Attitude stabilizer for space vehicles

Claim 1

MEANS FOR STABILIZING A SPACE VEHICLE WITH RESPECT TO A CELESTIAL BODY SO THAT AN ARBITRARY REFERENCE AXIS OF SAID VEHICLE SUBSTANTIALLY AND CONTINUOUSLY COINCIDES WITH THE DIRECTION OF LOCAL VERTICAL OF THE CELESTIAL BODY, COMPRISING FIRST MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID VEHICLE FOR CONDUCTING A SUBSTANTIALLY CONICAL SCAN OF A FIELD OF VIEW ABOUT A FIRST CONE AXIS, SAID FIRST CONE AXIS HAVING A PRE-DETERMINED RELATIONSHIP TO SAID REFERENCE AXIS, FIRST DETECTOR MEANS ONTO WHICH SAID FIRST MEANS DIRECTS RADIATION FROM THE FIELD OF VIEW SCANNED FOR PRODUCING A FIRST SIGNAL WHICH IS A FUNCTION OF THE RADIANT ENERGY INCIDENT UPON IT, A FIRST REFERENCE SIGNAL GENERATOR FOR PRODUCING A FIRST REFERENCE SIGNAL, AND MEANS TO WHICH SIGNALS FROM THE FIRST DETECTOR AND THE FIRST REFERENCE SIGNAL GENERATOR ARE APPLIED AND RESPONSIVE TO SAID SIGNALS FOR ORIENTING THE SPACE VEHICLE SO THAT THE REFERENCE AXIS SUBSTANTIALLY LIES IN A FIRST PLANE IN WHICH