Trajectory Design From GTO To Lunar Equatorial Orbit For The Dark Ages Radio Explorer (DARE) Spacecraft

TL;DR

This paper presents a trajectory design for the DARE mission, detailing a transfer from GTO to a stable lunar orbit that maximizes science time in the radio-quiet farside region.

Contribution

It introduces a novel transfer trajectory from GTO to a stable lunar orbit optimized for science operations without station-keeping.

Findings

Successful trajectory design enabling over 1,000 hours of lunar farside science

Stable lunar orbit with no station-keeping required

Efficient transfer from GTO to lunar orbit

Abstract

The trajectory design for the Dark Ages Radio Explorer (DARE) mission con-cept involves launching the DARE spacecraft into a geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) as a secondary payload. From GTO, the spacecraft then transfers to a lunar orbit that is stable (i.e., no station-keeping maneuvers are required with minimum perilune altitude always above 40 km) and allows for more than 1,000 cumulative hours for science measurements in the radio-quiet region located on the lunar farside.