterized with rich set of constraints and complex optimization cost functions and may be called rich scheduling problems. State-of-the art optimization methodologies including metaheuristics provide means of generating close-to-optimal solutions in a reasonable time and within realistic operational scenarios. Similar methodologies have potential to increase throughput of communication satellites and provide better service for larger number of high priority customers.