Two-maneuver indirect contingency return from a low lunar orbit |
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Institution: | 1. School of Astronomy and Space Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China;2. Key Laboratory of Modern Astronomy and Astrophysics (Nanjing University), Ministry of Education, Nanjing 210023, China;3. Beijing Institute of Tracking and Telecommunication Technology, Beijing 100094, China |
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Abstract: | The problem of contingency return from the low lunar orbit is studied. A novel two-maneuver indirect return strategy is proposed. By effectively using the Earth’s gravity to change the orbital plane of the transfer orbit, the second maneuver in the well-known three-maneuver return strategy can be removed, so the total delta-v is reduced. Compared with the single-maneuver direct return, our strategy has the advantage in that the re-entry epoch for the minimum delta-v cost can be advanced in time, with a minimum delta-v value similar to that of the direct return. The most obvious difference between our strategy and the traditional single- or multiple- maneuver strategies is that the complete transfer orbit is a patch between a two-body conic orbit and a three-body orbit instead of two conic orbits. Our strategy can serve as a useful option for contingency return from a low lunar orbit, especially when the delta-v constraint is stringent for a direct return and the contingency epoch is far away from the return window. |
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Keywords: | Moon Low lunar orbit Contingency return Third-body maneuver Gravity assist |
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