AAS 97-710
MULTI-ASTEROID BALLISTIC FLYBY MISSIONS INVOLVING LARGE ASTEROIDS
D.F. Bender - Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to describe techniques and show some results of minimum launch energy trajectories that go into the main asteroid belt and encounter at least one large asteroid per loop. By large asteroid we means those of radius at least 20 km. By minimum launch energy we imply that we will use only fairly short Venus-Earth gravity assist (VGA) trajectories to produce a two year loop (or a loop into the main belt region) or else we will use a two year DV Earth gravity assist (DVEGA) to being with a two year return. The two year return loops will include the flyby of a large asteroid at about 2.0 AU and the Earth return in either case will constitute a gravity assist to another large asteroid or two in the next loop. The technique of finding targets will be accomplished by a method similar to that used by Bender (1995) to find double flybys of Trojan asteroids on single flights through one of the two regions for Trojans.