Research for Optimal Programs for Controlling the Relative Motion of a Spacecraft with Limited Thrust

Abstract

The problem of optimal control of the relative motion of a spacecraft with a finite thrust engine in arbitrary circumcircular orbits using the Pontryagin’s maximum principle is considered. Motion is studied in an orbital cylindrical coordinate system, using variables written in the form of secular and periodic components of relative motion in the orbital plane. The main attention is paid to the analysis of the optimal control structure with a free and transversal orientation of the thrust vector in the presence of passive areas on the trajectory. As a criterion for choosing the optimal control, the motor operating time of the corrective motors was considered. Characteristic control structures for various areas of initial driving conditions have been determined, and estimates of the marginal costs of motor time have been obtained.