The Experts below are selected from a list of 5193 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Colin R. Mcinnes - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
-
Solar Sail lyapunov and halo orbits in the earth moon three body problem
Acta Astronautica, 2015Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Sander Hiddink, R Noomen, Colin R. McinnesAbstract:Solar Sailing has been proposed for a range of novel space applications, including hovering above the ecliptic for high-latitude observations of the Earth and monitoring the Sun from a sub-L1 position for space weather forecasting. These applications, and many others, are all defined in the Sun–Earth three-body problem, while little research has been conducted to investigate the potential of Solar Sailing in the Earth–Moon three-body problem. This paper therefore aims to find Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–Moon three-body problem, in particular Lagrange-point orbits. By introducing a Solar Sail acceleration to the Earth–Moon three-body problem, the system becomes non-autonomous and constraints on the orbital period need to be imposed. In this paper, the problem is solved as a two-point boundary value problem together with a continuation approach: starting from a natural Lagrange-point orbit, the Solar Sail acceleration is gradually increased and the result for the previous Sail performance is used as an initial guess for a slightly better Sail performance. Three in-plane steering laws are considered for the Sail, two where the attitude of the Sail is fixed in the synodic reference frame (perpendicular to the Earth–Moon line) and one where the Sail always faces the Sun. The results of the paper include novel families of Solar Sail Lyapunov and Halo orbits around the Earth–Moon L1 and L2 Lagrange points, respectively. These orbits are double-revolution orbits that wind around or are off-set with respect to the natural Lagrange-point orbit. Finally, the effect of an out-of-plane Solar Sail acceleration component and that of the Sun-Sail configuration is investigated, giving rise to additional families of Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–Moon three-body problem.
-
Solar Sail heliocentric earth following orbits
Journal of Guidance Control and Dynamics, 2015Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Colin R. McinnesAbstract:Solar Sail technology development is rapidly gaining momentum after recent successes such as JAXA’s IKAROS mission and NASA’s NanoSail-D2 mission. Research in the field is flourishing and new Solar Sail initiatives, such as NASA’s Sunjammer mission, are scheduled for the future. Solar Sails exploit the radiation pressure generated by Solar photons reflecting off a large, highly reflecting Sail to produce a continuous thrust force. They are therefore not constrained by propellant mass, which gives them huge potential for long-lifetime and high-energy mission concepts and enables a range of novel applications. One such family of applications are non-Keplerian orbits (NKOs), where the force due to Solar radiation pressure on a Solar Sail is used to displace an orbit away from a natural Keplerian orbit. Different types of NKOs exist, including NKOs in the two-body problem (either Sun-centered or Earth-centered) and NKOs in the well-known circular restricted three-body problem (CR3BP). In the Sun-centered two-body problem, NKOs are determined by considering the Solar Sail spacecraft dynamics in a rotating frame of reference. By setting the time derivatives of the position vector equal to zero, equilibrium solutions are found in the rotating frame that correspond to displaced circular orbits in an inertial frame. Such Sun-centred NKOs allow a spacecraft to be synchronous with a planet at any heliocentric distance inward from the target planet and/or to displace a Solar Sail spacecraft out of the ecliptic plane for Solar polar observations, interplanetary communication, and astronomical observations. A similar approach can be used to find Solar Sail NKOs in the Earth two-body problem, creating, for example, orbits on the Earth’s nightside to study its magnetotail and interaction with the Solar wind and displaced geostationary orbits to create additional geostationary slots for telecommunication, Earth observation, and weather satellites. Finally, in the CR3BP, Solar Sails have been demonstrated to extend the five Lagrange points to a continuum of new artificial equilibrium points (AEPs) and can be used to create periodic orbits around these AEPs. The applications of these NKOs are abundant, including one-year periodic orbits high above the ecliptic in the Sun-Earth system for polar observations, Solar Sail trajectories above the Earth-Moon L2 point to establish an Earth-Moon communication link and Solar Sail Halo orbits sunward of the Sun-Earth L1 point to increase the warning times for Solar storms. Rather than displacing the orbit, the force due to Solar radiation pressure on a Solar Sail can also be used to create an artificially precessing NKO. For example, the GeoSail mission proposed the use of a Solar Sail to rotate an elliptic geocentric orbit in the ecliptic plane such that apogee remains on the night side of the Earth to enable continuous observations of the geomagnetic tail. In this technical note, the concept of rotating an elliptic orbit by means of a Solar Sail is considered further by investigating precessing, heliocentric, and Earth-following orbits. The Sail orbit’s aphelion follows the Earth’s orbital motion throughout the year and is always directed along the Sun-Earth line, allowing extended observations for space weather forecasting and Near Earth Objects (NEOs) surveillance activities.
