| An aeroassisted orbital transfer vehicle, AOTV, is a vehicle that can transfer from a high energy orbit to a low energy orbit with a minimum of propulsion. The AOTV accomplishes this by entering the atmosphere of a planet and using the drag and lift created to slow its velocity and direct it. The AOTV then leaves the atmosphere with a given velocity to place it into a specified orbit. A QuickBasic program was written to simulate a three degrees of freedom trajectory for the AOTV using numerical integration. Flights through the atmosphere of Earth and the atmosphere of Mars were investigated, as well as different target orbit perigees. An optimization procedure was used to obtain the desired results. An analysis was performed to determine the sensitivity of the results to changes in density, drag coefficient, lift coefficient, and flight path angle. The theory and results are discussed in this thesis. |
