AEROSPACE ENGINEERING

Abstract

There is a significant interest in future space missions to explore different planetary systems with moons that may host potential habitable environments and asteroids rich in minerals. Additionally, the exploitation of Cislunar in the region is gaining significant attention for scientific, military, and commercial applications, including imaging, telecommunications, navigation, as well as servicing satellites that may share resources or even provide in-orbit refueling. Leveraging multi-body dynamics proves useful for providing long-term sustainable frameworks to accomplish all these different goals. The Space Trajectories and Applications Research (STAR) group develops research within three groups: the development of frameworks for deep-space and lunar exploration, Cislunar surveillance, and different space applications. The main project that will be explained consists of utilizing multi-body dynamics structures to plan the exploration of different moons in the Solar system, including different end-games, such as temporary captures to libration point orbits, transits, takeoffs, and landings. Then, a mathematical framework is introduced for orbit computation useful for navigation purposes in multi-body regimes.
Finally, other different projects of the STAR group related to multi-body dynamics will be presented. 

Speaker

Dr. David Canales Garcia

He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering (AE) at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU). He is also the ERAU representative to the Universities Space Research Association (USRA). He obtained his BSc and MSc degrees in AE from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia in Spain. He graduated with his Ph.D. in Astrodynamics and Space Applications in the multi-body dynamics research group under the supervision of Dr. Kathleen C. Howell at Purdue University. He also worked as space technology engineering at Satlantis LLC prior to his Ph.D.