月球卫星的精密定轨

发射月球卫星是探测月球的一个重要途径,而且为了找水,多采用极轨方式.由于作为中心天体的月球与地球有所不同,导致月球卫星的运动及其相应的轨道摄动解亦有明显差异.在这种背景下,本文选择采用一组适用于0≤e<1和0°≤i<180°的无奇点根数、充分利用数值法和分析法各自特点的定轨方法,给出月球卫星的精密定轨方案,并以测距的模拟资料进行了实算,计算结果与理论分析相符,有实用前景.     

月球探测技术--奔月变轨过程自旋稳定指向控制

根据月球探测器奔月变轨过程中自旋稳定各阶段的特点,提出了分阶段进行主动章动、进动控制的策略和方法。对影响自旋稳定指向精度的因素和控制方法进行了研究。数学仿真结果表明:起旋推力器推力偏差是引起章动的主要因素;质量不平衡和能量耗散引起的章动很小,初步设计时可略去不计。采用限制横向角速率以限制最大章动角的控制策略可快速消除章动,便于工程实现。     

月球探测中通信跟踪(C&T)技术遇到的新问题

以技术成熟的GEO以下近地轨道的C&T技术为参照点,提出月球探测遇到的新问题———长时间、远距离地月转移轨道测量、环月轨道段测量和月面登陆段测量中的新问题,给出解决这些问题的合理方法。     

月球软着陆的一种燃耗次优制导方法

文中的软着陆过程从一条环月停泊轨道开始。一旦选定着陆点，则通过△Ｖ变轨转入一条椭圆轨道。当到达近月点时，着陆制动发动机点火，开始动力下降阶段。参考运载火箭制导过程的分析方法，假设月球为一均匀引力场，以燃耗最优性为出发点，提出了一种用于软着陆动力下降过程的显式制导律。其显式表达式是剩余时间的函数。它不必进行迭代计算，是一种易于实现的次优闭环制导方法。     

月球车视觉系统的一种匹配算法

针对月球车立体视觉系统对匹配速度和准确度要求较高的特点，提出了一种基于特征约束的区域匹配算法。该算法用多尺度小波变换实现边缘提取和降噪，采用多特征匹配、双向匹配、部分二次采样、选取图像子集等技术保证匹配的速度和精度。最后对匹配结果进行滤波，进一步提高匹配的准确性。     

Lunar ground penetrating radar: Minimizing potential data artifacts caused by signal interaction with a rover body

Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) is the leading geophysical candidate technology for future lunar missions aimed at mapping shallow stratigraphy (<5 m). The instrument’s exploration depth and resolution capabilities in lunar materials, as well as its small size and lightweight components, make it a very attractive option from both a scientific and engineering perspective. However, the interaction between a GPR signal and the rover body is poorly understood and must be investigated prior to a space mission. In doing so, engineering and survey design strategies should be developed to enhance GPR performance in the context of the scientific question being asked. This paper explores the effects of a rover (simulated with a vertical metal plate) on GPR results for a range of heights above the surface and antenna configurations at two sites: (i) a standard GPR testing site with targets of known position, size, and material properties, and; (ii) a frozen lake for surface reflectivity experiments. Our results demonstrate that the GPR antenna configuration is a key variable dictating instrument design, with the XX polarization considered optimal for minimizing data artifact generation. These findings could thus be used to help guide design requirements for an eventual flight instrument.     

Building components for an outpost on the Lunar soil by means of a novel 3D printing technology

3D-printing technologies are receiving an always increasing attention in architecture, due to their potential use for direct construction of buildings and other complex structures, also of considerable dimensions, with virtually any shape. Some of these technologies rely on an agglomeration process of inert materials, e.g. sand, through a special binding liquid and this capability is of interest for the space community for its potential application to space exploration. In fact, it opens the possibility for exploiting in-situ resources for the construction of buildings in harsh spatial environments. The paper presents the results of a study aimed at assessing the concept of 3D printing technology for building habitats on the Moon using lunar soil, also called regolith. A particular patented 3D-printing technology – D-shape – has been applied, which is, among the existing rapid prototyping systems, the closest to achieving full scale construction of buildings and the physical and chemical characteristics of lunar regolith and terrestrial regolith simulants have been assessed with respect to the working principles of such technology. A novel lunar regolith simulant has also been developed, which almost exactly reproduces the characteristics of the JSC-1A simulant produced in the US. Moreover, tests in air and in vacuum have been performed to demonstrate the occurrence of the reticulation reaction with the regolith simulant. The vacuum tests also showed that evaporation or freezing of the binding liquid can be prevented through a proper injection method. The general requirements of a Moon outpost have been specified, and a preliminary design of the habitat has been developed. Based on such design, a section of the outpost wall has been selected and manufactured at full scale using the D-shape printer and regolith simulant. Test pieces have also been manufactured and their mechanical properties have been assessed.     

Study on JAXA elements for international lunar vicinity mission

JAXA has commenced technical research for contributing as a part of international partnership for the space exploration in Lunar vicinity. One of the candidates is the cargo transport mission with the combination of Cryogenic Propulsion Stage(s) (CPS) and a transfer vehicle derived from Japanese un-manned vehicle used for ISS. The CPS needs advanced technologies to keep the propellant for long mission duration and they will be useful in further missions beyond moon. This paper reports the profile of the mission, vehicle configurations, and the transport capabilities.     

Quantifying lunar soil composition with partial least squares modeling of reflectance

Retrieval of lunar soil composition is commonly achieved through optical remote sensing in which spectral characteristics of returned lunar samples are related to their constituents. Partial least squares (PLS) and principal component regression (PCR) were applied to the dataset characterized by the Lunar Soil Characterization Consortium (LSCC) to estimate the content of FeO, Al₂O₃ and TiO₂ in the soils. The goal of this study was to test whether the conversion of reflectance to single scattering albedo (SSA) via Hapke’s radiative transfer model is able to improve the performance of PLS and PCR. Results from PLS and PCR modeling of SSA spectra indicate that the conversion does not necessarily improve the performance of PLS and PCR, and this depends on the chemical considered, the way to select the number of optimal factors, and how the data were pretreated. The conversion failed to accommodate the large deviation of highland samples with low FeO, TiO₂ and high Al₂O₃.     

The present status of the Japanese Penetrator Mission: LUNAR-A

The scientific objective of the LUNAR-A Japanese Penetrator Mission is to explore the lunar interior by seismic and heat-flow experiments. Two penetrators containing two-component seismometer and heat-flow probes will be deployed from a spacecraft onto the lunar surface, one on the nearside and the other on the farside of the moon. The data obtained by the penetrators will be transmitted to the ground station by way of the LUNAR-A mother spacecraft orbiting at an altitude of about 200 km. The seismic observations are expected to provide key data on the size of the lunar core, as well as data on the deep mantle structure. The heat-flow measurements at two different sites will also provide important data on the thermal structure and bulk concentrations of heat-generating elements in the Moon. These data will provide much stronger geophysical constraints on the origin and evolution of the Moon than has ever been obtained. The LUNAR-A mission was supposed to be launched in 2004. However, a malfunction of spacecraft subsystem and technical issues for penetrator system occurred during the course of the qualification level test. Therefore, further improvements and some modifications were considered to be required for reliability and robustness. The development of the mother spacecraft was temporarily suspended, while we have put a three-year program into effect to solve the penetrator technology issues.