Trajectory optimization for the Horyu-VI international lunar mission

The Horyu-VI nano-satellite is an international lunar mission with the purpose of studying the lunar horizon glow (LHG)—a still unclear phenomenon caused by electrostatically charged lunar dust particles. This study analyzes the mission trajectory with the hypothesis that it is launched as a secondary payload of the NASA ARTEMIS-II mission. In particular, the effect of the solar gravity gradient is studied; in fact, depending on the starting relative position of the Moon, the Earth, and the Sun, the solar gradient acts differently on the trajectory—changing it significantly. Therefore, the transfer and lunar capture problem is solved in several cases with the initial Sun-Earth-Moon angle as the key parameter. Furthermore, the inclination with respect to the Moon at capture is constrained to be equatorial. Finally, the problem of stabilization and circularization of the lunar orbit is addressed in a specific case, providing an estimate of the total propellant cost to reach the final orbit around the Moon.

Simulations of Lunar Dust interaction with exploration systems and instruments

<p>Lunar Dust is representing both an engineering challenge for future exploration missions due to systems potential contamination (due to regolith mobilization during e.g. traverse phases, landings, scooping, astronauts EVAs..) and a scientific target for e.g. mineralogical and compositional analysis of the Lunar surface. Therefore predicting not only interactions with systems but also payloads landed at the lunar surface is an important part of future missions design. Strong partnerships and synergies between agencies and space industries are now allowing the preparation of new missions with challenging timescales, for a return to the Moon in the next couple of years. In this context, the analysis of re-analysis of some of the Apollo era data and other landed assets is of high interest to perform the calibration of predictive algorithms and simulations tools of regolith transport and interactions with systems.</p> <p>The present work is organized in two parts: in the first part, we present a modelling study of two experiments included in the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package (ALSEP): the Lunar Ejecta and Meteoroids Experiment (LEAM), which experienced failures linked to thermal control and the Dust Detector Experiment (DDE) which could measure solar cells performance variations due to dust coverage.</p> <p>In the second part, we present simulation results for the contamination of the Imaging System accommodated on the PROSPECT experiment that will be embarked on the Luna 27 lander, due to land on the Moon in the next couple of years.</p> <p>We will discuss the quality of our predictions, the uncertainties inherent to the measurements, and the way forward in terms of better representation of lunar dust transport and interactions processes through models.</p>