Trajectory and Navigation System Design for Robotic and Piloted Missions to Mars

S. W. Thurman and S. E. Matousek

Abstract:	Future Mars exploration missions, both robotic and piloted, may utilize Earth-to-Mars transfer trajectories which are significantly different from one another, depending upon the type of mission being flown and the tima period during which the flight takes place. The use of neu or emerging technologies for future missions to Mars, such as aerobraking and nuclear rocket propulsion, may yield navigation requirements that are much more stringent than those of past robotic missions, and very difficult to meet for some trajectories. This paper explores the interdependencies between the properties of direct Earth-to-Bars trajectories and the Mars approach navigation accuracy which can be achieved using different radio metric data types, such as ranging measurements between an approaching spacecraft and Mars-orbiting relay satellites, or Earth-based measurements such as coherent Doppler and Very Long Baseline Interfercmetry (VLBI 1. The trajectory characteristics affecting navigation performance are identified, and the variations in accuracy which might be experienced over the range of different Mars approach trajectories are discussed.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 47th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation (1991) June 10 - 12, 1991 Williamsburg Hilton and National Conference Center Williamsburg, VA
Pages:	47 - 57
Cite this article:	Thurman, S. W., Matousek, S. E., "Trajectory and Navigation System Design for Robotic and Piloted Missions to Mars," Proceedings of the 47th Annual Meeting of The Institute of Navigation (1991), Williamsburg, VA, June 1991, pp. 47-57.
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