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Related papers: Lyapunov-based Low-thrust Optimal Orbit Transfer: …

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This paper presents an adaptive observer-based navigation strategy for spacecraft in Circular Relative Orbit (CRO) scenarios, addressing challenges in proximity operations like formation flight and uncooperative target inspection. The…

Robotics · Computer Science 2025-09-03 Dario Ruggiero , Mauro Mancini , Elisa Capello

The problem under consideration is to drive a spatial vehicle to a target at a given final time while minimizing fuel consumption. This is a classical optimal control problem in a deterministic setting. However temporary stochastic failures…

Numerical Analysis · Mathematics 2025-11-19 Jean-Philippe Chancelier , Pierre Carpentier , Guy Cohen , Thierry Dargent , Richard Epenoy

This paper details a methodology to transcribe an optimal control problem into a nonlinear program for generation of the trajectories that optimize a given functional by approximating only the highest order derivatives of a given system's…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2025-09-09 Thomas L. Ahrens , Ian M. Down , Manoranjan Majji

This paper investigates the use of Reinforcement Learning for the robust design of low-thrust interplanetary trajectories in presence of severe disturbances, modeled alternatively as Gaussian additive process noise, observation noise,…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2020-08-20 Alessandro Zavoli , Lorenzo Federici

Multi-revolution low-thrust trajectory optimization problems are important and challenging in space mission design. In this paper, an efficient, accurate, and widely applicable pseudospectral method is proposed to solve multi-revolution…

Systems and Control · Electrical Eng. & Systems 2025-07-03 Yilin Zou , Fanghua Jiang

This paper investigates the infinite horizon optimal control problem (OCP) for space applications characterized by nonlinear dynamics. The proposed approach divides the problem into a finite horizon OCP with a regularized terminal cost,…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2025-10-13 Abhijeet , Mohamed Naveed Gul Mohamed , Aayushman Sharma , Suman Chakravorty

We present an efficient transcription method for highly oscillatory optimal control problems. For these problems, the optimal state trajectory consists of fast oscillations that change slowly over the time horizon. Out of a large number of…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2022-05-19 Jakob Harzer , Jochem De Schutter , Moritz Diehl

Homotopy methods have been widely utilized to solve low-thrust orbital transfer problems, however, it is not guaranteed that the optimal solution can be obtained by the existing homotopy methods. In this paper, a new homotopy method is…

Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics · Physics 2018-09-05 Binfeng Pan , Xun Pan , Siqi Zhang

The paper revisits a Lyapunov-based feedback control to implement spacecraft orbital transfer maneuvers. The spacecraft equations of motion in the form of Gauss Variational Equations (GVEs) are used. By shaping the Lyapunov function using…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2024-07-24 Simone Semeraro , Ilya Kolmanovsky , Emanuele Garone

Long time-duration low-thrust nonlinear optimal spacecraft trajectory global search is a computationally and time expensive problem characterized by clustering patterns in locally optimal solutions. During preliminary mission design,…

Systems and Control · Electrical Eng. & Systems 2025-11-24 Jannik Graebner , Ryne Beeson

In this paper, we present an application of the optimal control theory to orbital transfer of Low Earth Orbit satellites. The optimal control problem is treated with Dynamic Programming techniques which require solving the…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2024-07-23 C. Ciancarelli , R. Ferretti , A. Intelisano , G. Villani

The objective of this work is to demonstrate the utility of Lyapunov functions in control synthesis for the purpose of maintaining and stabilizing a spacecraft in a circular orbit around the L4 point in the circular restricted three body…

Dynamical Systems · Mathematics 2016-04-15 Rachana Agrawal , Ravi N Banavar

This work focuses on minimum-time low-thrust orbit transfers from a prescribed low Earth orbit to a specified low lunar orbit. The well-established indirect formulation of minimum-time orbit transfers is extended to a multibody dynamical…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2024-06-04 Alessandro Beolchi , Mauro Pontani , Chiara Pozzi , Elena Fantino

Low-thrust trajectory design relies heavily on repeated evaluations of fuel consumption and transfer feasibility, which require expensive optimal control solutions. In this work, we show these quantities can be accurately approximated by…

Machine Learning · Computer Science 2026-05-28 Zhong Zhang , Giacomo Acciarini , Dario Izzo , Hexi Baoyin , Francesco Topputo

Electric propulsion is used to maximize payload capacity in communication satellites. These orbit raising maneuvers span several months and hundreds of revolutions, making trajectory design a complex challenge. The literature typically…

Systems and Control · Electrical Eng. & Systems 2025-12-25 Suraj Kumar , Aditya Rallapalli , Nivriti Priyadarshini , Bharat Kumar GVP , Ravi Kumar L

A method is presented to solve a stochastic, nonlinear optimal control problem representative of spacecraft trajectory design under uncertainty. The problem is reformulated as a chance constrained nonlinear program, or what is known as a…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2024-01-05 William Fife , Pradipto Ghosh , Kyle DeMars

The goal of the present paper is to make a numerical analysis of parametric optimization of low thrust orbital maneuver. An orbital maneuver occurs when it is necessary to modify the orbit a space vehicle to change its function or to…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2023-07-14 Antonio Fernando Bertachini de Almeida Prado

Machine learning techniques have demonstrated their effectiveness in achieving autonomy and optimality for nonlinear and high-dimensional dynamical systems. However, traditional black-box machine learning methods often lack formal stability…

Systems and Control · Electrical Eng. & Systems 2025-01-03 Kun Wang , Roberto Armellin , Adam Evans , Harry Holt , Zheng Chen

The use of electric low-thrust propulsion systems for orbit maneuvers is becoming a popular choice among satellite manufacturers due to their inherent merits over their chemical counterparts. Many designers choose to incorporate multiple of…

Systems and Control · Electrical Eng. & Systems 2024-12-31 Ahmed Mahfouz , Gabriella Gaias , Florio Dalla Vedova , Holger Voos

This paper presents a novel approach for the preliminary design of Low-Thrust, many-revolution transfers. The main feature of the novel approach is a considerable reduction in the control parameters and a consequent gain in computational…

Optimization and Control · Mathematics 2012-07-17 Federico Zuiani , Massimiliano Vasile