Controlled Solar Sail Transfers into Near-Sun Regions Combined with Planetary Gravity-Assist Flybys

Results of numerical simulations of 'local-optimal' (or 'instantaneously optimal') trajectories of a space probe with a flat solar sail which moves from the circular Earth orbit to near-Sun regions are presented. We examine planar (ecliptic) solar sail transfer with gravity-assist flybys of Earth, Venus and Mercury. Several complex control modes of the sail tilt orientation angle for near-Sun orbits and for some 'falling onto the Sun' trajectories are investigated. The numerical simulations are used to examine the flight duration of some sail missions and to investigate the evolution of osculating elliptical orbits.     

Oblateness effect of Saturn on periodic orbits in the Saturn-Titan restricted three-body problem

We explore the effect of oblateness of Saturn (more massive primary) on the periodic orbits and the regions of quasi-periodic motion around both the primaries in the Saturn-Titan system in the framework of planar circular restricted three-body problem. First order interior and exterior mean motion resonances are located. The effect of oblateness is studied on the location, nature and size of periodic and quasi-periodic orbits, using the numerical technique of Poincare surface of sections. Some of the periodic orbits change to quasi-periodic orbits due to the effect of oblateness and vice-versa. The stability of the orbits around Saturn, Titan and both varies with the inclusion of oblateness. The centers of the periodic orbits around Titan move towards Saturn, whereas those around Saturn move towards Titan. For the orbit around Titan at C=2.9992, x=0.959494, the apocenter becomes pericenter. By incorporating oblateness effect, the orbit around Titan at C=2.99345, x=0.924938 is captured by Saturn, remains in various trajectories around Saturn, and as time progresses it spirals away around both the primaries.     

Analysis of periodic orbits in the Saturn-Titan system using the method of Poincare section surfaces

We explore the periodic orbits and the regions of quasi-periodic motion around both the primaries in the Saturn-Titan system in the framework of planar circular restricted three-body problem. The location, nature and size of periodic and quasi-periodic orbits are studied using the numerical technique of Poincare surface of sections. The maximum amplitude of oscillations about the periodic orbits is determined and is used as a parameter to measure the degree of stability in the phase space for such orbits. It is found that the orbits around Saturn remain around it and their stability increases with the increase in the value of Jacobi constant C. The orbits around Titan move towards it with the increase in C. At C=3.1, the pericenter and apocenter are 358.2 and 358.5 km, respectively. No periodic or quasi-periodic orbits could be found by the present method around the collinear Lagrangian point L ₁ (0.9569373834…).     

Equilibrium points and associated periodic orbits in the gravity of binary asteroid systems: (66391) 1999 KW4 as an example

The motion of a massless particle in the gravity of a binary asteroid system, referred as the restricted full three-body problem (RF3BP), is fundamental, not only for the evolution of the binary system, but also for the design of relevant space missions. In this paper, equilibrium points and associated periodic orbit families in the gravity of a binary system are investigated, with the binary (66391) 1999 KW4 as an example. The polyhedron shape model is used to describe irregular shapes and corresponding gravity fields of the primary and secondary of (66391) 1999 KW4, which is more accurate than the ellipsoid shape model in previous studies and provides a high-fidelity representation of the gravitational environment. Both of the synchronous and non-synchronous states of the binary system are considered. For the synchronous binary system, the equilibrium points and their stability are determined, and periodic orbit families emanating from each equilibrium point are generated by using the shooting (multiple shooting) method and the homotopy method, where the homotopy function connects the circular restricted three-body problem and RF3BP. In the non-synchronous binary system, trajectories of equivalent equilibrium points are calculated, and the associated periodic orbits are obtained by using the homotopy method, where the homotopy function connects the synchronous and non-synchronous systems. Although only the binary (66391) 1999 KW4 is considered, our methods will also be well applicable to other binary systems with polyhedron shape data. Our results on equilibrium points and associated periodic orbits provide general insights into the dynamical environment and orbital behaviors in proximity of small binary asteroids and enable the trajectory design and mission operations in future binary system explorations.     

