Sliding Mode Control of Chaotic Motion in Electrodynamic Tethered Satellite System in an Inclined Elliptical Plane

This paper investigates the chaotic behavior of an electrodynamic tethered satellite system (ETSS) orbiting Earth in an inclined elliptical orbit. The system is modelled using a dumbbell model. The presence of chaos is established through the computation of transversal heteroclinic orbits, and the corresponding parameter domain for chaotic motion is determined using the Melnikov function. A tether length control strategy based on sliding mode control is proposed to suppress the chaotic motion. Finally, numerical simulations are presented to validate the occurrence of chaos within the identified parameter domain and its control.