Power Lunar Rendezvous Guidance.

Abstract

A computer program was developed to simulate the rendezvous of an ascending lunar shuttle on a bielliptic transfer orbit with an earth shuttle on a free-return circumlunar trajectory. The effects of the gravitational perturbations due to the earth and sun on the transfer trajectory were corrected by an equation which predicted these perturbations. Finite burn periods were used for the transfers into the unguided coasting timing semi-ellipses. A previously proposed timing system was developed and refined. Two controllers were investigated for the terminal guidance portion of the rendezvous trajectory. A linearized suboptimal method was developed using a set of Riccati equations and was applied successfully. A 'reduced-memory' optimization scheme was also developed, but could not be successfully implemented. Since the optimal control was not achieved by the attempted method, results are presented only for the linearized scheme. (Author)

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1973
Accession Number
AD0768355

Entities

People

  • James Edward Leach
  • Lawrence E. Baughn Jr.

Organizations

  • Air Force Institute of Technology

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Circumlunar Trajectories
  • Computer Programs
  • Equations
  • Guidance
  • Orbits
  • Rendezvous
  • Rendezvous Guidance
  • Rendezvous Trajectories
  • Riccati Equation
  • Terminal Guidance
  • Trajectories
  • Transfer Orbits

Readers

  • Adaptive Control and Estimation with Uncertainty in Dynamic Systems.
  • Space Exploration and Orbital Mechanics.

Technology Areas

  • Space
  • Space - Orbital Debris
  • Space - Spacecraft Maneuvers