Low-thrust trajectory design for near-Earth asteroid supply delivery and resource transportation mission using high-power solar electric propulsion

Abstract

This paper presents the low-thrust (LT) trajectory design for near-Earth asteroid (NEA) supply delivery and resource transportation mission using high-power Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP). NEA low-thrust roundtrip accessibility is investigated through a numerical approach and new knowledge of the mass transportation capability of SEP systems in NEA missions is provided. A number of powerful deep neural networks (DNNs) were trained and optimized for 60 kW, 150 kW, 300 kW and 500 kW SEP-based LT trajectory design. DNNs are used as the surrogate of the conventional optimization process. A new low thrust trajectory roundtrip opportunity search algorithm is developed, which integrates the DNN models and allows an efficient roundtrip search process. Compared to the conventional approach, the DNN-based search algorithm reduces the search time by 99.96%. The SEP mass transportation capabilities were numerically studied. It was found the 60 kW SEP can deliver 5 tons of supply to up to 40% of NEAs. Considering refueling on NEAs, the accessible NEAs can be further increased by 16.2%. It is suggested that the 150 kW, 300 kW, 500 kW SEP to be used to transport 10–30 tons, 30–70 tons, 70–120 tons resources from NEAs respectively. These mass ranges ensure about 4,000 or more targets to be accessible. In all the case studies, the roundtrip accessible boundaries were constructed using polynomial regression. These boundaries were numerically obtained, which could be useful for mission designers to rapidly determine the LT roundtrip accessibility of newly found NEAs.