Just as space technology has advanced, the way we learn and work has changed dramatically in recent years. SME combines the best features of a traditional unified text and reference covering the entire field, an electronic version that does many of the calculations for you, and the web that allows regular updates and references to the vast literature base available online. Among the many features of this new approach are: Completely rewritten, updated, and expanded follow-on to the 3rd edition of Space Mission Analysis and Design, the most widely used text and reference in astronautics, covering a great many topics not previously covered, such as CubeSats, Inflatable Structures, Space Economics, End-of-Mission options, Space System Risk Analysis, and new, much more precise formulas for ground station and target coverage.
Downloadable electronic spreadsheets for most of the numerical tables and plots in the book that let you, for example, calculate all of the critical parameters for orbits about the Sun, Moon, Earth, and any of the other planets, or even new planets, moons, or stars of your choosing. An annotated bibliography and references on the web that is updated as new references become available and that shows you where to get nearly all of the references with direct links for those available at no cost and where on the web to buy copyright books and professional papers not available for free. All of the cross referencing, careful definitions, and thoroughly explained equations that are the key ingredient of any high quality engineering text or reference, along with the wisdom and experience gained at substantial cost by some of most experienced and knowledgeable space system engineers in the world.
