"Trajectory design for a solar-sail mission to asteroid 2016 HO3" by Jeannette Heiligers, Juan M. Fernandez et al.

Article Title

Trajectory design for a solar-sail mission to asteroid 2016 HO3

Authors

Jeannette Heiligers, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Kluyverweg 1, 2629 HS Delft, the Netherlands
Juan M. Fernandez, Structural Dynamics Branch, Langley Research Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Hampton, Virginia,
Olive R. Stohlman, Structural Dynamics Branch, Langley Research Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Hampton, Virginia,
W. Keats Wilkie, Structural Dynamics Branch, Langley Research Center, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Hampton, Virginia,

Keywords

asteroid 2016 HO3, solar sail, solar electric propulsion, trajectory design, trajectory optimization

Abstract

This paper proposes the use of solar-sail technology currently under development at NASALangley Research Center for a CubeSat rendezvous mission with asteroid 2016 HO3, aquasi-satellite of Earth. Time-optimal trajectories are sought for within a 2022–2023 launchwindow, starting from an assumed launcher ejection condition in the Earth–Moon system.The optimal control problem is solved through a particular implementation of a directpseudo-spectral method for which initial guesses are generated through a relatively simpleand 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 theassumed solar-sail reflectance model and solar-sail technology. To assess the performance ofsolar-sail propulsion for this mission, the trajectory is also designed assuming the use of solarelectric propulsion. The resulting fuel-optimal trajectories take longer to complete thanthe solar-sail trajectories and require a propellant consumption that exceeds the expectedpropellant capacity onboard the CubeSat. This comparison demonstrates the superiorperformance of solar-sail technology for this mission.