Session
Weekend Poster Session 2
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Abstract
Following recommendations from the 2023-2032 Planetary Science and Astrobiology Decadal Survey, new mission concepts are being developed with the focus of launching Uranus’ exploration missions in the early 2030s. To minimize both fuel consumption and cruise time on our way to Uranus, we propose a Jupiter-Uranus gravity assist trajectory using a Falcon Heavy Expendable Launcher to deliver a 3000 kg spacecraft to Uranus orbit in under seven years. The spacecraft will be composed of a mothership of 2000 kg wet mass and a swarm of CubeSats with a combined wet mass of 1000 kg. Using the ephemerides data of Earth, Jupiter and Uranus, and numerical solutions to the Lambert’s problem for a Jupiter flyby, we found that, with an initial launch window around April 15th, 2032, we reach Jupiter’s sphere of influence and perform a gravitational slingshot maneuver on December 31st, 2034, allowing the spacecraft to reach Uranus on December 31st, 2038. This proposed mission trajectory reaches Uranus with a relatively short cruise period of seven years, compared to the 13-year transfer period of the mission plan detailed in the decadal survey. This shorter transfer time could allow for significant extensions of the scientific mission nominal operations period and, potentially, reduce the cost of the overall mission. The swarm of 16 CubeSats of approximately 62 kg each will be divided into 4 groups of 4 identical spacecraft. Each group will be equipped with specialized instrumentation, exploring Uranus more extensively and performing planned plunges into its atmosphere while using the mothership as a communications relay with the Earth. This research demonstrates that a CubeSat swarm mission to Uranus can be not only viable, but also a fuel and cruise time optimization opportunity, delivering 16 exploration spacecraft to Uranus in under seven years.
SSC23-WP2-38 Poster
COMMUTE: Cubesat Swarm Orbital Maneuvers for a Mission to Study Uranus’ aTmospheric Environment
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Following recommendations from the 2023-2032 Planetary Science and Astrobiology Decadal Survey, new mission concepts are being developed with the focus of launching Uranus’ exploration missions in the early 2030s. To minimize both fuel consumption and cruise time on our way to Uranus, we propose a Jupiter-Uranus gravity assist trajectory using a Falcon Heavy Expendable Launcher to deliver a 3000 kg spacecraft to Uranus orbit in under seven years. The spacecraft will be composed of a mothership of 2000 kg wet mass and a swarm of CubeSats with a combined wet mass of 1000 kg. Using the ephemerides data of Earth, Jupiter and Uranus, and numerical solutions to the Lambert’s problem for a Jupiter flyby, we found that, with an initial launch window around April 15th, 2032, we reach Jupiter’s sphere of influence and perform a gravitational slingshot maneuver on December 31st, 2034, allowing the spacecraft to reach Uranus on December 31st, 2038. This proposed mission trajectory reaches Uranus with a relatively short cruise period of seven years, compared to the 13-year transfer period of the mission plan detailed in the decadal survey. This shorter transfer time could allow for significant extensions of the scientific mission nominal operations period and, potentially, reduce the cost of the overall mission. The swarm of 16 CubeSats of approximately 62 kg each will be divided into 4 groups of 4 identical spacecraft. Each group will be equipped with specialized instrumentation, exploring Uranus more extensively and performing planned plunges into its atmosphere while using the mothership as a communications relay with the Earth. This research demonstrates that a CubeSat swarm mission to Uranus can be not only viable, but also a fuel and cruise time optimization opportunity, delivering 16 exploration spacecraft to Uranus in under seven years.
