Mission Steering Profiles of Outer Planetary Orbiters Using Radioisotope Electric Propulsion
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Abstract
Radioisotope Electric Propulsion (REP) has the potential to enable small spacecraft to orbit outer planetary targets with trip times comparable to flyby missions. The ability to transition from a flyby to an orbiter mission lies in the availability of continuous low power electric propulsion along the entire trajectory. The electric propulsion system s role is to add and remove energy from the spacecraft s trajectory to bring it in and out of a heliocentric hyperbolic escape trajectory for the outermost target bodies. Energy is added and the trajectory is reshaped to rendezvous with the closer-in target bodies. Sample REP trajectories will be presented for missions ranging for distances from Jupiter orbit to the Pluto-Kuiper Belt