Lucy Mission to the Trojan Asteroids: Instrumentation and Encounter Concept of Operations

TL;DR

The Lucy mission employs a series of flybys of Trojan asteroids, utilizing a comprehensive payload and autonomous operations to maximize scientific data collection while minimizing risks during critical encounter periods.

Contribution

This paper introduces the mission architecture and operational concept for Lucy, including instrumentation, autonomous fault protection, and integrated science strategies for Trojan asteroid flybys.

Findings

Successful mission design for multiple asteroid flybys

Integrated payload enables comprehensive surface and composition analysis

Autonomous operations enhance data collection during short encounter windows

Abstract

The Lucy Mission accomplishes its science during a series of five flyby encounters with seven Trojan asteroid targets. This mission architecture drives a concept of operations design that maximizes science return, provides redundancy in observations where possible, features autonomous fault protection and utilizes onboard target tracking near closest approach. These design considerations reduce risk during the relatively short time-critical periods when science data is collected. The payload suite consists of a color camera and infrared imaging spectrometer, a high-resolution panchromatic imager, and a thermal infrared spectrometer. The mission design allows for concurrent observations of all instruments. Additionally, two spacecraft subsystems will also contribute to the science investigations: the Terminal Tracking Cameras will obtain wide field-of-view imaging near closest approach to determine the shape of each of the Trojan targets and the telecommunication subsystem will carry out Doppler tracking of the spacecraft to determine the mass of each of the Trojan targets.