-
optimal Solar Sail transfers between halo orbits of different sun planet systems
Advances in Space Research, 2015Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Giorgio Mingotti, Colin R. McinnesAbstract:This paper investigates time-optimal Solar Sail trajectories between Libration Point Orbits (LPOs) of different circular restricted Sun-planet three-body systems. Key in the investigations is the search for transfers that require little steering effort to enable the transfers with low-control authority Solar Sail-like devices such as SpaceChips. Two transfers are considered: (1) from a Sun–Earth L2-Halo orbit to a Sun–Mars L1-Halo orbit and (2) from a Sun–Earth L1-Halo orbit to a Sun–Mercury L2-Halo orbit. The optimal control problem to find these time-optimal transfers is derived, including a constraint to mimic limited steering capabilities, and is solved with a direct pseudospectral method for which novel first guess solutions are developed. For a near-term Sail performance comparable to that of NASA’s Sunjammer Sail, the results show transfers that indeed require very little steering effort: the Sail acceleration vector can be bounded to a cone around the Sun-Sail line with a half-angle of 7.5 deg. These transfers can serve a range of novel Solar Sail applications covering the entire spectrum of Sail length-scales: micro-sized SpaceChips could establish a continuous Earth–Mars communication link, a traditional-sized Sail provides opportunities for in-situ observations of Mercury and a future kilometer-sized Sail could create an Earth–Mars cargo transport gateway for human exploration of Mars.
-
Solar Sail periodic orbits in the earth moon three body problem
65th International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2014), 2014Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Sander Hiddink, R Noomen, Colin R. McinnesAbstract:Solar Sailing has been proposed for a range of novel space applications, including hovering above the ecliptic for high-latitude observations of the Earth and monitoring the Sun from a sub-L1 position for space weather forecasting. These applications, and many others, are all defined in the Sun-Earth three-body problem, while little research has been conducted to investigate the potential of Solar Sailing in the Earth-Moon three-body problem. This paper therefore aims to find Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth-Moon three-body problem, in particular Lagrange-point orbits. By introducing a Solar Sail acceleration to the Earth-Moon three-body problem, the system becomes non-autonomous and constraints on the orbital period need to be imposed. In this paper, the problem is solved as a two-point boundary value problem together with a continuation approach: starting from a natural Lagrange-point orbit, the Solar Sail acceleration is gradually increased and the result for the previous Sail performance is used as an initial guess for a slightly better Sail performance. Three in-plane steering laws are considered for the Sail, two where the attitude of the Sail is fixed in the synodic reference frame (perpendicular to the Earth-Moon line) and one where the Sail always faces the Sun. The results of the paper include novel families of Solar Sail Lyapunov and Halo orbits around the Earth-Moon L1 and L2 Lagrange points, respectively. These orbits are double-revolution orbits that wind around or are off-set with respect to the natural Lagrange-point orbit. Finally, the effect of an out-of-plane Solar Sail acceleration component and that of the Sun-Sail configuration is investigated, giving rise to additional families of Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth-Moon three-body problem.
