From: filip.larsen@nospam.dk   
      
   [My first reply was sent prematurely, please ignore it]   
      
   Reza wroite   
      
   > Assume there is no plane change.  Simply it is required to put a   
   > satellite from its LEO orbit with inclination angle of zero into the   
   > final GEO orbit using a bielliptic transfer.  The satellite must go   
   > through the following orbits:   
   >   
   > Initial circular LEO orbit --> first elliptic transfer orbit --> first   
   > circular transfer orbit --> second elliptic transfer orbit --> the   
   > final circular orbit.   
   >   
   > It seems that the satellite requires four burns rather than three.   
   > Could someone please tell me whether the above order is right? Why we   
   > need three burns rather than four (as given in other postings)? Where   
   > the burns occur?   
      
   In general, if you have a sequence of n matched orbits you need n-1   
   maneuvers to go from first to last orbit in the sequence. In your case   
   you list a sequence of 5 orbits and you therefore need 4 maneuvers in   
   total.   
      
   I believe that with "bi-elliptic transfer" one normally means the   
   sequence: initial circular orbit --> first elliptic transfer -->second   
   elliptic transfer --> final orbit. Here there is only 4 orbits and,   
   thus, only 3 maneuvers. There is no temporary parking orbit since the   
   apoapsis for the two elliptic transfer orbits are larger than the final   
   circular orbit. If you put the apoapsis "between" the first and final   
   circular orbit, as in your case, a parking orbit can be inserted without   
   any additional delta-V requirement (the middle maneuver of the   
   bi-elliptic transfer is simply split into two separate maneuvers).   
      
      
   Regards,   
   --   
   Filip Larsen   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
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