NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Back to Results
Monte Carlo analysis of the Titan III/Transfer Orbit Stage guidance system for the Mars Observer missionAn important part of space launch vehicle mission planning for a planetary mission is the integrated analysis of guidance and performance dispersions for both booster and upper stage vehicles. For the Mars Observer mission, an integrated trajectory analysis was used to maximize the scientific payload and to minimize injection errors by optimizing the energy management of both vehicles. This was accomplished by designing the Titan III booster vehicle to inject into a hyperbolic departure plane, and the Transfer Orbit Stage (TOS) to correct any booster dispersions. An integrated Monte Carlo analysis of the performance and guidance dispersions of both vehicles provided sensitivities, an evaluation of their guidance schemes and an injection error covariance matrix. The polynomial guidance schemes used for the Titan III variable flight azimuth computations and the TOS solid rocket motor ignition time and burn direction derivations accounted for a wide variation of launch times, performance dispersions, and target conditions. The Mars Observer spacecraft was launched on 25 September 1992 on the Titan III/TOS vehicle. The post flight analysis indicated that a near perfect park orbit injection was achieved, followed by a trans-Mars injection with less than 2sigma errors.
Document ID
19930067476
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Bell, Stephen C.
(NASA Lewis Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Ginsburg, Marc A.
(NASA Lewis Research Center Cleveland, OH, United States)
Rao, Prabhakara P.
(Martin Marietta Corp. Denver, CO, United States)
Date Acquired
August 16, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1993
Publication Information
Publication: In: AIAA Guidance, Navigation and Control Conference, Monterey, CA, Aug. 9-11, 1993, Technical Papers. Pt. 3 (A93-51301 22-63)
Publisher: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
Subject Category
Launch Vehicles And Space Vehicles
Report/Patent Number
AIAA PAPER 93-3889
Accession Number
93A51473
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAS3-25807
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

Available Downloads

There are no available downloads for this record.
No Preview Available