Journal of Aeronautics & Aerospace Engineering
Open Access

Department of Aerospace Science Engineering, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, USA

Publications

• Research Article   
  Minimum-Fuel, Low-Thrust Trajectory Optimizations for Earth-to-Mars Orbit Transfer with Bang-Bang Control
  Author(s): Daero Lee*
  
  This paper presents minimum-fuel, low-thrust trajectory optimizations for Earth-to-Mars orbit transfer using a constant specific impulse engine. The problem is formulated as an optimal trajectory design with the input power and the thrust direction being the control variables in the two-dimensional polar coordinate system. The problem is solved by both direct method and indirect method, respectively. Using Pontryagin’s Minimum Principle and the primer vector theory, the thrust direction is expressed as a function of costate variables and the Bang-Bang control law is derived, respectively. The derived two-point boundary-value problem is then solved by two-point-boundary-value solver. The optimal control problem is also solved by the direct method formulation which transcribes a continuous time optimal trajectory design to a finite dimensional nonlinear programming problem which i.. View More»
  

  Abstract PDF