MEEG 467/667 Final Project

Mission Design to Jupiter

Interest in the exploration of Jupiter and its moons remain as strong today as it was in the early days of space travel with the arrival of Pioneer 10 into the Jovian system in 1973. Jupiter has been the most visited of the Solar System’s outer planets as all missions to the outer Solar System have used Jupiter flybys. New probes are currently en route to Jupiter. Sending a spacecraft to Jupiter is challenging, mostly due to large fuel requirements and the effects of the planet’s harsh radiation environment.

Jupiter

Part 1: Mission Design using a Hohmann Transfer Orbit

Using the method of patched-conic technique, the goal of part 1 is to determine the characteristics of an interplanetary Earth to Jupiter mission based on a heliocentric Hohmann transfer. Assume coplanar concentric planetary orbits and use the data found in the Appendix.

In particular, find:

    1. the Hohmann-transfer flight time in days, the semimajor axis, and eccentricity.
    1. the hyperbolic departure velocity from Earth, \(v_{\infty/E}^+\) (km/s).
    1. the necessary \(\Delta v\) from a circular parking orbit of altitude 600 km above the earth that will place the spacecraft on the Hohmann ellipse to Jupiter.
    1. the hyperbolic arrival velocity, \(v_{\infty/J}^-\) (km/s).
    1. the necessary \(\Delta v\) for insertion into a retrograde circular capture orbit of altitude 10,000 km above Jupiter.
    1. the phase angle of Jupiter at departure (the position of Jupiter at launch time).
    1. In the case of a flyby mission to Jupiter, assuming a closest approach at an altitude of 1,000,000 km on the sunlit side of the planet, determine the eccentricity/semimajor axis of the post-flyby trajectory as well as the delta-v gained by the spacecraft by Jupiter’s gravity. Can Saturn be reached using this gravity assist? (sketch the post-flyby orbit in relation to the circular orbits of Jupiter and Saturn).

Be sure to include all annotated sketches in your solution.

Part 2: Document a Real Mission

The goal of Part 2 is to identify and document a past (or present) mission to Jupiter. First select a particular mission. Then search the literature (from web sources, archival academic papers or books) for scientific and technical information pertaining to the mission.

2.1 Describe and document the following (but not limited to)

    1. the mission goals, science objectives,
    1. the principal mission phases,
    1. the mission key dates, such as departure, and arrival dates, flight time, the dates of the flybys to planets for gravity assists,
    1. the delta-v’s obtained by gravity assists,
    1. the delta-v needed for orbit insertion.

2.2 Outline the key qualitative and quantitative differences between this real space mission and the theoretical mission analyzed in Part 1.

2.3 Conclude by discussing the benefits and drawbacks of the work performed in Part 1.

Include all graphical data without omitting the sources.

Complete your report by making sure that all sources are properly cited in the paper.

Appendix: Data

  • Jupiter semimajor axis \(a_J =\) 5.2026 AU

  • Earth semimajor axis \(a_E=\) 1 AU

  • SOI radius \(r_{SOI,J}\) of Jupiter = 3.228610 x 10\(^{-1}\) AU

  • SOI radius \(r_{SOI,E}\) of Earth = 6.183155 x 10\(^{-3}\) AU

  • Gravitational parameter \(\mu_J\) of Jupiter = 126.7 x 10\(^6\) km\(^3\)/s\(^2\).

  • Gravitational parameter \(\mu_E\) of Earth = 398,600 km\(^3\)/s\(^2\)

  • Gravitational parameter \(\mu_S\) of the Sun = 132.7 x 10\(^9\) km\(^3\)/s\(^2\)

  • Astronomical Unit 1 AU = 149,597,871 km

  • Radius of Earth = 6,398 km

  • Radius of Jupiter = 71,490 km

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