Mathematical modeling of spacecraft

A lecture series devoted to the Dynamics of Flexible Spacecraft is concerned not with a single problem but with a family of related problems. Accordingly, there is not a single correct approach to solution, but a spectrum of methods to be applied to a family of spacecraft idealizations. Although analysts will differ in their preference for various ways of formulating equations, one man choosing Lagrange’s equations, a second preferring Hamilton’s principle, and a third relying upon a Newton-Euler formulation, these differences are much less fundamental than the initial choice of a mathematical model of the vehicle.