Activities of the COSPAR Panel on Exploration supporting the Global Exploration Roadmap

The Global Exploration Roadmap (GER) is driven by several goals and objectives that include space science, the search for life as well as preparatory science activities to enable human space exploration. The Committee on Space Research (COSPAR), through its Commissions and Panels provides an international forum that supports and promotes space exploration worldwide. COSPAR's Panel on Exploration (PEX) investigates a stepwise approach of preparatory research on Earth and in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to facilitate a future global space exploration program. We summarize recent activities and workshops of PEX in support of the GER.     

Dynamic modeling and optimization for space logistics using time-expanded networks

This research develops a dynamic logistics network formulation for lifecycle optimization of mission sequences as a system-level integrated method to find an optimal combination of technologies to be used at each stage of the campaign. This formulation can find the optimal transportation architecture considering its technology trades over time. The proposed methodologies are inspired by the ground logistics analysis techniques based on linear programming network optimization. Particularly, the time-expanded network and its extension are developed for dynamic space logistics network optimization trading the quality of the solution with the computational load. In this paper, the methodologies are applied to a human Mars exploration architecture design problem. The results reveal multiple dynamic system-level trades over time and give recommendation of the optimal strategy for the human Mars exploration architecture. The considered trades include those between In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) and propulsion technologies as well as the orbit and depot location selections over time. This research serves as a precursor for eventual permanent settlement and colonization of other planets by humans and us becoming a multi-planet species.     

一种燃料最省的火星精确着陆动力下降段快速轨迹优化方法

针对火星精确着陆问题,给出一种燃料最省的火星着陆动力下降段快速轨迹优化方法。首先以燃料最省为指标建立了着陆器动力下降段轨迹优化问题模型,然后利用极大值原理对该模型的推力大小、推力方向与协状态变量之间的关系进行分析,得出着陆器推力只能以最大或最小推力工作、推力方向和与速度对应的协状态矢量方向相同的结论。并以此为基础,将原问题的状态微分方程和协状态微分方程转换为有限个推力为常值的分段函数,推导每段内微分方程的解析表达式,给出了动力下降段轨迹优化方法的算法流程;最后通过数学仿真将所提出的方法与凸规划、多项式制导方法进行比较。结果表明该方法不仅避免了多项式方法没有考虑推力约束及燃料消耗的缺陷,而且在计算效率方面较凸规划方法有大幅度提高。     

火星探测器推进系统初步设想

火星探测是深空探测的重要内容之一,全面了解和掌握火星探测器的特点对进行火星探测具有重要意义.本文分析了国外火星探测器推进系统的系统组成和工作原理,介绍了我国火星探测器推进系统的初步设计方案,结合工程应用现状,提出了火星探测器推进系统的关键技术.     

Toward a global space exploration program: A stepping stone approach

In response to the growing importance of space exploration in future planning, the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) Panel on Exploration (PEX) was chartered to provide independent scientific advice to support the development of exploration programs and to safeguard the potential scientific assets of solar system objects. In this report, PEX elaborates a stepwise approach to achieve a new level of space cooperation that can help develop world-wide capabilities in space science and exploration and support a transition that will lead to a global space exploration program. The proposed stepping stones are intended to transcend cross-cultural barriers, leading to the development of technical interfaces and shared legal frameworks and fostering coordination and cooperation on a broad front. Input for this report was drawn from expertise provided by COSPAR Associates within the international community and via the contacts they maintain in various scientific entities. The report provides a summary and synthesis of science roadmaps and recommendations for planetary exploration produced by many national and international working groups, aiming to encourage and exploit synergies among similar programs. While science and technology represent the core and, often, the drivers for space exploration, several other disciplines and their stakeholders (Earth science, space law, and others) should be more robustly interlinked and involved than they have been to date. The report argues that a shared vision is crucial to this linkage, and to providing a direction that enables new countries and stakeholders to join and engage in the overall space exploration effort. Building a basic space technology capacity within a wider range of countries, ensuring new actors in space act responsibly, and increasing public awareness and engagement are concrete steps that can provide a broader interest in space exploration, worldwide, and build a solid basis for program sustainability. By engaging developing countries and emerging space nations in an international space exploration program, it will be possible to create a critical bottom-up support structure to support program continuity in the development and execution of future global space exploration frameworks. With a focus on stepping stones, COSPAR can support a global space exploration program that stimulates scientists in current and emerging spacefaring nations, and that will invite those in developing countries to participate—pursuing research aimed at answering outstanding questions about the origins and evolution of our solar system and life on Earth (and possibly elsewhere). COSPAR, in cooperation with national and international science foundations and space-related organizations, will advocate this stepping stone approach to enhance future cooperative space exploration efforts.     

