Figure 1 - uploaded by Vladislav Zubko
Content may be subject to copyright.
Source publication
The article focuses on trajectory design to the trans-Neptunian object (90377) Sedna for launch in 2029–2034. Sedna is currently moving to the perihelion at a distance of around 74 au from the Sun. The perihelion passage is estimated to be in 2073-74. That opens up of opportunities to study such a distant object. Known for its orbit and 10 thousand...
Contexts in source publication
Context 2
... impulse is required during the Saturn flyby, which grows rapidly with time of flight decreasing. As a result, condition (1) can be fulfilled only for the total time of flight more than 37 yrs. Table 8 presents the parameters of the optimal flight using the EVE∆VEJSSed scheme with the duration of 40 yrs. The corresponding trajectory is shown in Fig. ...
Context 3
... the launch in 2034, the flight without the Neptune gravity assist (EVEEJSed or EVE∆VEJSed schemes) and one including such manoeuvre (EVEEJNSed or EVE∆VEJNSed schemes) is considered. The parameters of the flight trajectories are presented in Tables 9-12. The diagram of ∆V Σ versus the time of flight for four schemes considered here is shown in Fig. ...
Context 4
... for the time of flight less than 27 yrs, and this turn is to be performed at the Neptune flyby. Tables 11 and 12 show that the impulse value necessary for this turn is large and leads to a significant increase in ∆V Σ . The ∆V α value in the EVE∆VEJSed scheme is very small (see Table 10), this is why, as is seen in Tables 9 and 10 Tables 9-12 and Fig. 11 show that there are local minima of ∆V Σ for all four flight schemes under consideration in this subsection. These minima are achieved at the times of flight of 33.3 yrs for the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes, at 38.6 yrs. for the EVEEJNSed scheme and of 42.4 yrs. for the EVE∆VEJNSed scheme. As calculations show, the global minimum is ...
Context 5
... is seen in Fig. 11 that the blue curve corresponding to the EVEEJNSed transfer scheme has a kind of "hump" at the time of flight of about 35 yrs (see also Table 11). The authors were unable to find out the nature of ...
Context 6
... detailed characteristics for the EVE∆VEJSed and EVE∆VEJNSed schemes with time of flight of 30 yrs are presented in Tables 13 and 14. Flight trajectories for these scenarios are shown in Fig. 12 and ...
Context 7
... to the passage through the powerful radiation belts of this planet. An increase of the perijove height needs a higher ∆V Σ value (a similar problem already was considered for the Earth-Jupiter-Sedna (EJSed) scheme in subsection 4.2). The diagram of total ∆V Σ versus the perijove height for the EVEEJSed scheme with launch in 2034 is presented in Fig. ...
Context 8
... seen in Fig. 14, an increase of the perijove height, for example, to 150 thousand km, will increase the cost of the characteristic velocity by about 500 m/s. However, we should also take into account the fact that in the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes, the spacecraft approaches to Jupiter with a high asymptotic velocity (Tables 4, 7 and 8, 13 and 14) ...
Context 9
... and 2034 there are local minima of ∆V Σ . In 2031 the minima are reached at the time of flight of 36.3 and 38.5 yrs. for the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 8). In 2034 they are reached at 33.3 yrs. for the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes and at 38.5 and 42.3 yrs. for the EVEEJNSed and EVE∆VEJNSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 11). Moreover, for the latter scheme, this minimum is 3.96 km/s which only slightly exceeds ∆V. required for Earth-Venus flight Fig. 11 shows that when flying in 2034, the Neptune gravity assist leads to a lower value of ∆V Σ compared to a flight without this manoeuvre with a flight duration of more than 27 ...
Context 10
... and EVE∆VEJSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 8). In 2034 they are reached at 33.3 yrs. for the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes and at 38.5 and 42.3 yrs. for the EVEEJNSed and EVE∆VEJNSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 11). Moreover, for the latter scheme, this minimum is 3.96 km/s which only slightly exceeds ∆V. required for Earth-Venus flight Fig. 11 shows that when flying in 2034, the Neptune gravity assist leads to a lower value of ∆V Σ compared to a flight without this manoeuvre with a flight duration of more than 27 ...
