AAS 97-173

MERCURY MISSION DESIGN USING SOLAR ELECTRIC PROPULSION SPACECRAFT

C. A. Kluever and M. Abu-Saymeh, University of Missouri-Columbia/Kansas City

Abstract

A Mercury rendezvous mission using solar electric propulsion (SEP) is proposed. The goal is to compute the orbit transfer which maximizes the final spacecraft mass. The optimal control problem is solved using a direct approach and a constrained parameter optimization method. The mission design variables include launch date, injection energy, Venus flyby conditions for a gravity assist, durations of the thrust and coast arcs, and thrust vectoring direction during the powered arcs. Several optimal rendezvous trajectories are obtained for near-term SEP technology and the results show that a Mercury mission may be a feasible candidate for the Discovery program.