New Method Introduces To Make Mars Mission More Accurate and Cost Effective

[Unorthodox]

http://www.smnweekly.com/new-method-introduces-to-make-mars-mission-more-accurate-and-cost-effective/6750/

New Method Introduces To Make Mars Mission More Accurate and Cost Effective By Faheera Asif / December 27, 2014

Journey to Mars is a lengthy and calculated procedure. Currently, NASA sends spacecrafts to Mars through “Hohmann transfer” approach which involves waiting for the red planet to come closest to the earth which happens after every 26 months. The spacecraft then make a 6 months long journey to enter the orbit of Mars and from there it orbit or land on the red planet.

This method to reach Mars requires accurate execution otherwise the spacecraft can miss its target or crash into the red planet. Also, when the spacecraft reaches the orbit of Mars it uses its 25 percent of fuel to slowdown which increase the cost of mission as a single pound of cargo put into the space cost around ten thousand dollars.

To end this problem and provide a more suitable and cost effective way to reach Mars, two mathematicians, employed for Boeing Corporation, have come up with a method to revolutionize Mars mission. They have introduced the “ballistic capture” approach which requires less fuel, is more accurate and doesn’t require 26 months of wait to send a spacecraft to Mars.

The two mathematicians, Francesco Topputo and Edward Belbruno, published their paper containing their new approach on ArXiv and have forwarded it to the journal Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy.

The new introduced method to reach Mars involves sending the spacecraft into the orbit of the Mars rather than launching it directly at the red planet. The spacecraft then stays in the orbit of Mars in front of the planet until the red planet reaches the spacecraft. The gravitational field of the Mars then grabs the spacecraft as it passes by pulling it into its orbit.

Director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division, James Green, talked about the new approach, “It’s an eye-opener, it could be a pretty big step for us and really save us resources and capability, which is always what we’re looking for.”

[Geo]

So this method eliminates the 26 month waiting time. But how long has the craft to wait in Mars orbit before the planet catches up? The longer in space, the more possible damage due to the environment it floats in.
Also, why is there a need to wait for a closest approach between Earth and Mars besides the time spent in space? Should be perfectly possible to have Hohmann trajectories throughout most of the orbital positions possible between Earth and Mars.

[Buster's Uncle]

I have a feeling the article writer didn't really understand Hohmann trajectories at all - the distance outward is the least of the distance traveled.

[Unorthodox]

So this method eliminates the 26 month waiting time. But how long has the craft to wait in Mars orbit before the planet catches up? The longer in space, the more possible damage due to the environment it floats in.
Also, why is there a need to wait for a closest approach between Earth and Mars besides the time spent in space? Should be perfectly possible to have Hohmann trajectories throughout most of the orbital positions possible between Earth and Mars.

The fuel savings is infinitely more interesting than the time savings. 

Theoretically, you'd only need to lead the gravity well a day or so, and in fact wouldn't want to lead it much more than that.  They figure out reliable aerobraking and you could see some VERY efficient missions to mars. 

[Geo]

Is Mars' orbital velocity that much different when it is at perihelion compared to aphelion? I realize the planet is in the top half of orbal eccentricity in the solar system (for planets I mean), but have no idea how extreme its orbital velocity difference is.