Lagrangian coherent structures in the planar elliptic restricted three-body problem

This study investigates Lagrangian coherent structures (LCS) in the planar elliptic restricted three-body problem (ER3BP), a generalization of the circular restricted three-body problem (CR3BP) that asks for the motion of a test particle in the presence of two elliptically orbiting point masses. Previous studies demonstrate that an understanding of transport phenomena in the CR3BP, an autonomous dynamical system (when viewed in a rotating frame), can be obtained through analysis of the stable and unstable manifolds of certain periodic solutions to the CR3BP equations of motion. These invariant manifolds form cylindrical tubes within surfaces of constant energy that act as separatrices between orbits with qualitatively different behaviors. The computation of LCS, a technique typically applied to fluid flows to identify transport barriers in the domains of time-dependent velocity fields, provides a convenient means of determining the time-dependent analogues of these invariant manifolds for the ER3BP, whose equations of motion contain an explicit dependency on the independent variable. As a direct application, this study uncovers the contribution of the planet Mercury to the Interplanetary Transport Network, a network of tubes through the solar system that can be exploited for the construction of low-fuel spacecraft mission trajectories. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Dynamical behaviour of planetesimals temporarily captured by a planet from heliocentric orbits: basic formulation and the case of low random velocity

Planetesimals encountering with a planet cannot be captured permanently unless energy dissipation is taken into account, but some of them can be temporarily captured in the vicinity of the planet for an extended period of time. Such a process would be important for the origin and dynamical evolution of irregular satellites, short-period comets, and Kuiper-belt binaries. In this paper, we describe the basic formulation for the study of temporary capture of planetesimals from heliocentric orbits using three-body orbital integration, such as the definition of the duration and rate of temporary capture, and present results in the case of low random velocity of planetesimals. In the case of planetesimals initially on circular orbits, we find that planetesimals undergo a close encounter with the planet before they become temporarily captured. When planetesimals are scattered by the planet into the vicinity of one of periodic orbits around the planet, the duration of temporary capture tends to be extended. Typically, these capture orbits are in the retrograde direction around the planet. We evaluate the rate of temporary capture of planetesimals, and find that the ratio of this rate to their collision rate on to the planet increases with increasing semimajor axis of the planet. Similar results are obtained for planetesimals with non-zero but small random velocities, as long as Kepler shear dominates the relative velocity between the planet and planetesimals. For larger initial random velocities of planetesimals, temporary capture in both prograde and retrograde directions with much longer duration becomes possible.     

Averaged model to study long-term dynamics of a probe about Mercury

This paper provides a method for finding initial conditions of frozen orbits for a probe around Mercury. Frozen orbits are those whose orbital elements remain constant on average. Thus, at the same point in each orbit, the satellite always passes at the same altitude. This is very interesting for scientific missions that require close inspection of any celestial body. The orbital dynamics of an artificial satellite about Mercury is governed by the potential attraction of the main body. Besides the Keplerian attraction, we consider the inhomogeneities of the potential of the central body. We include secondary terms of Mercury gravity field from \(J_2\) up to \(J_6\), and the tesseral harmonics \(\overline{C}_{22}\) that is of the same magnitude than zonal \(J_2\). In the case of science missions about Mercury, it is also important to consider third-body perturbation (Sun). Circular restricted three body problem can not be applied to Mercury–Sun system due to its non-negligible orbital eccentricity. Besides the harmonics coefficients of Mercury’s gravitational potential, and the Sun gravitational perturbation, our average model also includes Solar acceleration pressure. This simplified model captures the majority of the dynamics of low and high orbits about Mercury. In order to capture the dominant characteristics of the dynamics, short-period terms of the system are removed applying a double-averaging technique. This algorithm is a two-fold process which firstly averages over the period of the satellite, and secondly averages with respect to the period of the third body. This simplified Hamiltonian model is introduced in the Lagrange Planetary equations. Thus, frozen orbits are characterized by a surface depending on three variables: the orbital semimajor axis, eccentricity and inclination. We find frozen orbits for an average altitude of 400 and 1000 km, which are the predicted values for the BepiColombo mission. Finally, the paper delves into the orbital stability of frozen orbits and the temporal evolution of the eccentricity of these orbits.     

