This work made vital improvements to a primitive trajectory search algorithm known as NASA Exhaustive Lambert Lattice Search (NELLS). NELLS was created to work hand in hand as an initial guess generator for one of Goddard’s primary preliminary design tools, EMTG, however NELLS currently lacks the capability necessary to design missions as the bodies visited increases.
Trajectory design involving high order (> 5) planetary, moon and small body flybys and rendezvous are exponentially more mathmatically complex than simpler ones. The objectives of this work were:
NELLS is now capable of automating a significant portion of trajectory design, which significantly decreases the time required for engineers to design missions in early phases. The new capability also allows engineers to investigate a much larger portion of the trajectory design space than was possible with the previous versions of NELLS.
More »Organizations Performing Work | Role | Type | Location |
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Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) | Lead Organization | NASA Center | Greenbelt, Maryland |
Co-Funding Partners | Type | Location |
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University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Academia | Urbana, Illinois |