This paper shows that it is possible to deliver a payload of 600 to 2000 kg to a 300-km circular orbit at Mercury, using the presently available NASA STS and a single-stage bipropellant chemical rocket. This superior payload performance is attained by swingbys of Venus, plus more importantly, the use of the reverse Delta-V/EGA process. In contrast to the familiar Delta-V/EGA process used to boost the launch energy by returning to earth for a gravity assist, the reverse process reduces the Mercury approach energy each time a spacecraft makes a near-resonant return to Mercury for a gravity assist and reduces the orbit-capture Delta-V requirement. The mission sequences for such high-performance missions are described, and example mission opportunities for the years 1990 to 2010 are presented.
Ballistic Mercury orbiter mission via Venus and Mercury gravity assists
01.09.1989
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Englisch