The dynamics of the elliptic Hill problem: periodic orbits and stability regions

The motion of a satellite around a planet can be studied by the Hill model, which is a modification of the restricted three body problem pertaining to motion of a satellite around a planet. Although the dynamics of the circular Hill model has been extensively studied in the literature, only few results about the dynamics of the elliptic model were known up to now, namely the equations of motion and few unstable families of periodic orbits. In the present study we extend these results by computing a large set of families of periodic orbits and their linear stability and classify them according to their resonance condition. Although most of them are unstable, we were able to find a considerable number of stable ones. By computing appropriate maps of dynamical stability, we study the effect of the planetary eccentricity on the stability of satellite orbits. We see that, even for large values of the planetary eccentricity, regular orbits can be found in the vicinity of stable periodic orbits. The majority of irregular orbits are escape orbits.     

Zonal harmonics of azimuthally averaged potential of rotating inhomogeneous ellipsoids

The distant retrograde orbits (DROs) can serve as the parking orbits for a long-term cis-lunar space station. This paper gives a comprehensive study on the transfer problem from DROs to Earth orbits, including low Earth orbits (LEOs), medium Earth orbits (MEOs), and geosynchronous orbits (GSOs), in the bicircular restricted four-body problem (BR4BP) via optimizations within a large solution space. The planar transfer problem is firstly solved by grid search and optimization techniques, and two types of transfer orbits, direct ones and low-energy ones, are both constructed. Then, the nonplanar transfer problem to Earth orbits with inclinations between 0 and 90 degrees are solved via sequential optimizations based on the planar transfers. The transfer characteristics in the cases of different destination orbit inclinations are discussed for both the direct and the low-energy transfer orbits. The important role of the lunar gravity in the low-energy transfers is also discussed, which can overcome the increase of transfer cost caused by the high inclination of Earth orbits. The distinct features of different transfer scenarios, including multiple revolutions around the Earth and Moon, the exterior phase, and the lunar flyby, are discovered. The energy of transfer orbits is exploited to discuss the effects of close lunar flybys. The results will be helpful for the transfer design in future manned or unmanned return missions, and can also provide valuable information for selecting proper parking DROs for cis-lunar space stations.

     

Extension of fast periodic transfer orbits from the Earth–Moon RTBP to the Sun–Earth–Moon Quasi-Bicircular Problem

Starting from 80 families of low-energy fast periodic transfer orbits in the Earth–Moon planar circular Restricted Three Body Problem (RTBP), we obtain by analytical continuation 11 periodic orbits and 25 periodic arcs with similar properties in the Sun–Earth–Moon Quasi-Bicircular Problem (QBCP). A novel and very simple procedure is introduced giving the solar phases at which to attempt continuation. Detailed numerical results for each periodic orbit and arc found are given, including their stability parameters and minimal distances to the Earth and Moon. The periods of these orbits are between 2.5 and 5 synodic months, their energies are among the lowest possible to achieve an Earth–Moon transfer, and they show a diversity of circumlunar trajectories, making them good candidates for missions requiring repeated passages around the Earth and the Moon with close approaches to the last.     

Artificial frozen orbits around Mercury

Orbits around Mercury are influenced by the strong elliptic third-body perturbation, especially for high eccentricity orbits, the periapsis altitude changes dramatically. Frozen orbits whose mean eccentricity and argument of perigee remain constants are obviously a good choice for space missions, but the forming conditions are too harsh to meet practical needs. To deal with this problem, a continuous control method that combines analytical theory and parameter optimization is proposed to build an artificial frozen orbit. The artificial frozen orbits are investigated on the basis of double averaged Hamiltonian, of which the second and third zonal harmonics and the perturbation of elliptic third-body gravity are considered. In this paper, coefficients of perturbations which satisfy the conditions of frozen orbits are involved as control parameters, and the relevant artificial perturbations are compensated by the control strategy. So probes around Mercury can be kept on frozen orbit under the influence of continuous control force. Then complex method of optimization is used to search for the energy optimized artificial frozen orbits. The choosing of optimal parameters, the objective function setting and other issues are also discussed in the study. Evolution of optimal control parameters are given in large ranges of semi-major axis and eccentricity, through the variation of these curves, the fuel efficiency is discussed. The result shows that the control method proposed in this paper can effectively maintain the eccentricity and argument of perigee frozen.     

Quasi-terminator orbits near primitive bodies

Quasi-terminator orbits are introduced as a class of quasi-periodic trajectories in the solar radiation pressure (SRP) perturbed Hill dynamics. These orbits offer significant displacements along the Sun-direction without the need for station-keeping maneuvers. Thus, quasi-terminator orbits have application to primitive-body mapping missions, where a variety of observation geometries relative to the Sun (or other directions) can be achieved. This paper describes the characteristics of these orbits as a function of normalized SRP strength and invariant torus frequencies and presents a discussion of mission design considerations for a global surface mapping orbit design.     

