AST 111 Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Aerobraking, Venus Express, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
6 Jun 2020
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Document Summary
Save fuel through using technique of aerobraking. Involves using the upper levels of the planet"s atmosphere to slow the spacecraft down. Spacecraft skims the upper levels of the atmosphere and this results in drag that slows the spacecraft and lowers its orbits. Can initially enter a highly elliptical orbit (when needs less fuel than directly entering the final circular orbit) and use aerobraking to slow it down, reducing the period of the orbit to eventually reach the required final orbit. This procedure has been used for nasa"s mars orbiting spacecraft. Involves challenges depending on the type of object. For an object with no atmosphere such as the moon, or a thin atmosphere, the approach is to use rocket engines to slow down the spacecraft and cushion the landing. For a planet with an atmosphere, the atmosphere can be used to slow down the spacecraft. The initial entry generates heat and the spacecraft must be protected by a heat shield.