Context 11
... follows from Tables 5, 6, 9-12, some optimal trajectories to Sedna include the spacecraft approaching Jupiter at a short distance. To avoid this, the minimum height of Jupiter flyby can be limited from below by a certain safe value by means of some increase in the ∆V Σ (see Fig. ...
Context 13
... impulse is required during the Saturn flyby, which grows rapidly with time of flight decreasing. As a result, condition (1) can be fulfilled only for the total time of flight more than 37 yrs. Table 8 presents the parameters of the optimal flight using the EVE∆VEJSSed scheme with the duration of 40 yrs. The corresponding trajectory is shown in Fig. 10. Neither of the gravity assist manoeuvres requires an additional impulse for the asymptotic velocity vector turn, as is shown in Table ...
Context 14
... the launch in 2034, the flight without the Neptune gravity assist (EVEEJSed or EVE∆VEJSed schemes) and one including such manoeuvre (EVEEJNSed or EVE∆VEJNSed schemes) is considered. The parameters of the flight trajectories are presented in Tables 9-12. The diagram of ∆V Σ versus the time of flight for four schemes considered here is shown in Fig. ...
Context 15
... is seen in Fig. 11 that the blue curve corresponding to the EVEEJNSed transfer scheme has a kind of "hump" at the time of flight of about 35 yrs (see also Table 11). The authors were unable to find out the nature of ...
Context 16
... detailed characteristics for the EVE∆VEJSed and EVE∆VEJNSed schemes with time of flight of 30 yrs are presented in Tables 13 and 14. Flight trajectories for these scenarios are shown in Fig. 12 and ...
Context 17
... to the passage through the powerful radiation belts of this planet. An increase of the perijove height needs a higher ∆V Σ value (a similar problem already was considered for the Earth-Jupiter-Sedna (EJSed) scheme in subsection 4.2). The diagram of total ∆V Σ versus the perijove height for the EVEEJSed scheme with launch in 2034 is presented in Fig. 14. As seen in Fig. 14, an increase of the perijove height, for example, to 150 thousand km, will increase the cost of the characteristic velocity by about 500 ...
Context 18
... the powerful radiation belts of this planet. An increase of the perijove height needs a higher ∆V Σ value (a similar problem already was considered for the Earth-Jupiter-Sedna (EJSed) scheme in subsection 4.2). The diagram of total ∆V Σ versus the perijove height for the EVEEJSed scheme with launch in 2034 is presented in Fig. 14. As seen in Fig. 14, an increase of the perijove height, for example, to 150 thousand km, will increase the cost of the characteristic velocity by about 500 ...
Context 19
... and 2034 there are local minima of ∆V Σ . In 2031 the minima are reached at the time of flight of 36.3 and 38.5 yrs. for the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 8). In 2034 they are reached at 33.3 yrs. for the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes and at 38.5 and 42.3 yrs. for the EVEEJNSed and EVE∆VEJNSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 11). Moreover, for the latter scheme, this minimum is 3.96 km/s which only slightly exceeds ∆V. required for Earth-Venus flight Fig. 11 shows that when flying in 2034, the Neptune gravity assist leads to a lower value of ∆V Σ compared to a flight without this manoeuvre with a flight duration of more than 27 ...
Context 20
... and EVE∆VEJSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 8). In 2034 they are reached at 33.3 yrs. for the EVEEJSed and EVE∆VEJSed schemes and at 38.5 and 42.3 yrs. for the EVEEJNSed and EVE∆VEJNSed schemes respectively (see Fig. 11). Moreover, for the latter scheme, this minimum is 3.96 km/s which only slightly exceeds ∆V. required for Earth-Venus flight Fig. 11 shows that when flying in 2034, the Neptune gravity assist leads to a lower value of ∆V Σ compared to a flight without this manoeuvre with a flight duration of more than 27 ...
