New Solar-Sail Orbits for Polar Observation of the Earth and Moon

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Fernando Gámez Losada ◽  
Jeannette Heiligers
Keyword(s):  
Solar Sail ◽  
The Earth

scholarly journals Solar sail Lyapunov and Halo orbits in the Earth–Moon three-body problem

2015 ◽  
Vol 116 ◽  
pp. 25-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeannette Heiligers ◽  
Sander Hiddink ◽  
Ron Noomen ◽  
Colin R. McInnes
Keyword(s):  
Body Problem ◽  
Solar Sail ◽  
Three Body Problem ◽  
Halo Orbits ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Three Body

Investigating the Design Space for Solar Sail Trajectories in the Earth-Moon System

2011 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoffrey G. Wawrzyniak ◽  
Kathleen C. Howell
Keyword(s):  
Design Space ◽  
Solar Sail ◽  
Mission Design ◽  
South Pole ◽  
Low Thrust ◽  
Solar Sails ◽  
Moon System ◽  
Solar Sailing ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Lunar South Pole

Solar sailing is an enabling technology for many mission applications. One potential application is the use of a sail as a communications relay for a base at the lunar south pole. A survey of the design space for a solar sail spacecraft that orbits in view of the lunar south pole at all times demonstrates that trajectory options are available for sails with characteristic acceleration values of 1.3 mm/s or higher. Although the current sail technology is presently not at this level, this survey reveals the minimum acceleration values that are required for sail technology to facilitate the lunar south pole application. This information is also useful for potential hybrid solar-sail-low-thrust designs. Other critical metrics for mission design and trajectory selection are also examined, such as body torques that are required to articulate the vehicle orientation, sail pitch angles throughout the orbit, and trajectory characteristics that would impact the design of the lunar base. This analysis and the techniques that support it supply an understanding of the design space for solar sails and their trajectories in the Earth-Moon system.

scholarly journals Generating Solar Sail Trajectories in the Earth-Moon System Using Augmented Finite-Difference Methods

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoffrey G. Wawrzyniak ◽  
Kathleen C. Howell
Keyword(s):  
Finite Difference ◽  
Finite Difference Methods ◽  
Orbital Plane ◽  
Solar Sail ◽  
Finite Difference Schemes ◽  
Trajectory Design ◽  
Dynamical Regime ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Collocation Scheme ◽  
Difference Methods

Using a solar sail, a spacecraft orbit can be offset from a central body such that the orbital plane is displaced from the gravitational center. Such a trajectory might be desirable for a single-spacecraft relay to support communications with an outpost at the lunar south pole. Although trajectory design within the context of the Earth-Moon restricted problem is advantageous for this problem, it is difficult to envision the design space for offset orbits. Numerical techniques to solve boundary value problems can be employed to understand this challenging dynamical regime. Numerical finite-difference schemes are simple to understand and implement. Two augmented finite-difference methods (FDMs) are developed and compared to a Hermite-Simpson collocation scheme. With 101 evenly spaced nodes, solutions from the FDM are locally accurate to within 1740 km. Other methods, such as collocation, offer more accurate solutions, but these gains are mitigated when solutions resulting from simple models are migrated to higher-fidelity models. The primary purpose of using a simple, lower-fidelity, augmented finite-difference method is to quickly and easily generate accurate trajectories.

The Holographic Solar Photon Thruster (SPT) : A Low-Earth Orbit Solar Sail

Solar Energy ◽  
2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory L. Matloff
Keyword(s):  
Solar Sail ◽  
Low Earth Orbit ◽  
Back Pressure ◽  
Orbital Energy ◽  
Earth Orbit ◽  
Atmospheric Drag ◽  
Net Radiation ◽  
Solar Sails ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Fixed Orientation

Atmospheric drag limits most solar sails to altitudes>1000 km. A two-sail variant, the Solar-Photon Thruster (SPT) , could be used in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO). An SPT has a fixed-orientation collector sail that focuses light against a smaller, adjustable thruster sail. Maintaining the collector surface parallel to the Earth minimizes SPT drag in LEO. To minimize solar-radiation back pressure towards Earth, the upper collector surface is non-reflective. The reflective lower collector surface directs light reflected and reradiated from the Earth against the thruster. Thruster orientation is adjusted in LEO to increase the orbital energy by the net radiation-pressure. Experiments reveal that holograms are tolerant to solar-wind radiation. SPTs with white-light holographic thrusters are useful in LEO because small thruster rotations produce greatly altered reflectivity. It may be possible to holographically combine SPT collector and thruster.

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