This conference features the work of authors from: Georgia Tech’s Space Systems Design Lab, Aerospace Systems Design Lab, School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Tech Research Institute; NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Marshall Space Flight Center, Goddard Space Flight Center, Langley Research Center; and other aerospace industry and academic institutionsOn July 4, 2005, another first in space exploration was achieved. NASA’s Deep Impact
spacecraft (s/c) released a small, 350 kg Impactor s/c designed to target comet Tempel 1,
estimated to be 14 km x 5 km x 5 km in size at the time of release. With a closing speed
of approximately 10.3 km/s, the Impactor s/c autonomously guided itself to impact and
captured 40 cm resolution images, the highest resolution images ever of the surface of a
cometary nucleus, just moments before the collision. The objective of the Impactor s/c
was to impact in an illuminated area viewable from the Flyby s/c. This paper describes
the Impactor encounter sequence design, execution and contingency planning that
contributed to the successful outcome in which all objectives were met.AIAA Space Systems Technical Committee ; AIAA Space Transportation Systems Technical Committee ; Space Technology Advanced Research Cente