Similar publications
The study of jets in the Earth's magnetosheath has been a subject of extensive investigation for over a decade due to their profound impact on the geomagnetic environment and their close connection with shock dynamics. While the variability of the solar wind and its interaction with Earth's magnetosphere provide valuable insights into jets across a...
Outward transport of plasma in the inner and middle magnetospheres of gas giants results from an interplay between mass loading from the inner dominant mass sources (volcanic moons), flux tube interchange in the centrifugally unstable magnetospheric plasma disk, turbulent heating of the plasma, and coupling between the equatorial plasma and the pla...
Along with the familiar Rossby–Haurwitz waves, two-dimensional flows on the surface of a rotating sphere in the regime of zonostrophic turbulence harbour another class of waves known as zonons. Zonons are wave packets produced by energetic large-scale Rossby–Haurwitz wave modes `enslaving’ other wave modes. They propagate westward with the phase sp...
A foundational model has been developed based on trends built from empirical data of space exploration and computing power through the first six plus decades of the Space Age which projects earliest possible launch dates for human-crewed missions from cis-lunar space to selected Solar System and interstellar destinations. The model uses computation...
The flow shear-driven Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) instability is ubiquitous in planetary magnetospheres. At Earth these surface waves are important along the dawn and dusk flanks of the magnetopause boundary while at Jupiter and Saturn the entire dayside magnetopause boundary can exhibit KH activity due to corotational flows in the magnetosphere. Kelvin-...
Citations
... Missions to the Kuiper Belt region and beyond, the Oort Cloud, the gravitational focus of the Sun, and even the Alpha-Centauri system [16] are considered the next breakthrough for space exploration. Among various suggested destinations, the trans-Neptunian object Sedna (90377) has recently gained more and more interest from the scientific community [57]. Sedna, orbiting the Sun in a highly eccentric orbit, is currently on the way to its perihelion (around 76 AU from the Sun), and recent studies consider this an extraordinary opportunity to get to know more about deep space, being its aphelion at about 936 AU. ...
The 6th International Symposium on Space Sailing (ISSS 2023) took place on June 5-9, 2023 at the New York City College of Technology, the City University of New York. Since its inauguration in Herrsching (Germany, 2007), the ISSS has been held in New York (USA, 2010), Glasgow (UK, 2013), Kyoto (Japan, 2017) and Aachen (Germany, 2019). During the five-day symposium, participants from 14 countries gathered to discuss recent advances in space sailing, investigating new concepts and designs, describing innovative hardware and enabling technologies, strategies for dynamics and control, and providing updates on testing results for systems under development and future mission applications. As part of the 18 sessions, almost 50 oral presentations were held and, subsequently, 17 papers were submitted for review and publication. This paper aims to give an overview of all the cutting-edge technologies, detailed analysis and promising results shared with the scientific community as part of the event. Following the noteworthy deployment of the world's first solar sail IKAROS in 2010, missions like NanoSail-D2 (2011) and LightSail-2 (2019) have showcased the potential of solar sailing technology through successful demonstrations. Besides highlighting advancements in present and future programs, the symposium was an opportunity to reflect on objectives, design and test results from research centers and universities, as well as illustrate applications for interstellar travel, evaluate degrading performance and suggest alternative solutions for known limitations. The following Symposium is scheduled for early summer 2025 and will be hosted by TU Delft.
... In some of the flights considered in the present article, the spacecraft on the optimal trajectory approaches Jupiter at a relatively short distance during the gravity assist manoeuvre near this giant; in particular, in the EVEEJSed scheme at the beginning of the mission in 2034 and its duration of 30 years, the spacecraft approaches Jupiter to an altitude of 4.2 thousand km, and powerful radiation belts of Jupiter can be hazardous for the spacecraft electronic components. Article [12] gives an estimate of ΔVΣ for the above option with restrictions on the minimum altitude over Jupiter up to 600 thousand km. The estimation of the radiation dose received by the spacecraft during the Jupiter flight, depending on the thickness of the Al protective shield, is given in [8]. ...
