The problem of transferring a rocket vehicle from a given circular orbit to a larger coplanar circular orbit in minimum time, using a constant low-thrust rocket engine, is considered. Parameters are chosen to correspond to a transfer from the earth's orbit in heliocentric space to the orbit of Mars. A path satisfying the first order necessary conditions of variational calculus is shown to be locally minimizing by application of a set of second order conditions. A physical explanation is offered to justify the retrothrust period occurring during the flight. A neighboring optimum feedback control law, based on estimated time-to-go, is applied to this problem. State variable and terminal constraint feedback gains are calculated while one of the second order conditions, involving the backward integration of a matrix Riccati equation, is being tested.
Perturbation guidance for minimum time flight paths of spacecraft.
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and American Astronautical Society, Astrodynamics Conference, Palo Alto
01.09.1972
Aufsatz (Konferenz)
Keine Angabe
Englisch
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