Spacecraft trajectories to the L<Subscript>3</Subscript> point of the Sun–Earth three-body problem

Of the three collinear libration points of the Sun–Earth Circular Restricted Three-Body Problem (CR3BP), L₃ is that located opposite to the Earth with respect to the Sun and approximately at the same heliocentric distance. Whereas several space missions have been launched to the other two collinear equilibrium points, i.e., L₁ and L₂, taking advantage of their dynamical and geometrical characteristics, the region around L₃ is so far unexploited. This is essentially due to the severe communication limitations caused by the distant and permanent opposition to the Earth, and by the gravitational perturbations mainly induced by Jupiter and the close passages of Venus, whose effects are more important than those due to the Earth. However, the adoption of a suitable periodic orbit around L₃ to ensure the necessary communication links with the Earth, or the connection with one or more relay satellites located at L₄ or L₅, and the simultaneous design of an appropriate station keeping-strategy, would make it possible to perform valuable fundamental physics and astrophysics investigations from this location. Such an opportunity leads to the need of studying the ways to transfer a spacecraft (s/c) from the Earth’s vicinity to L₃. In this contribution, we investigate several trajectory design methods to accomplish such a transfer, i.e., various types of two-burn impulsive trajectories in a Sun-s/c two-body model, a patched conics strategy exploiting the gravity assist of the nearby planets, an approach based on traveling on invariant manifolds of periodic orbits in the Sun–Earth CR3BP, and finally a low-thrust transfer. We examine advantages and drawbacks, and we estimate the propellant budget and time of flight requirements of each.     

Effect of radiation on the stability of a retrograde particle orbit in different stellar systems

We have numerically investigated the stability of retrograde orbits/trajectories around Jupiter and the smaller of the primaries in binary systems RW-Monocerotis (RW-Mon) and Krüger-60 in the presence of radiation. A trajectory is considered as stable if it remains around the smaller mass for at least few hundred binary periods. In case of circular binary orbit, we find that the third order resonance provides the basis for reduction of stability region of retrograde motion of particle in RW-Mon and Sun-Jupiter system both in the presence and absence of radiation. Considering finite ellipticity in Sun-Jupiter system we find that for distant retrograde orbits, radiation from the Sun increases the width of the stable region and covers a significant portion of the region obtained in the absence of solar radiation. Further, due to solar radiation pressure, the stable region in the neighborhood of Jupiter has been found to shift much below the characteristic asymptotic line for the periodic retrograde orbits. In case of Krüger-60 we observe the distant retrograde orbits around the smaller of the primaries get affected considerably with increase in radiation parameter β₁. Further the range of velocities for which stable motion may persist narrows down for distant retrograde orbits in this system.     

Resonant orbits in the vicinity of asteroid 216 Kleopatra

This investigation examines the resonant orbits in the vicinity of asteroid 216 Kleopatra using a precise gravitational model, with emphasis on their crucial role in determining the global orbital behaviors. Three-dimensional Monte Carlo simulations of test particle trajectories are launched to find the condition and probability distribution of resonance. It is revealed the resonant orbits are rich and concentrated in the near-field regime, which provides a short-term mechanism to clear the vicinal ejecta away from the asteroid. The unstable boundary predicted in our calculations is consistent with the observed mutual orbits of satellites S/2008 (216) 1 and S/2008 (216) 2. The probability distribution of resonance is considered as an indicator of the stability of vicinal orbits, and the results are identical to the previous analysis by Scheeres et al. (Icarus 121:67, 1996) for the stability of retrograde orbits around asteroid 4769 Castalia.     

Search for and study of nearly periodic orbits in the plane problem of three equal-mass bodies

We analyze nearly periodic solutions in the plane problem of three equal-mass bodies by numerically simulating the dynamics of triple systems. We identify families of orbits in which all three points are on one straight line (syzygy) at the initial time. In this case, at fixed total energy of a triple system, the set of initial conditions is a bounded region in four-dimensional parameter space. We scan this region and identify sets of trajectories in which the coordinates and velocities of all bodies are close to their initial values at certain times (which are approximately multiples of the period). We classify the nearly periodic orbits by the structure of trajectory loops over one period. We have found the families of orbits generated by von Schubart’s stable periodic orbit revealed in the rectilinear three-body problem. We have also found families of hierarchical, nearly periodic trajectories with prograde and retrograde motions. In the orbits with prograde motions, the trajectory loops of two close bodies form looplike structures. The trajectories with retrograde motions are characterized by leafed structures. Orbits with central and axial symmetries are identified among the families found.     