-
new families of non keplerian orbits Solar Sail motion over cylinders and spheres
3rd International Symposium on Solar Sailing, 2014Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Colin R. McinnesAbstract:This chapter presents new families of Sun-centered non-Keplerian orbits (NKOs), where the motion of a high-performance Solar Sail is confined to either a cylindrical or spherical surface. These orbits are found by investigating the geometrically constrained Sail dynamics and imposing further constraints on the angular velocity and lightness number to generate pure Solar Sail trajectories. By considering the Sail motion in the phase space of the problem, families of new NKOs are identified, and by investigating the oscillating behavior of the orbits, true periodic orbits are found. As extension to the well-known families of displaced NKOs, these three-dimensional NKOs generate a wealth of new Solar Sail orbits and novel Sail applications.
Heiligers M.j. - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
-
Solar-Sail quasi-periodic orbits in the sun–earth system
'American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)', 2020Co-Authors: Mora, Alvaro Fernandez, Heiligers M.j.Abstract:A study offers a catalog on Solar-Sail quasi-periodic orbits that can be directly used for mission design to set quasi-periodic orbits as departure or arrival invariant objects. To model the motion of the Solar-Sail propelled spacecraft, researchers consider the dynamic framework of the circular restricted three-body problem (CR3BP) perturbed with an acceleration induced by Solar radiation pressure (SRP). In such a model, the sun and the Earth move in circular orbits around their common barycenter, exclusively attracting each other. The motion of the Solar Sail is governed by the vector field induced by the gravitational pull of the primaries and the SRP. The primaries are assumed to be point masses, and the Solar Sail is assumed to be massless.Astrodynamics & Space Mission
-
Solar-Sail quasi-periodic orbits in the sun–earth system
'American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)', 2020Co-Authors: Mora, Alvaro Fernandez, Heiligers M.j.Abstract:A study offers a catalog on Solar-Sail quasi-periodic orbits that can be directly used for mission design to set quasi-periodic orbits as departure or arrival invariant objects. To model the motion of the Solar-Sail propelled spacecraft, researchers consider the dynamic framework of the circular restricted three-body problem (CR3BP) perturbed with an acceleration induced by Solar radiation pressure (SRP). In such a model, the sun and the Earth move in circular orbits around their common barycenter, exclusively attracting each other. The motion of the Solar Sail is governed by the vector field induced by the gravitational pull of the primaries and the SRP. The primaries are assumed to be point masses, and the Solar Sail is assumed to be massless.
-
Trajectory Design for a Solar-Sail Mission to Asteroid 2016 HO3
'Springer Science and Business Media LLC', 2019Co-Authors: Heiligers M.j., Fernandez, Juan M., Stohlman, Olive R., Wilkie W. KeatsAbstract:This paper proposes the use of Solar-Sail technology currently under development at NASA Langley Research Center for a CubeSat rendezvous mission with asteroid 2016 HO3, a quasi-satellite of Earth. Time-optimal trajectories are sought for within a 2022–2023 launch window, starting from an assumed launcher ejection condition in the Earth-Moon system. The optimal control problem is solved through a particular implementation of a direct pseudo-spectral method for which initial guesses are generated through a relatively simple and straightforward genetic algorithm search on the optimal launch date and Sail attitude. The results show that the trajectories take 2.16–4.21 years to complete, depending on the assumed Solar-Sail reflectance model and Solar-Sail technology. To assess the performance of Solar-Sail propulsion for this mission, the trajectory is also designed assuming the use of Solar electric propulsion. The resulting fuel-optimal trajectories take longer to complete than the Solar-Sail trajectories and require a propellant consumption that exceeds the expected propellant capacity onboard the CubeSat. This comparison demonstrates the superior performance of Solar-Sail technology for this mission.Astrodynamics & Space Mission
