Minimum-Time Transfer Trajectories from Low-Earth Orbit to NRHO

Abstract

The plan to construct a Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway (LOP-G) is underway for further development in the cis-lunar space. The highly elliptical orbit around the Moon named Near Rectilinear Halo Orbit (NRHO) is a candidate for the LOPG mission. This paper is on the transfer trajectories from Low-Earth Orbit to NRHO in the minimum time for a given fuel. Two cases are assumed for the transfer trajectories: Two-Impulse Transfer and Powered Lunar-Flyby Transfer. The trajectories are obtained from the optimization calculation with the Multiple Shooting Method in the Circular Restricted Three-Body Problem (CRTBP). This paper shows the trend of the flight time and Δ𝑉 for the transfer trajectories in two cases as the results. Furthermore, the stability of the mission duration is investigated with the position of LOP-G.