Optimal cooperative power-limited rendezvous

Minimum-fuel rendezvous of two power-limited low-thrust spacecraft is investigated. Both vehicles are active and provide thrust to complete the rendezvous. Total propellant consumption is minimized. Two gravitational field models are investigated: the Clohessy-Wiltshire linearized field and the inverse-square field. Analytical solutions are obtained for the linearized gravity field. A direct method using direct collocation with nonlinear programming is used for the nonlinear problem. Solutions obtained are checked against the primer vector necessary conditions for optimality. The optimal solutions depend in a complicated way on the power-to-mass ratios of the two spacecraft, the initial conditions, and the specified transfer time. Propellant and terminal orbit constraints are also discussed.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Aerospace Engineering

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2011

Author dc:creator

• Coverstone-Carroll, Victoria Lynn

Contributors dc:contributor

• Prussing, John E.

• Engineering, Aerospace

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 1992 Coverstone-Carroll, Victoria Lynn

Language dc:language

eng

Identifier

AAI9236436
(UMI)AAI9236436

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/23190