Enabling and Enhancing Science Exploration Across the Solar System: Aerocapture Technology for SmallSat to Flagship Missions
Whitepaper #057 submitted to the Planetary Science and Astrobiology Decadal Survey 2023-2032. Topics: other planetary bodies: Solar System Exploration; state of the profession; technology development
by Alex Austin, Gonçalo Afonso, Samuel Albert, Hisham Ali, Antonella Alunni, James Arnold, Gilles Bailet, Patricia Beauchamp, Alan Cassell, Jim Cutts, Rohan Deshmukh, Robert Dillman, Sarah D'Souza, Soumyo Dutta, Charles Edwards, Donald Ellerby, John Elliott, Giusy Falcone, Alberto Fedele, Jay Feldman, Anthony Freeman, Roberto Gardi, Athul Girija, Jeffrey Hill, Tiago Hormigo, Shayna Hume, Christopher Jelloian, Vandana Jha, Breanna Johnson, Craig Kluever, Jean-Pierre Lebreton, Marcus Lobbia, Ping Lu, Ye Lu, Rafael Lugo, Daniel Matz, Robert Moses, Michelle Munk, Adam Nelessen, Isil Sakraker Özmen, Miguel Pérez-Ayúcar, Richard Powell, Zachary Putnam, Jeremy Rea, Sachin Alexander Reddy, Thomas Reimer, Sarag Saikia, Kunio Sayanagi, Stephan Schuster, Jennifer Scully, David Skulsky, Ronald Sostaric, Christophe Sotin, Ben Tackett, Ethiraj Venkatapathy, Paul Wercinski, Michael Wilder, Michael Wright, and Cindy Young
Published onMar 18, 2021
Enabling and Enhancing Science Exploration Across the Solar System: Aerocapture Technology for SmallSat to Flagship Missions
Aerocapture technology provides a far-reaching capability for missions at destinations across the solar system, from SmallSat to Flagship class. It will enable a new class of SmallSat orbiters, allow high priority missions to carry more science payload to their destination, and open a new rapid transportation pathway to the outer solar system.
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0)