... After defining in this way the sections of the trajectories between each pair of celestial bodies, these sections are connected (patched) with each other as follows [12], [16], [17], [19]: ...
... The numerical characteristics of the flight schemes are presented in Table A.1. The table contains only some of the results of calculating a direct flight to Sedna (see [12], [19]), as well as flights using gravity assist manoeuvres, according to the above schemes, satisfying constraints (1) with a step of 5-10 years in flight time; for comparison, the estimates of ΔVΣ obtained in [10] are also given. In 2033, flight using the EVEEJSed or EVEΔVEJSed scheme seems to be difficult to realize as it requires high costs ΔV because of the close approach to the Sun at a distance of less than 20 million km in the Jupiter-Sedna arc [12]. ...
The presented research is devoted to the determination and analysis of flight trajectories to the trans-Neptunian object Sedna. In this work, two possible ways of reaching Sedna are considered: a direct flight and a flight including gravity assist manoeuvres. Launch dates for the mission are chosen in 2029-2050. The gravity assist manoeuvres considered in the research can reduce the required value of ΔV and the flight duration. Manoeuvres near Venus and the Earth, as well as Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune are considered. It is shown that for launch windows in 2029-2034, the use of the scheme of flight to Sedna with Venus-Earth-Earth-Jupiter gravity assists as a base can significantly reduce the value of the total ΔV required to reach Sedna under restrictions on the time of flight from 20 to 50 years. It is shown that 2053 seems to be the best time to launch the mission using the Earth-Venus-Earth-Earth-Jupiter-Neptune-Sedna scheme because the launch in this year requires only approximately 5.8 km/s of the total ΔV at a flight duration of 20 years. Additionally, we discuss possible expansions of the mission scenario by combining scientific missions to Sedna and other celestial bodies, such as asteroids or other TNOs. Examples for such expansions were provided for five TNOs: three extreme TNOs, 2012 VP113, (541132) Leleakuhonua (former 2015 TG387), 2013 SY99) and two classical Kuiper Belt objects, (90482) Orcus and (20000) Varuna, as well as for the main belt asteroids (16) Psyche, (20) Massalia and (152) Hilda. The approach within which the flight to a distant trans-Neptunian object was part of a scientific mission to Neptune was also considered.
... In a very detailed and well-documented body of work, Zubko et al. have explored a wide range of trajectory designs for Sedna missions, including trajectories reaching the target in as little as twelve years [4,5,10]. Our group has previously examined a wide range of TNO missions [6,7], including a handful of Earth -Jupiter -Sedna trajectories. ...
This study aims to explore various orbital trajectories to reach the trans-Neptunian object Sedna. In addition to the opportunity to observe Sedna's physical properties such as its surface composition and atmosphere, such a mission may yield insight into the early history of the Solar System due to the remoteness of trans-Neptunian objects. We compare trajectories by their C3 values, transit times, arrival speeds, Jupiter flyby distances, and Jupiter radiation dosages. The possibility of a lander mission is also considered.
... Let us highlight the works [9][10][11] in which the authors carried out the search for optimal flight trajectories to extreme trans-Neptunian objects, such as (90377) Sedna, 3 2012 VP113 using the Venus-Earth-Earth-Jupiter maneuvers and asteroids passages. ...
... Herewith, the authors found the asteroids which passage is possible at Earth-Earth and Earth-Jupiter sites, in particular, during the mission to Sedna in 2029 is possible to flyby the main belt asteroid (20) Massalia on Earth-Earth arc, and in 2034 an asteroid (16) Psyche on Earth-Jupiter arc. In [10] it was proposed to use a small spacecraft as a piggyback to the main mission, detaching it after the last gravity assist and sending two separate spacecraft simultaneously to two trans-Neptunian bodies. ...