A novel algorithm for generating libration point orbits about the collinear points

This paper presents a numerical algorithm that can generate long-term libration points orbits (LPOs) and the transfer orbits from the parking orbits to the LPOs in the circular-restricted three-body problem (CR3BP) and the full solar system model without initial guesses. The families of the quasi-periodic LPOs in the CR3BP can also be constructed with this algorithm. By using the dynamical behavior of LPO, the transfer orbit from the parking orbit to the LPO is generated using a bisection method. At the same time, a short segment of the target LPO connected with the transfer orbit is obtained, then the short segment of LPO is extended by correcting the state towards its adjacent point on the stable manifold of the target LPO with differential evolution algorithm. By implementing the correction strategy repeatedly, the LPOs can be extended to any length as needed. Moreover, combining with the continuation procedure, this algorithm can be used to generate the families of the quasi-periodic LPOs in the CR3BP.     

A numerical investigation of the one-dimensional newtonian three-body problem

Numerical orbit integrations have been conducted to characterize the types of trajectories in the one-dimensional Newtonian three-body problem with equal masses and negative energy. Essentially three different types of motions were found to exist. They may be classified according to the duration of the bound three-body state. There are zero-lifetime predictable trajectories, finite lifetime apparently chaotic orbits, and infinite lifetime quasi-periodic motions. The quasi-periodic orbits are confined to the neighbourhood of Schubart's stable periodic orbit. For all other trajectories the final state is of the type binary + single particle in both directions of time. The boundaries of the different orbit-type regions seem to be sharp. We present statistical results for the binding energies and for the duration of the bound three-body state. Properties of individual orbits are also summarized in the form of various graphical maps in a two-dimensional grid of parameters defining the orbit. Supported by the Academy of Finland.     

Periodic orbits in the Chermnykh-like restricted problem of oblate bodies with radiation

In this paper, the periodic orbits around triangular points in the range of linear stability of the restricted three body problem, when the smaller primary and the test particle have the shape of an oblate spheroid and the larger primary is a radiation emitter with the allowance for the gravitational potential from the belt, is studied. It is observed that the orbits around these points are elliptical and have long and short periodic orbits. The period, orientation, eccentricities, the semi-major and semi-minor axis of the elliptic orbits are found. The study includes some numerical examples in the case of the Sun-Earth and Sun-Jupiter systems.     

Minimum control for spacecraft formations in a J2 perturbed environment

Large ΔV amounts are often required to maintain the relative geometry which is needed to implement a formation flying concept. A wise use of the orbital environment makes the orbit keeping phase easier, reducing the overall propellant consumption. A first important step in this direction is the selection of formation configurations and orbits which, while still satisfying the mission requirements, are less subject to perturbations resulting naturally in closed relative motion. Within this frame, a number of studies have been recently carried out in order to identify possible sets of invariant relative orbits under the effects of the Earth oblateness, a conservative force commonly referred to as J2 which is also the most important perturbation for Low Earth Orbit. These efforts clearly marked the difficulties connected with achieving genuine periodic relative motion under J2 effect, but they also showed the existence of a set of conditions on the orbital parameters which allow for quasi-periodic J2 trajectories. This paper presents these particular trajectories, by means of deeper theoretical explanations, showing the dependency of the shape of the relative configurations on the orbital inclination. Since the quasi-periodic trajectories cannot be written analytically, and moreover, they are very sensitive with respect to the initial conditions, difficulties arise when trying to exploit these paths as reference for the control of a formation. This paper proposes a novel approach to find, from the actual quasi periodic natural trajectories, minimal control periodic reference trajectories. Next, it evaluates quantitatively the amount of propellant which is needed to control a spacecraft formation along these paths. The choice of Hill’s classical circular projected configuration as a nominal trajectory is considered as a comparison, showing the clear advantages of the proposed guidance design, which assumes low-perturbed periodic reference orbits as nominal trajectories.