NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Back to Results
A Perfect View of Vesta: Creating Pointing Observations for the Dawn Spacecraft on Asteroid 4 VestaThe Dawn spacecraft has a timely and clever assignment in store. It will take a close look at two intact survivors from the dawn of the solar system (asteroids 4 Vesta and 1 Ceres) to understand more about solar system origin and evolution. To optimize science return, Dawn must make carefully designed observations on approach and in survey orbit, high altitude mapping orbit, and low altitude mapping orbit at each body. In this report, observations outlined in the science plan are modeled using the science opportunity analyzer program for the Vesta encounter. Specifically, I encoded Dawn's flight rules into the program, modeled pointing profiles of the optical instruments (framing camera, visible infrared spectrometer) and mapped their fields of view onto Vesta's surface. Visualization of coverage will provide the science team with information necessary to assess feasibility of alternative observation plans. Dawn launches in summer 2006 and ends its journey in 2016. Instrument observations on Vesta in 2011 will supply detailed information about Vesta's surface and internal structure. These data will be used to analyze the formation and history of the protoplanet and, therefore, complete an important step in understanding the development of our solar system.
Document ID
20060010230
Acquisition Source
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Hay, Katrina M.
(Oregon State Univ. OR, United States)
Date Acquired
August 23, 2013
Publication Date
August 1, 2005
Publication Information
Publication: Summer Student Research Presentations
Subject Category
Astronomy
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

Available Downloads

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