-
Trajectory Design for a Solar Sail Mission to Asteroid 2016 HO3
2018Co-Authors: Heiligers M.j., Fernandez, Juan M., Stohlman, Olive R., Wilkie W. KeatsAbstract:This paper proposes the use of Solar-Sail technology currently under development at NASA Langley Research Center for a CubeSat rendezvous mission with asteroid 2016 HO3, a quasi-satellite of Earth. Time-optimal trajectories are sought for within a 2022 – 2023 launch window, starting from an assumed launcher ejection condition in the Earth-Moon system. The optimal control problem is solved through a particular implementation of a direct pseudo-spectral method for which initial guesses are generated through a relatively simple and straightforward genetic algorithm search on the optimal launch date and Sail attitude. The results show that the trajectories take 2.16 – 4.21 years to complete, depending on the assumed Solar-Sail reflectance model and Solar-Sail technology. To assess the performance of Solar-Sail propulsion for this mission, the trajectory is also designed assuming the use of near-term Solar electric propulsion. The resulting fuel-optimal trajectories take longer to complete than the Solar-Sail trajectories and require a propellant consumption that exceeds the expected propellant capacity onboard the CubeSat. This comparison demonstrates the superior performance of Solar-Sail technology for this mission.Astrodynamics & Space Mission
-
Trajectory Design for a Solar Sail Mission to Asteroid 2016 HO3
2018Co-Authors: Heiligers M.j., Fernandez, Juan M., Stohlman, Olive R., Wilkie W. KeatsAbstract:This paper proposes the use of Solar-Sail technology currently under development at NASA Langley Research Center for a CubeSat rendezvous mission with asteroid 2016 HO3, a quasi-satellite of Earth. Time-optimal trajectories are sought for within a 2022 – 2023 launch window, starting from an assumed launcher ejection condition in the Earth-Moon system. The optimal control problem is solved through a particular implementation of a direct pseudo-spectral method for which initial guesses are generated through a relatively simple and straightforward genetic algorithm search on the optimal launch date and Sail attitude. The results show that the trajectories take 2.16 – 4.21 years to complete, depending on the assumed Solar-Sail reflectance model and Solar-Sail technology. To assess the performance of Solar-Sail propulsion for this mission, the trajectory is also designed assuming the use of near-term Solar electric propulsion. The resulting fuel-optimal trajectories take longer to complete than the Solar-Sail trajectories and require a propellant consumption that exceeds the expected propellant capacity onboard the CubeSat. This comparison demonstrates the superior performance of Solar-Sail technology for this mission
Jeannette Heiligers - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
-
trajectory design for a Solar Sail mission to asteroid 2016 ho3
Astrodynamics, 2019Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Juan M Fernandez, Olive R Stohlman, Keats W WilkieAbstract:This paper proposes the use of Solar-Sail technology currently under development at NASA Langley Research Center for a CubeSat rendezvous mission with asteroid 2016 HO3, a quasi-satellite of Earth. Time-optimal trajectories are sought for within a 2022–2023 launch window, starting from an assumed launcher ejection condition in the Earth-Moon system. The optimal control problem is solved through a particular implementation of a direct pseudo-spectral method for which initial guesses are generated through a relatively simple and straightforward genetic algorithm search on the optimal launch date and Sail attitude. The results show that the trajectories take 2.16–4.21 years to complete, depending on the assumed Solar-Sail reflectance model and Solar-Sail technology. To assess the performance of Solar-Sail propulsion for this mission, the trajectory is also designed assuming the use of Solar electric propulsion. The resulting fuel-optimal trajectories take longer to complete than the Solar-Sail trajectories and require a propellant consumption that exceeds the expected propellant capacity onboard the CubeSat. This comparison demonstrates the superior performance of Solar-Sail technology for this mission.
