Strategies for Mars transit from cislunar space

Paper number

IAC-17,A5,2,6,x40573

Author

Mr. Stefano Torresan, Politecnico di Torino, Italy

Coauthor

Mr. Ryan Elliott, International Master SEEDS, United Kingdom

Coauthor

Mr. Christopher Barsoum, University of Leicester, United States

Coauthor

Mr. Laurent Beauregard, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia, Italy

Coauthor

Mr. Antonio Coelho, University of Leicester, United Kingdom

Coauthor

Mr. Andrea Di Caro, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia, Italy

Coauthor

Mrs. Valeria Fioravanti, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia, Germany

Coauthor

Mr. Marco Jerome Gasparrini, Politecnico di Torino, Italy

Coauthor

Mr. William Gullotta, University of Leicester, United States

Coauthor

Mr. Calum Hervieu, Politecnico di Torino, United Kingdom

Coauthor

Mr. Sam HOOK, International Master SEEDS, United Kingdom

Coauthor

Ms. Silvy Suria Kerkar, University of Leicester, India

Coauthor

Mr. Adam McSweeney, Politecnico di Torino, United Kingdom

Coauthor

Mr. Stefano Umberto Menini, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia, Italy

Coauthor

Mr. Nitin Ramchand Lalwani, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia, Spain

Coauthor

Mr. Kaveh Razzaghi, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia, Italy

Coauthor

Ms. Anna Ross, University of Leicester, United Kingdom

Coauthor

Ms. Livia Savioli, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia - ISAE Supaero Toulouse, Italy

Coauthor

Mr. Benjamin Torn, Politecnico di Torino - Thales Alenia Space Italia, United Kingdom

Coauthor

Mr. James Turton, University of Leicester, United Kingdom

Year

2017

Abstract

This paper is the culmination of six months of project work completed by an international and multidisciplinary team of 21 graduate students, from 11 different countries as part of the ninth edition of the unique ‘SpacE Exploration and Development Systems’ (SEEDS) Master’s program. SEEDS is hosted, in turn, by Politecnico di Torino (Italy), ALTEC (Italy), ISAE-Supaero (France), the University of Leicester (United Kingdom), and the Concurrent Design Facility at ESA/ESTEC (the Netherlands). ESA’s support of the project work, initiated by the Human Spaceflight Directorate, aligns with ongoing studies into the lunar architecture required to realise the moon village aspiration, as a stepping stone to the eventual human exploration of Mars. 
Since the days of the Apollo program, Mars has remained the long-term target of the global space community for humanity's next ‘giant leap’. However, the best strategy to physically make that leap is not yet defined. Alternatives to traditional transfer strategies include the exploitation of the natural dynamics of Lagrange points, and synodic cycler orbits. There are advantages and challenges associated with both departing for Mars directly from Earth, or from cislunar space with an on-orbit assembled vehicle. 
Current roadmaps highlight the utilisation of the future cislunar station as a key stepping stone to the red planet. The research activities of this paper relate to the post-2025 timeframe, where the architecture of a cislunar station is known and has been derived by students from previous editions of the SEEDS program and industry studies. The work completed is concerned with the later stages of the station’s lifetime, whereby it will be evolved into a Mars Transfer Vehicle, aided by the successful leveraging of lunar resources. This paper presents the result of trade-off analyses of different Mars transfer strategies for the cislunar station. A subsequent trade-off analysis is then provided for various propulsion systems, and a design of a Mars Transfer Vehicle is detailed.

Abstract document

IAC-17,A5,2,6,x40573.brief.pdf

Manuscript document

IAC-17,A5,2,6,x40573.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).

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