The ability of small, solar powered, electrically propelled spacecraft to obtain samples of near earth asteroids and return them to low earth orbit (LEO) was analyzed. Vehicles of up to 10 kW were examined for five cases of varying difficulty. If launched with a Delta II 7925 rocket, more than 600 kg can returned in the best case. No return ability was found in the toughest cases without trajectory tricks. A 5 kw vehicle, which can return 300 kg for several cases, was defined and costed. As a standard vehicle, its cost would be comparable to aeroentry systems which return less than a kilogram. The small electric sample return mission appears feasible, flexible and economical.
Sample Returns to Enable Asteroid Mining
Fifth International Conference on Space ; 1996 ; Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States
1996-07-19
Conference paper
Electronic Resource
English
Sample Returns to Enable Asteroid Mining
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