Low-Energy Round-Trip Trajectories to Near-Earth Objects using Low Thrust
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arXiv
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| Autori principali: | , , , , , |
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| Natura: | Preprint |
| Pubblicazione: |
2026
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| _version_ | 1866917366265282560 |
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| author | Beolchi, Alessandro Pontani, Mauro Howell, Kathleen Pozzi, Chiara Swei, Sean Fantino, Elena |
| author_facet | Beolchi, Alessandro Pontani, Mauro Howell, Kathleen Pozzi, Chiara Swei, Sean Fantino, Elena |
| contents | Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are attractive exploration targets due to their accessibility, scientific value, and resources. Although trajectory design has revealed efficient pathways to these bodies, systematic strategies for Earth-NEO transfers, especially with low thrust, remain limited. This work presents a streamlined methodology that blends the Sun-Earth circular restricted three-body problem (CR3BP) with the heliocentric two-body problem (2BP) to design low-energy round-trip trajectories. The current planar implementation enables efficient large-scale exploration of near-Earth space. Three-body manifold trajectories and transit orbits provide natural pathways for Earth departure and return through the L1 and L2 libration points, while the 2BP framework identifies spacecraft-NEO encounters through intersections of their elliptical orbits. This hybrid structure supports generating large collections of round-trip trajectories without heavy optimization, enabling rapid preliminary mission design across broad NEO populations. Rendezvous and takeoff maneuvers are first modeled as impulsive, then translated into low-thrust arcs to improve propellant efficiency. Round-trip transfers are assembled by combining compatible outbound and inbound branches under simple mission constraints. This modular approach is well suited for complex mission architectures that conventional patched-conics methods cannot systematically uncover. Applied to a representative NEO population, the method yields a large ensemble of round-trip trajectories with low launch and return energies, broad temporal flexibility, and competitive rendezvous and departure impulses compared to existing 2BP solutions. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_27683 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Low-Energy Round-Trip Trajectories to Near-Earth Objects using Low Thrust Beolchi, Alessandro Pontani, Mauro Howell, Kathleen Pozzi, Chiara Swei, Sean Fantino, Elena Earth and Planetary Astrophysics Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics Dynamical Systems Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are attractive exploration targets due to their accessibility, scientific value, and resources. Although trajectory design has revealed efficient pathways to these bodies, systematic strategies for Earth-NEO transfers, especially with low thrust, remain limited. This work presents a streamlined methodology that blends the Sun-Earth circular restricted three-body problem (CR3BP) with the heliocentric two-body problem (2BP) to design low-energy round-trip trajectories. The current planar implementation enables efficient large-scale exploration of near-Earth space. Three-body manifold trajectories and transit orbits provide natural pathways for Earth departure and return through the L1 and L2 libration points, while the 2BP framework identifies spacecraft-NEO encounters through intersections of their elliptical orbits. This hybrid structure supports generating large collections of round-trip trajectories without heavy optimization, enabling rapid preliminary mission design across broad NEO populations. Rendezvous and takeoff maneuvers are first modeled as impulsive, then translated into low-thrust arcs to improve propellant efficiency. Round-trip transfers are assembled by combining compatible outbound and inbound branches under simple mission constraints. This modular approach is well suited for complex mission architectures that conventional patched-conics methods cannot systematically uncover. Applied to a representative NEO population, the method yields a large ensemble of round-trip trajectories with low launch and return energies, broad temporal flexibility, and competitive rendezvous and departure impulses compared to existing 2BP solutions. |
| title | Low-Energy Round-Trip Trajectories to Near-Earth Objects using Low Thrust |
| topic | Earth and Planetary Astrophysics Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics Dynamical Systems |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.27683 |