268 pgs, 1997, John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 978-0471146360

Logsdon draws on more than 40 years of aerospace engineering experience and orbital mechanics study to introduce professionals and graduate students to the behavior and interaction of orbiting celestial bodies. He surveys the subject from early astronomers' investigations and theories such as Kepler's laws, to current control and propulsion systems, satellite payload optimization and constellation design, and orbital perturbations, paying particular attention to the curious movements of rockets and occasionally strange results of simple maneuvers. The text is well-illustrated with plenty of diagrams and uses imaginative analogies involving slides, balloons, and billiard balls.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. An Introduction to Orbital Mechanics
2. Satellite Orbits
3. The Orbital Environment
4. Powered Flight Maneuvers
5. Boosting a Satellite into Orbit
6. Today's Family of Global Boosters
7. Enhancing the Performance of Booster Rockets
8. Choosing the Proper Orbit for a Satellite
9. Choosing the Proper Constellation Architecture
10. Space-Age Technologies for the Twenty-First Century