Proposal for a multiple-asteroid-flyby mission with sample return

Asteroid exploration provides a new approach to study the formation of the solar system and the planetary evolution. Choosing a suitable target and designing of feasible profile for asteroid mission are challenging due to constraints such as scientific value and technical feasibility. This paper investigates a feasible mission scenario among the potential candidates of multiple flybys and sample return missions. First, a group of potential candidates are selected by considering the physical properties and accessibility of asteroids, for the sample return missions. Second, the feasible mission scenarios for multiple flybys and sample return missions to various spectral-type asteroids are investigated. We present the optimized design of preliminary interplanetary transfer trajectory for two kinds of missions. One is the single sample return mission to asteroids with various spectral types. The other is the multiple flybys and sample return mission to several asteroids. In order to find the optimal profiles, the planetary swing-by technique and Differential Evolution algorithm are used.     

轨道要素奇异问题的改进四元数方法

运用四元数方法可以在一定范围内解决描绘飞行器轨道运动时轨道要素的奇异问题。但四元数固有的双值性使得在对运动方程进行积分时,其正负选取很困难。为了解决这一问题,采用了改进约束方程的四元数方法,并用该方法描述了拉格朗日行星摄动方程,然后研究了地球扁率摄动对地球同步卫星轨道的影响。仿真结果表明：当偏心率小于1时,四元数可以很好地解决轨道要素奇异性问题。与改进的春分点轨道要素相比,四元数的方法有着更加明确的物理意义和几何意义,用四元数表示的运动变量方程的计算更为简单,积分计算效率更高,而且其计算误差也能达到精度要求。     

国外深空探测光学遥感载荷发展现状与启示

文章对国外近十几年来的深空探测光学遥感载荷的发展情况进行了介绍,并按科学目标进行了分类。总结了深空探测光学遥感载荷的发展趋势与启示,为深空探测光学遥感载荷的发展提出了几点建议。     

空间机器人研究进展及技术挑战

空间机器人是实现空间操控自动化和智能化的使能手段之一,在无人及载人的空间科学探索活动中至关重要。首先,回顾了国际空间站舱内外机器人、中国空间站机器人、在轨自由飞行空间机器人等几类轨道空间机器人工程应用现状,以及已成功在轨应用月面机器人和火星机器人两类星表机器人系统的应用现状。其次,针对空间机器人后续日益复杂的任务需求,探讨了空间机器人在机构构型、关节驱动、末端操作、感知认知、行走移动、动力学与控制等方面面临的技术挑战。然后,论述了空间机器人在多臂、超冗余、柔性化、可重构、仿生等新型机构构型方面的探索,介绍了空间机器人主动、被动柔顺关节方面的研究进展,论述了空间机器人末端执行器在专用化工具及通用化多指灵巧手两个方向的研究进展,总结了星表机器人在新型移动机构构型、高自主导航方面的研究进展,介绍了空间机器人在多传感器集成融合、力与触觉感知方面的研究进展,论述了空间机器人在多臂协调控制、柔顺控制、漂浮基座抓捕动力学控制等方面的研究进展。最后,展望了空间机器人在空间目标抓捕与移除、高价值飞行器在轨服务与维修、空间大型构件在轨组装及星球科学探测等方面的应用前景。     

月面环境三维激光SLAM技术

同步建图与定位（SLAM）可实现月球车在未知复杂月面环境下的定位与导航,月球表面由陨坑、石头等起伏地形构成,缺乏树木、建筑物等地面存有的显著特征,大量特征不显著的点云数据会对月球车定位精度和实时性造成影响。本文提出了一种针对月面环境的显著特征点云提取方法以及基于曲面定位能力估计的增量式优化算法,通过Fisher信息矩阵计算曲面定位能力指标,获取机器人位姿估计的不确定性测量,利用增量式的SLAM方案进行优化,用于提高定位精度与实时性。通过在Gazebo （物理仿真平台）仿真场景下的测试,验证了算法性能。