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Current spacecraft mass are mostly fuel, this is dictated by the lack of fueling stations in space and also by the Tsiolkovsky rocket equation which defines the mass ratio needed to escape earths gravity. The Tsiolkovsky rocket equation…
The rapid launch of hundreds of thousands of satellites into Low Earth Orbit will significantly alter our view of the sky and raise concerns about the sustainability of Earth's orbital space. A new framework for sustainable space…
In this second of three short papers, I introduce some of the basic concepts of space robotics with an emphasis on some specific challenging areas of research that are peculiar to the application of robotics to space infrastructure…
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).…
Human space exploration and settlement of other planets is becoming increasingly technologically feasible, while mission concepts for remote and crewed missions to nearby star systems continue to be developed. But the long-term success of…
Space exploration is of paramount importance to advancing fundamental science and providing global services, such as navigation and communications. However, today's space missions are hindered by limitations of existing propulsion…
This Note proposes the concept and theory of energy transition domain (ETD) defined by the mechanical energy of spacecraft in the Earth-Moon planar circular restricted three-body problem (PCR3BP) inspired by the pioneering work from…
The number of space objects will grow several times in a few years due to the planned launches of constellations of thousands microsatellites. It leads to a significant increase in the threat of satellite collisions. Spacecraft must…
Recently, we witnessed how the synergy of small satellite technology and solar sailing propulsion enables new missions. Together, small satellites with lightweight instruments and solar sails offer affordable access to deep regions of the…
The successes of previous and current Mars rovers have encouraged space agencies worldwide to pursue additional planetary exploration missions with more ambitious navigation goals. For example, NASA's planned Mars Sample Return mission will…
The dominant mechanism for generating free-floating planets has so far remained elusive. One suggested mechanism is that planets are ejected from planetary systems due to planet-planet interactions. However, instability around a single star…
The discovery of many exoplanets has revealed an incredible diversity of orbital architectures. These orbital configurations are intrinsically linked to the potential for habitable environments within the system, since the gravitational…
The electric solar wind sail is a novel propellantless space propulsion concept. According to numerical estimates, the electric solar wind sail can produce a large total impulse per propulsion system mass. Here we consider using a 0.5 N…
Future missions to Mars and Venus will make use of aerobraking and aerocapture in order to gain mass through the saving of fuel at planetary arrival. So far only aerobraking has been demonstrated, if the Mars Premier project has paved the…
A problem of constructing the trajectory of a spacecraft flight to Venus within the framework of a mission including landing of a lander in a given region of the planet's surface is being considered. A new celestial mechanics related method…
All known interstellar transportation methods encounter monumental technological or engineering roadblocks, or even rely on speculative unknown science. In particular light of the recent public excitement and ensuing disappointment…
The ability to accomplish a sit-to-stand (STS) motion is key to increase functional mobility and reduce rehospitalization risks. While raising aid (transfer) devices and partial bodyweight support (rehabilitation) devices exist, both are…
A new idea for reusing rockets, based on the Energia 2 launch vehicle, using deployable wings is proposed. A mission design is planned with an expected maximum altitude of 500 m. Following that systems engineering was used to manage the…
Two new interplanetary technologies have advanced in the past decade to the point where they may enable exciting, affordable missions that reach further and faster deep into the outer regions of our solar system: (i) small and capable…
Collaborative aerial transportation of tethered payloads is fundamentally limited by space, power, and weight constraints. Conventional approaches rely on static equilibrium conditions, where each vehicle tilts to generate the forces that…