This paper deals with the problem of constructing a flight scheme to Venus, in which a spacecraft flying to the planet after a gravity assist maneuver and transition to a resonant orbit in order to re-encounter with Venus, makes a passage of a minor celestial body. The 117 candidate asteroids from the NASA JPL catalogue, whose diameter exceeds 1 km, were selected. The flight trajectories which meet the criteria of impulse-free both flyby Venus and asteroid, and the subsequent landing on the surface of Venus were found within the interval of launch dates from 2029 to 2050. The trajectory of the spacecraft flight from the Earth to Venus including flyby of Venus and asteroids with a subsequent landing on the surface of Venus was analyzed.
... The Lucy mission (it has been in flight since 2021) should make a great contribution to the study of the structure of Jupiter's Trojan asteroids. The Stardust, Hayabusa, Hayabusa-2 missions developed space exploration by bringing 1 3 Let us highlight the works [9][10][11] in which the authors carried out the search for optimal flight trajectories to extreme trans-Neptunian objects, such as (90377) Sedna, 2012 VP113 using the Venus-Earth-Earth-Jupiter maneuvers and asteroids passages. Herewith, the authors found the asteroids which passage is possible at Earth-Earth and Earth-Jupiter sites, in particular, during the mission to Sedna in 2029 is possible to flyby the main belt asteroid (20) Massalia on Earth-Earth arc, and in 2034 an asteroid (16) Psyche on Earth-Jupiter arc. ...
... Herewith, the authors found the asteroids which passage is possible at Earth-Earth and Earth-Jupiter sites, in particular, during the mission to Sedna in 2029 is possible to flyby the main belt asteroid (20) Massalia on Earth-Earth arc, and in 2034 an asteroid (16) Psyche on Earth-Jupiter arc. In [10] it was proposed to use a small spacecraft as a piggyback to the main mission, detaching it after the last gravity assist and sending two separate spacecraft simultaneously to two trans-Neptunian bodies. ...
... For this purpose, it is necessary to demonstrate the asteroid's diameter 10 vs. its number in the JPL catalog (see Fig. 5). 10 The estimation of object's diameter was taken from JPL web-site (url: https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/tools/sbdb_lookup.html (Assesd 01.04.2023) considering asteroid absolute magnitude and albedo. Earth. ...
This paper deals with the problem of constructing a flight scheme to Venus, in which a spacecraft flying to the planet after a gravity assist maneuver and transition to a resonant orbit in order to re-encounter with Venus, makes a passage of a minor celestial body. The 117 candidate asteroids from the NASA JPL catalogue, whose diameter exceeds 1 km, were selected. The flight trajectories which meet the criteria of impulse-free both flyby Venus and asteroid, and the subsequent landing on the surface of Venus were found within the interval of launch dates from 2029 to 2050. The trajectory of the spacecraft flight from the Earth to Venus including flyby of Venus and asteroids with a subsequent landing on the surface of Venus was analyzed.
... First, as described hereafter in Section 2, launching a mission to Planet 9 would yield a wealth of scientific information about its properties, plausibly more than what can be discerned through observations from ground-and space-based telescopes. Second, irrespective of whether Planet 9 as predicted by Batygin & Brown (2016a) is real, formulating the specifics of such a mission could serve as a valuable starting point for missions to trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) (Gladman & Volk 2021) at similar locations (see also McGranaghan et al. 2011;Zubko et al. 2021;Zubko 2022) if promising targets for exploration of this kind are identified. ...