-
novel Solar Sail mission concepts for high latitude earth and lunar observation
Journal of Guidance Control and Dynamics, 2018Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Jeffrey S Parker, Malcolm MacdonaldAbstract:Solar-Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–moon circular restricted three-body problem are proposed for continuous observation of the polar regions of the Earth and the moon. The existence of families of Solar-Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–moon system has previously been demonstrated by the authors and is expanded by introducing additional orbit families. Orbits for near-term Solar-Sail technology originate by maintaining the Solar Sail at a constant attitude with respect to the sun such that mission operations are greatly simplified. The results of this investigation include a constellation of two Solar-Sail L2-vertical Lyapunov orbits that achieves continuous observation of both the lunar South Pole and the center of the Aitken Basin at a minimum elevation of 15 deg. At Earth, a set of two, clover-shaped orbits can provide continuous coverage of one of the Earth’s poles at a minimum elevation of 20 deg. Results generated in the Earth–moon circular restricted three-body model are easily transitioned to ...
-
novel Solar Sail mission concepts for high latitude earth and lunar observation
AIAA AAS Astrodynamics Specialist Conference 2016, 2016Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Jeffrey S Parker, Malcolm MacdonaldAbstract:This paper proposes the use of Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth-Moon system for observation of the high-latitudes of the Earth and Moon. At the Earth, the high-latitudes will be crucial in answering questions concerning global climate change, monitoring space weather events and ensuring sustainable development of these fragile regions. The polar regions of the Moon, especially the South Pole, are of great scientific interest as well as a potential destination for a future permanent lunar base. The existence of families of Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth-Moon system has previously been demonstrated by the authors and is expanded in this paper by introducing additional orbit families. The paper focuses in particular on orbits that are achievable with near-term Solar Sail technology and that originate by maintaining the Solar Sail at a constant attitude with respect to the Sun such that mission operations are greatly simplified. The results provide a set of constellations for continuous observation of the high-latitudes. For example, a constellation of two Solar Sail L2-displaced vertical Lyapunov orbits can achieve continuous observation of both the lunar South Pole and the centre of the Aitken Basin at a minimum elevation of 15 deg, while at the Earth, a set of two, so-called 'clover-shaped' orbits can provide continuous coverage of one of the Earth's Poles at 20 deg minimum elevation. Transferring these orbits to a higher-fidelity model, taking among others the eccentricity of the Moon into account, shows that these orbits still exist without any significant impact on their performance for high-latitude observation of the Earth and Moon.
-
extension of earth moon libration point orbits with Solar Sail propulsion
Astrophysics and Space Science, 2016Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Malcolm Macdonald, Jeffrey S ParkerAbstract:This paper presents families of libration point orbits in the Earth-Moon system that originate from complementing the classical circular restricted three-body problem with a Solar Sail. Through the use of a differential correction scheme in combination with a continuation on the Solar Sail induced acceleration, families of Lyapunov, halo, vertical Lyapunov, Earth-centred, and distant retrograde orbits are created. As the Solar Sail circular restricted three-body problem is non-autonomous, a constraint defined within the differential correction scheme ensures that all orbits are periodic with the Sun’s motion around the Earth-Moon system. The continuation method then starts from a classical libration point orbit with a suitable period and increases the Solar Sail acceleration magnitude to obtain families of orbits that are parametrised by this acceleration. Furthermore, different Solar Sail steering laws are considered (both in-plane and out-of-plane, and either fixed in the synodic frame or fixed with respect to the direction of Sunlight), adding to the wealth of families of Solar Sail enabled libration point orbits presented. Finally, the linear stability properties of the generated orbits are investigated to assess the need for active orbital control. It is shown that the Solar Sail induced acceleration can have a positive effect on the stability of some orbit families, especially those at the \(L_{2}\) point, but that it most often (further) destabilises the orbit. Active control will therefore be needed to ensure long-term survivability of these orbits.
