Chaotic behavior of CubeSat with deployable side panels under an action of aerodynamic and gravitational toques

Attitude dynamics of a CubeSat with deployable side panels in a rarefied Earth`s atmosphere under the influence of a biharmonic torque. This pitch angle dependence is due to the aerodynamic and gravitational torques. The presence of the second harmonic in the biharmonic torque is the cause of an additional unstable equilibrium. Flexible oscillations of the aerodynamic side panels are a disturbing factor that can lead to chaos of the attitude motion body of the CubeSat. On the other hand, these elastic panels, located relatively far from the mass center of the CubeSat, improve the properties of an aerodynamic damping. To analyze the heteroclinic chaos in a planar motion of the CubeSat an analytical representation of the Melnikov function is found. Using the Melnikov function, one can select satellite characteristics that would ensure the absence of the chaos in the attitude motion. The results of the study can be useful for studying a chaotic behavior of the CubeSats in the rarefied Earth`s atmosphere.