Spin-axis stabilization of an underactuated flexible spacecraft using two reaction wheels

The spin-axis stabilization of spacecraft belongs to the problem of partial stabilization for nonlinear dynamical system. In this paper the analysis of spin-axis stabilization of underactuated flexible spacecraft using two reaction wheels is presented. Using Euler-Poisson form to describe the equations of motion, the paper proves the global asymptotic stability of the closed-loop system by combining the Lyapunov direct method with the LaSalle's theorem, where the boundedness of the angular velocity for the underactuated axis is also analyzed. The mathematical simulation results verify the effectiveness of the proposed controller.