-
Solar Sail lyapunov and halo orbits in the earth moon three body problem
Acta Astronautica, 2015Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Sander Hiddink, R Noomen, Colin R. McinnesAbstract:Solar Sailing has been proposed for a range of novel space applications, including hovering above the ecliptic for high-latitude observations of the Earth and monitoring the Sun from a sub-L1 position for space weather forecasting. These applications, and many others, are all defined in the Sun–Earth three-body problem, while little research has been conducted to investigate the potential of Solar Sailing in the Earth–Moon three-body problem. This paper therefore aims to find Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–Moon three-body problem, in particular Lagrange-point orbits. By introducing a Solar Sail acceleration to the Earth–Moon three-body problem, the system becomes non-autonomous and constraints on the orbital period need to be imposed. In this paper, the problem is solved as a two-point boundary value problem together with a continuation approach: starting from a natural Lagrange-point orbit, the Solar Sail acceleration is gradually increased and the result for the previous Sail performance is used as an initial guess for a slightly better Sail performance. Three in-plane steering laws are considered for the Sail, two where the attitude of the Sail is fixed in the synodic reference frame (perpendicular to the Earth–Moon line) and one where the Sail always faces the Sun. The results of the paper include novel families of Solar Sail Lyapunov and Halo orbits around the Earth–Moon L1 and L2 Lagrange points, respectively. These orbits are double-revolution orbits that wind around or are off-set with respect to the natural Lagrange-point orbit. Finally, the effect of an out-of-plane Solar Sail acceleration component and that of the Sun-Sail configuration is investigated, giving rise to additional families of Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–Moon three-body problem.
Malcolm Macdonald - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
-
review on Solar Sail technology
Astrodynamics, 2019Co-Authors: Shengping Gong, Malcolm MacdonaldAbstract:This paper reviews Solar Sail trajectory design and dynamics, attitude control, and structural dynamics. Within the area of orbital dynamics, methods relevant to transfer trajectory design and non-Keplerian orbit generation are discussed. Within the area of attitude control, different control strategies, including utilisation of Solar radiation pressure and conventional actuators, are discussed. Finally, the methods of modelling structural dynamics during and after deployment are discussed, before considering possible future trends in developing of Solar Sailing missions.
-
novel Solar Sail mission concepts for high latitude earth and lunar observation
Journal of Guidance Control and Dynamics, 2018Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Jeffrey S Parker, Malcolm MacdonaldAbstract:Solar-Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–moon circular restricted three-body problem are proposed for continuous observation of the polar regions of the Earth and the moon. The existence of families of Solar-Sail periodic orbits in the Earth–moon system has previously been demonstrated by the authors and is expanded by introducing additional orbit families. Orbits for near-term Solar-Sail technology originate by maintaining the Solar Sail at a constant attitude with respect to the sun such that mission operations are greatly simplified. The results of this investigation include a constellation of two Solar-Sail L2-vertical Lyapunov orbits that achieves continuous observation of both the lunar South Pole and the center of the Aitken Basin at a minimum elevation of 15 deg. At Earth, a set of two, clover-shaped orbits can provide continuous coverage of one of the Earth’s poles at a minimum elevation of 20 deg. Results generated in the Earth–moon circular restricted three-body model are easily transitioned to ...
-
Solaris Solar Sail investigation of the sun
arXiv: Solar and Stellar Astrophysics, 2017Co-Authors: T Appourchaux, Malcolm Macdonald, Frederic Auchere, E Antonucci, Laurent Gizon, Hirohisa Hara, Takashi Sekii, D Moses, A VourlidasAbstract:In this paper, we detail the scientific objectives and outline a strawman payload of the Solar Sail Investigation of the Sun (SolarIS). The science objectives are to study the 3D structure of the Solar magnetic and velocity field, the variation of total Solar irradiance with latitude, and the structure of the corona. We show how we can meet these science objective using Solar-Sail technologies currently under development. We provide a tentative mission profile considering several trade-off approaches. We also provide a tentative mass budget breakdown and a perspective for a programmatic implementation.
