Compensation method and apparatus for mechanical antenna beam pointing

An RF beam pointing apparatus (500, 600) compensates for the effects of settling errors on antenna pointing. The beam pointing apparatus includes an attitude reference system (502, 528, 530, 534) generating an antenna attitude output from the satellite attitude. Also included is attitude comparison circuitry (528, 530), coupled to the attitude reference system, that includes an antenna pointing error output. Control circuitry (528, 530) is coupled to the attitude reference system (502, 528, 530, 534) and the attitude comparison circuitry (528, 530). The control circuitry (528,530) directs the attitude comparison circuitry (528, 530) to generate control error output signals in response to dynamic settling antenna pointing errors induced by a mechanical slew on the satellite. An electronic beam pointing system (500, 600) is provided to steer the antenna (544) in response to the antenna pointing error signals to reduce the dynamic settling antenna pointing errors to within a predetermined pointing accuracy for nominal operation (202).