Anisotropic Aperture Star Camera Systems and Methods

Spacecrafts are disclosed herein. The spacecraft can include a primary payload sensor, the primary payload sensor being aligned to capture images in a direction of a first axis, and at least one secondary imaging system for determining a position of the spacecraft, the at least one secondary imaging system being aligned to capture images in the direction of a second axis. The at least one secondary imaging system can include a housing, the housing including a first end and a second end, wherein the first end includes an opening into an internal portion of the housing, an image sensor positioned within the internal portion of the housing, and an optical element positioned within the internal portion of the housing, wherein the optical element has a length parameter and a width parameter, wherein one of the length parameter and the width parameter is larger than the other parameter.