-
novel Solar Sail mission concepts for high latitude earth and lunar observation
AIAA AAS Astrodynamics Specialist Conference 2016, 2016Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Jeffrey S Parker, Malcolm MacdonaldAbstract:This paper proposes the use of Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth-Moon system for observation of the high-latitudes of the Earth and Moon. At the Earth, the high-latitudes will be crucial in answering questions concerning global climate change, monitoring space weather events and ensuring sustainable development of these fragile regions. The polar regions of the Moon, especially the South Pole, are of great scientific interest as well as a potential destination for a future permanent lunar base. The existence of families of Solar Sail periodic orbits in the Earth-Moon system has previously been demonstrated by the authors and is expanded in this paper by introducing additional orbit families. The paper focuses in particular on orbits that are achievable with near-term Solar Sail technology and that originate by maintaining the Solar Sail at a constant attitude with respect to the Sun such that mission operations are greatly simplified. The results provide a set of constellations for continuous observation of the high-latitudes. For example, a constellation of two Solar Sail L2-displaced vertical Lyapunov orbits can achieve continuous observation of both the lunar South Pole and the centre of the Aitken Basin at a minimum elevation of 15 deg, while at the Earth, a set of two, so-called 'clover-shaped' orbits can provide continuous coverage of one of the Earth's Poles at 20 deg minimum elevation. Transferring these orbits to a higher-fidelity model, taking among others the eccentricity of the Moon into account, shows that these orbits still exist without any significant impact on their performance for high-latitude observation of the Earth and Moon.
-
extension of earth moon libration point orbits with Solar Sail propulsion
Astrophysics and Space Science, 2016Co-Authors: Jeannette Heiligers, Malcolm Macdonald, Jeffrey S ParkerAbstract:This paper presents families of libration point orbits in the Earth-Moon system that originate from complementing the classical circular restricted three-body problem with a Solar Sail. Through the use of a differential correction scheme in combination with a continuation on the Solar Sail induced acceleration, families of Lyapunov, halo, vertical Lyapunov, Earth-centred, and distant retrograde orbits are created. As the Solar Sail circular restricted three-body problem is non-autonomous, a constraint defined within the differential correction scheme ensures that all orbits are periodic with the Sun’s motion around the Earth-Moon system. The continuation method then starts from a classical libration point orbit with a suitable period and increases the Solar Sail acceleration magnitude to obtain families of orbits that are parametrised by this acceleration. Furthermore, different Solar Sail steering laws are considered (both in-plane and out-of-plane, and either fixed in the synodic frame or fixed with respect to the direction of Sunlight), adding to the wealth of families of Solar Sail enabled libration point orbits presented. Finally, the linear stability properties of the generated orbits are investigated to assess the need for active orbital control. It is shown that the Solar Sail induced acceleration can have a positive effect on the stability of some orbit families, especially those at the \(L_{2}\) point, but that it most often (further) destabilises the orbit. Active control will therefore be needed to ensure long-term survivability of these orbits.
Shengping Gong - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
-
review on Solar Sail technology
Astrodynamics, 2019Co-Authors: Shengping Gong, Malcolm MacdonaldAbstract:This paper reviews Solar Sail trajectory design and dynamics, attitude control, and structural dynamics. Within the area of orbital dynamics, methods relevant to transfer trajectory design and non-Keplerian orbit generation are discussed. Within the area of attitude control, different control strategies, including utilisation of Solar radiation pressure and conventional actuators, are discussed. Finally, the methods of modelling structural dynamics during and after deployment are discussed, before considering possible future trends in developing of Solar Sailing missions.