Planet 9 is an hypothetical object in the outer Solar system, which is as yet undiscovered. It has been speculated that it may be a terrestrial planet or gas/ice giant, or perhaps even a primordial black hole (or dark matter condensate). State-of-the-art models indicate that the semimajor axis of Planet 9 is AU. If the location of Planet 9 were to be confirmed and pinpointed in the future, this object constitutes an interesting target for a future space mission to characterize it further. In this paper, we describe various mission architectures for reaching Planet 9 based on a combination of chemical propulsion and flyby maneuvers, as well as more advanced options (with a kg spacecraft payload) such as nuclear thermal propulsion (NTP) and laser sails. The ensuing mission duration for solid chemical propellant ranges from 45 years to 75 years, depending on the distance from the Sun for the Solar Oberth maneuver. NTP can achieve flight times of about 40 years with only a Jupiter Oberth maneuver whereas, in contrast, laser sails might engender timescales as little as 7 years. We conclude that Planet 9 is close to the transition point where chemical propulsion approaches its performance limits, and alternative advanced propulsion systems (e.g., NTP and laser sails) apparently become more attractive.
... This scenario amounts to the same VEEGA sequence to Jupiter adopted for instance by the Galileo spacecraft, where it was shown to be the globally optimal trajectory for the mission (Strange & Longuski 2002). Furthermore Zubko et al. (2021) also exploit this sequence in their analysis of missions to Sedna. Note the mission duration constraint of 22 years (as also imposed in Hibberd et al. (2020)) results in a ∆V of 10.5 km s −1 delivered at Jupiter (row 6). ...
To settle the question of the nature of the interstellar object 1I/’Oumuamua requires in-situ observations via a spacecraft, as the object is already out of range of existing telescopes. Most previous proposals for reaching 1I/’Oumuamua using near-term technologies are based on the Solar Oberth Manoeuvre (SOM), as trajectories without the SOM are generally significantly inferior in terms of lower mission duration and higher total velocity requirement. While the SOM allows huge velocity gains, it is also technically challenging and thereby increases programmatic and mission-related risks. In this paper, we identify an alternative route to the interstellar object 1I/’Oumuamua, based on a launch in 2028, which does not require a SOM but has a similar performance as missions with a SOM. It instead employs a Jupiter Oberth Manoeuvre (JOM) with a total time of flight of around 26 years or so. The efficacy of this trajectory is a result of it significantly reducing the ΔV to Jupiter by exploiting the VEEGA sequence. The total ΔV of the trajectory is 15.8 kms−1 and the corresponding payload mass is 115 kg for a SLS Block 1B or 241 kg for a Block 2. A further advantage of the JOM is that the arrival speed relative to 1I/’Oumuamua is approximately 18 kms−1, much lower than the equivalent for the SOM of around 30 kms−1.
... The last type of orbit involves the Sun-terminator orbit [35], quasiterminator orbit [36] and its alternating orbit near the asteroid utilizing the solar sail spacecraft [37][38][39]. In addition, some studies paid attentions to the rotationtranslation coupling analysis [40] and the algorithms for orbital control and optimization, which effectively enhances the robustness of the orbit [41][42][43][44][45]. ...
The solar radiation pressure is one of the major perturbations to orbits in the study of binary asteroid system, since asteroids have relatively weak gravity fields. In this paper, based on the idea of treating the solar radiation pressure as periodic external excitation, one novel family of orbits due to primary resonance and another novel family of orbits due to both primary resonance and internal resonance have been found by the classical perturbation method. The two types of steady-state orbits due to external resonance with different area-to-mass ratios have been determined and discussed by the frequency–response equations analytically. Four binary asteroid systems, 283 Emma-S/2003 (283) 1, 22 Kalliope-Linus, 2006 Polonskaya-S/2005 (2006) 1 and 4029 Bridges have been taken as examples to show the validity of the proposed mechanism in the explanation of orbits formation due to resonance. The multiple shooting method is applied to obtain the resonance orbits after numerical iterations.
... This scenario amounts to the same VEEGA sequence to Jupiter adopted for instance by the Galileo spacecraft, where it was shown to be the globally optimal trajectory for the mission (Strange & Longuski 2002). Furthermore Zubko et al. (2021) also exploit this sequence in their analysis of missions to Sedna. Note the mission duration constraint of 22 years (as also imposed in Hibberd et al. (2020)) results in a ∆V of 10.5 km s −1 delivered at Jupiter (row 6). ...
