A Preliminary Impulsive Trajectory Design for (99942) Apophis Rendezvous Mission
In this study, a preliminary trajectory design is conducted for a conceptual spacecraft mission to a near-Earth asteroid (NEA) (99942) Apophis, which is expected to pass by Earth merely 32,000 km from the Earth’s surface in 2029. This close approach event will provide us with a unique opportunity to...
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Published in | Journal of astronomy and space sciences Vol. 38; no. 2; pp. 105 - 117 |
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Main Authors | , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
한국우주과학회
01.06.2021
The Korean Space Science Society |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | In this study, a preliminary trajectory design is conducted for a conceptual
spacecraft mission to a near-Earth asteroid (NEA) (99942) Apophis, which is expected to
pass by Earth merely 32,000 km from the Earth’s surface in 2029. This close approach
event will provide us with a unique opportunity to study changes induced in asteroids
during close approaches to massive bodies, as well as the general properties of NEAs.
The conceptual mission is set to arrive at and rendezvous with Apophis in 2028 for an
advanced study of the asteroid, and some near-optimal (in terms of fuel consumption)
trajectories under this mission architecture are to be investigated using a global
optimization algorithm called monotonic basin hopping. It is shown that trajectories
with a single swing-by from Venus or Earth, or even simpler ones without gravity assist,
are the most feasible. In addition, launch opportunities in 2029 yield another possible
strategy of leaving Earth around the 2029 close approach event and simply following the
asteroid thereafter, which may be an alternative fuel-efficient option that can be
adopted if advanced studies of Apophis are not required. |
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ISSN: | 2093-5587 2093-1409 |
DOI: | 10.5140/JASS.2021.38.2.105 |