-
Solar Sail body fixed hovering over elongated asteroids
Journal of Guidance Control and Dynamics, 2016Co-Authors: Xiangyuan Zeng, Shengping Gong, Junfeng Li, Kyle T AlfriendAbstract:Solar Sail spacecraft are proposed to accomplish body-fixed hovering missions over elongated asteroids. The body-fixed hovering flight is to maintain a fixed position relative to the surface of the spinning asteroid. A Solar Sail without fuel consumption can greatly expand the range of hovering locations in a variable lightness number for an extended period. A rotating mass dipole is used to produce the gravitational field created by an elongated asteroid. Dynamic equations are obtained for the approximate model in terms of the specified hovering conditions. Feasible hovering regions over elongated asteroids are presented and analyzed via numerical simulations. A parametric study is made to investigate the influence of Solar latitude angles and the lightness number on the feasible hovering region. The hovering orbits around the realistic asteroid 951 Gaspra are performed to evaluate the effectiveness of the method in this paper.
-
Solar Sail periodic orbits in the elliptic restricted three body problem
Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy, 2015Co-Authors: Shengping GongAbstract:The periodic orbits of a Solar Sail in the elliptic restricted three-body problem are designed in this paper. The dynamical equation of a Solar Sail is derived in a non-uniformly rotating and pulsating coordinate frame, where out-of-plane artificial equilibria do not exist. Two families of displaced periodic orbits in the vicinity of the out-of-plane fixed points are generated by adjusting the Solar Sail parameters and the motion in the out-of-plane direction to satisfy the equilibrium equations. The analytical solutions to the linearized equations are obtained with average method. The stability of these orbits is studied, and the results indicate that they are always unstable. Finally, the controllability of these orbits is discussed and a typical time-varying linear quadratic regulator is used to stabilize the system.
-
Fast Solar Sail rendezvous mission to near Earth asteroids
Acta Astronautica, 2014Co-Authors: Xiangyuan Zeng, Shengping Gong, Junfeng LiAbstract:Abstract The concept of fast Solar Sail rendezvous missions to near Earth asteroids is presented by considering the hyperbolic launch excess velocity as a design parameter. After introducing an initial constraint on the hyperbolic excess velocity, a time optimal control framework is derived and solved by using an indirect method. The coplanar circular orbit rendezvous scenario is investigated first to evaluate the variational trend of the transfer time with respect to different hyperbolic excess velocities and Solar Sail characteristic accelerations. The influence of the asteroid orbital inclination and eccentricity on the transfer time is studied in a parametric way. The optimal direction and magnitude of the hyperbolic excess velocity are identified via numerical simulations. The found results for coplanar circular scenarios are compared in terms of fuel consumption to the corresponding bi-impulsive transfer of the same flight time, but without using a Solar Sail. The fuel consumption tradeoff between the required hyperbolic excess velocity and the achievable flight time is discussed. The required total launch mass for a particular Solar Sail is derived in analytical form. A practical mission application is proposed to rendezvous with the asteroid 99942 Apophis by using a Solar Sail in combination with the provided hyperbolic excess velocity.
-
spin stabilized Solar Sail for displaced Solar orbits
Aerospace Science and Technology, 2014Co-Authors: Shengping GongAbstract:Abstract An optical force model is used to investigate the stability of a flat spinning Solar Sail in a displaced Solar orbit. The Solar Sail can be stabilized in the orbit by design of the spinning rate and the Sail structure. The orbital and attitude dynamics are studied separately. The orbit is stable as the Sail attitude keeps fixed with respect to the sunlight, as does that of a perfectly reflecting Solar Sail. The attitude is stable as long as the spin angular velocity is much larger than the orbital angular velocity. The stability of the individual components cannot guarantee the stability of the entire system since the orbit and attitude interact with each other. Therefore, the coupled dynamics of the orbit and attitude are used to study the overall stability; the results show that the coupled system is also stable. It should be noted that the orbit and attitude are critically not asymptotically stable. The analysis only provides the necessary conditions for stability because a linearization is performed. To numerically verify the nonlinear stability of the true nonlinear system, the dynamical equations are simulated for a time that is longer than the mission life.
