Elliptical shape-based model for multi-revolution planeto-centric mission scenarios

Abstract

The paper presents a novel 3-dimensional shape-based algorithm which extends the domain of analytical solutions to planeto-centric mission scenarios, which classically entail even thousands revolutions to transfer to the final orbit. Thanks to the strong physical meaning the proposed method keeps while shaping the trajectory, the method succeeds in outputting a solution close to the real optimum. The proposed approach allows to easily formalize practical mission constraints, such as maximum thrust threshold and eclipses; free and fixed time of flight are manageable as well. The approach is almost completely analytic, which is beneficial as it significantly decreases the computational load. It is well suited for complex mission scenarios and for fast detection near optimal solutions to support the whole mission design.