Managing Momentum on the Dawn Low Thrust Mission. Brett A. Smith, Charles A. Vanelli, and Edward R. Swenka Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109
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[email protected] Abstract—Dawn is low-thrust interplanetary spacecraft en- 1. INTRODUCTION route to the asteroids Vesta and Ceres in an effort to better un- Dawn is NASA’s ninth Discovery class mission on a journey derstand the early creation of the solar system. After launch to orbit two asteroids in the region between Mars and Jupiter. in September 2007, the spacecraft will flyby Mars in February Scientists believe the asteroid belt provides similar conditions 2009 before arriving at Vesta in summer of 2011 and Ceres in as those found during the formation of Earth. Dawn will in- early 2015. Three solar electric ion-propulsion engines are vestigate Vesta and Ceres, which are two of the larger objects used to provide the primary thrust for the Dawn spacecraft. in the region, and each provides a unique view into the forma- Ion engines produce a very small but very efficient force, and tion of planet like objects. The Dawn mission is also unique therefore must be thrusting almost continuously to realize the as it will be the first spacecraft to orbit two extraterrestrial necessary change in velocity to reach Vesta and Ceres. planetary bodies [1]. Momentum must be carefully managed to ensure the space- Launching on September 27, 2007, the Dawn spacecraft be- craft has enough control authority to perform necessary turns gan its 8-year journey.