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Virginia Tech

Fuel-optimal space-flight transfer solutions through a redundant adjoint variable transformation

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

A transformation between minimum dimension adjoint variables and redundant adjoint variables is derived in this dissertation. The transformation is then applied between the adjoint variables associated with Cartesian position and velocity vectors and a set of redundant adjoint variables associated with certain regularized variables (Schumacher variables). This transformation proves to be very beneficial when it is applied to minimum-fuel space rendezvous and intercept problems. It facilitates using attributes from the two systems simultaneously; a new necessary condition in Schumacher adjoints is derived in this dissertation, and this together with classical necessary conditions for fuel-optimal transfer (existing in the position and velocity space) leads to a numerical algorithm which seems to be quite robust in finding candidate optimal control solutions for space transfer problems.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Ph. D.
Level thesis:degree_level
doctoral
Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
Aerospace Engineering
Department dc:contributor.department
Aerospace Engineering
Grantor dc:publisher
Virginia Tech
Year dc:date.issued
1991

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Lawton, John Arthur
Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
  • Lutze, Frederick H.
Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
  • Cliff, Eugene M.
  • Burns, John A.
  • Hendricks, Scott L.
  • Durham, Wayne C.

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Dc Identifier Other
etd-10142005-135753
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/29273

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Virginia Tech
Base URL
vtechworks.lib.vt.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
related terms
citation

Lawton, John Arthur. Fuel-optimal space-flight transfer solutions through a redundant adjoint variable transformation. doctoral thesis, Virginia Tech, 1991. http://hdl.handle.net/10919/29273