To settle the question of the nature of the interstellar object 1I/'Oumuamua requires in-situ observations via a spacecraft, as the object is already out of range of existing telescopes. Most previous proposals for reaching 1I/'Oumuamua using near-term technologies are based on the Solar Oberth Manoeuvre (SOM), as trajectories without the SOM are generally significantly inferior in terms of lower mission duration and higher total velocity requirement. While the SOM allows huge velocity gains, it is also technically challenging and thereby increases programmatic and mission-related risks. In this paper, we identify an alternative route to the interstellar object 1I/'Oumuamua, based on a launch in 2028, which does not require a SOM but has a similar performance as missions with a SOM. It instead employs a Jupiter Oberth Manoeuvre (JOM) with a total time of flight of around 26 years or so. The efficacy of this trajectory is a result of it significantly reducing the ∆V to Jupiter by exploiting the VEEGA sequence. The total ∆V of the trajectory is 15.8 km s −1 and the corresponding payload mass is 115 kg for a SLS Block 1B or 241 kg for a Block 2. A further advantage of the JOM is that the arrival speed relative to 1I/'Oumuamua is approximately 18 km s −1 , much lower than the equivalent for the SOM of around 30 km s −1 .
... In the works [43,44], trajectories to Sedna were determined satisfying two constraints simultaneously, namely, with the TOF no longer than 50 yrs, the total characteristic velocity (ΔV Σ that is the sum of the characteristic velocity required for launch, as well as all manoeuvres in deep space and near planets) had to be less than 8 km/s. In all cases, the correcting manoeuvres were not considered since they depend on the navigation and the manoeuvres execution accuracy. ...
... Also, the additional problem that is to find the TOF which corresponds to the limited ΔV Σ was considered in this paper. Note that in all flight schemes to Sedna that will be analysed in this paper the costs of orbit correction manoeuvres are not considered, as well as in the paper [43]. ...
... Launch in 2029 allows reducing the ΔV Σ to ⁓9 km/s for the 16-yr TOF and to 6.29 km/s for the 20-yr TOF. Such results are comparable with ones obtained in [43,61] for the more complex Earth-Venus-Earth-Earth-Jupiter-Sedna (EVEEJSed) scheme (ΔV Σ = 6.27 km/s in 2029). Notice that the launch date in 2028 is also in the vicinity of the ΔV Σ minimum. ...
Current research focuses on designing fast trajectories to the trans-Neptunian object (TNO) (90377) Sedna to study the surface and composition from a close range. Studying Sedna from a close distance can provide unique data about the Solar System evolution process including protoplanetary disc and related mechanisms. The trajectories to Sedna are determined considering flight time and the total characteristic velocity () constraints. The time of flight for the analysis was limited to 20 years. The direct flight, the use of gravity assist manoeuvres near Venus, the Earth and the giant planets Jupiter and Neptune, and the flight with the Oberth manoeuvre near the Sun are considered. It is demonstrated that the use of flight scheme with ( and Earth Gravity Assist manoeuvre) and Jupiter-Neptune gravity assist leads to the lowest cost of =6.13 km/s for launch in 2041. The maximum payload for schemes with VEGA manoeuvre is 500 kg using Soyuz 2.1.b, 2,000 kg using Proton-M and Delta IV Heavy and exceeds 12,000 kg using SLS. For schemes with only Jupiter gravity assist, payload mass is twice less than for ones with VEGA manoeuvre. As a possible expansion of the mission to Sedna, it is proposed to send a small spacecraft to another TNO during the primary flight to Sedna. Five TNOs suitable for this scenario are found, three extreme TNOs 2012 VP113, (541132) Lele\=ak\=uhonua (former 2015 TG387), 2013 SY99) and two classical Kuiper Belt objects: (90482) Orcus, (20000) Varuna.
