This new edition covers all the different areas of engineering required in the design and implementation of spacecraft and space missions. Detailing recent developments in space activities, all chapters have been thoroughly revised and updated in the areas of launch vehicles, structures, ground stations and mechanisms.

This fourth edition of the bestselling Spacecraft Systems Engineering title provides the reader with comprehensive coverage of the design of spacecraft and the implementation of space missions, across a wide spectrum of space applications and space science. The text has been thoroughly revised and updated, with each chapter authored by a recognized expert in the field. Three chapters – Ground Segment, Product Assurance and Spacecraft System Engineering – have been rewritten, and the topic of Assembly, Integration and Verification has been introduced as a new chapter, filling a gap in previous editions.

This edition addresses ‘front-end system-level issues’ such as environment, mission analysis and system engineering, but also progresses to a detailed examination of subsystem elements which represents the core of spacecraft design. This includes mechanical, electrical and thermal aspects, as well as propulsion and control. This quantitative treatment is supplemented by an emphasis on the interactions between elements, which deeply influences the process of spacecraft design.

Adopted on courses worldwide, Spacecraft Systems Engineering is already widely respected by students, researchers and practising engineers in the space engineering sector. It provides a valuable resource for practitioners in a wide spectrum of disciplines, including system and subsystem engineers, spacecraft equipment designers, spacecraft operators, space scientists and those involved in related sectors such as space insurance.

In summary, this is an outstanding resource for aerospace engineering students, and all those involved in the technical aspects of design and engineering in the space sector.