Spacecraft Orbit Design in the Circular Restricted Three-Body Problem Using Higher-Dimensional Poincare Maps
Abstract
Strategies for designing three-dimensional spacecraft trajectories in a multi-body dynamical environment are investigated using four-dimensional Poincare maps. Unlike the planar circular restricted three-body problem, where a two-dimensional map provides a simplified view of a portion of the vast and often chaotic design space, the spatial problem requires a four-dimensional map to achieve an equivalent perspective. Such higher-dimensional maps present a visualization challenge. Furthermore, a spacecraft in the spatial problem can exhibit fundamentally more diverse and complex behavior than in the planar problem. A novel approach to four-dimensional-map-based design in the spatial circular restricted three-body problem is developed and applied to practical examples with real-world spaceflight applications involving three-dimensional trajectories in the Earth-Moon, Sun-Earth, and Uranus-Titania systems. Included in the approach is a method for representing, interpreting, and manipulating four-dimensional Poincare maps in an interactive, three-dimensional visual environment in which the fourth dimension is displayed using color. This "space-plus-color" method expands on the "color and rotation" method of Patsis and Zachilas (used for the study of motion in a galaxy) by applying additional tools and techniques enabling design in the circular restricted three-body problem. Design is often based on maps generated by many trajectories. Image manipulation in both spatial and color dimensions is accomplished iteratively using MATLAB and Avizo. Four-dimensional-map-based design in the spatial circular restricted three-body problem is practical, and success is enabled by interactive tools and techniques in a visual environment. The design strategy is methodical and not restricted to any particular map formulation. Human insight is leveraged to determine reference solutions in a problem without a closed-form analytical solution.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2013
- Accession Number
- ADA596277
Entities
People
- Christopher D. Geisel
Organizations
- Purdue University