Aerocapture Solutions for Uranus Flagship-Class Orbiter and Probe
Soumyo Dutta, Rohan Deshmukh, James B. Scoggins, Eli Shellabarger, Andrew J. Gomez-Delrio, Rafael Lugo, Breanna J. Johnson, Daniel Matz, Sergio A. Sandoval, Joshua Geiser, Jonathan Morgan, R.L. Restrepo, Declan Mages, Pardha Chadalavada, Joseph D. Williams, Justin Garland
Abstract
The 2022 National Academies of Science's Planetary Science Decadal Survey has identified a mission to Uranus as the top flagship-class priority. The baseline mission, Uranus Orbiter and Probe (UOP), is based on a launch date in the early 2030s, uses a fully-propulsive orbit insertion maneuver at Uranus requiring 60-70% of total mass for propellant, and reaches the planet after 13 years of interplanetary cruise. With a launch date in mid or late 2030s more realistic schedule and budget-wise for the next NASA flagship-class mission, the appeal of an aerocapture-enabled Uranus mission increases. Aerocapture is an orbit insertion maneuver that uses the atmosphere to decelerate to a capture orbit, and can allow for a successful orbit insertion with fast interplanetary trajectories. A two-year study has shown a feasible aerocapture design based on heritage technologies borrowed from the entry, descent, and landing community can put the Uranus Orbiter and Probe payload into the desired science orbit.