Title:
Guidance, Navigation, and Control Technology System
Trades for Mars Pinpoint Landing
Guidance, Navigation, and Control Technology System
Trades for Mars Pinpoint Landing
Author(s)
Steinfeldt, Bradley A.
Advisor(s)
Braun, Robert D.
Editor(s)
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Abstract
Landing site selection is a compromise between safety concerns associated with the site’s
terrain and scientific interest. Therefore, technologies enabling pinpoint landing (sub-100 m
accuracies) on the surface of Mars are of interest to increase the number of accessible sites
for in-situ research as well as allow placement of vehicles nearby prepositioned assets. A
survey of various guidance, navigation, and control technologies that could allow pinpoint
landing to occur at Mars has shown that negligible propellant mass fraction benefits are seen
for reducing the three-sigma position dispersion at parachute deployment below
approximately 3 km. Four different propulsive terminal descent guidance algorithms were
analyzed with varying applicability to flight. Of these four, a near propellant optimal,
analytic guidance law showed promise for the conceptual design of pinpoint landing vehicles.
In addition, subsonic guided parachutes are shown to provide marginal performance
benefits due to the timeline associated with Martian entries, and a low computational-cost,
yet near fuel optimal propulsive terminal descent algorithm is identified. This investigation
also demonstrates that navigation is a limiting technology for Mars pinpoint landing, with
landed performance being largely affected by sensor accuracy.
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Date Issued
2008-05-01
Extent
Resource Type
Text
Resource Subtype
Masters Project
Rights Statement
Unless otherwise noted, all materials are protected under U.S. Copyright Law and all rights are reserved