LUNISAT: A microsatellite mission to the moon

In recent years, microsatellites have been designed, constructed, and operated by a considerable number of subjects, either Universities, space agencies, or private ventures. This research presents the overall mission analysis for Lunisat, a nextgeneration microsatellite that is intended to orbit the Moon. The Lunisat mission is assumed to be composed of two main phases: (a) transfer trajectory from a low Earth orbit (LEO) to a low Moon orbit (LMO), and (b) release of nanosatellites around the Moon. As a first step, the optimal two-impulse transfer is obtained, under some simplifying assumption. Then, the transfer trajectory is investigated using very accurate dynamical modeling, and a first analysis on continuous-Thrust transfers is addressed. The second phase of the Lunisat mission includes the release of two or more nanosatellites, and is affected by the masconian character of the Moon gravitational field. This work investigates the orbit evolution as a function of the dynamical conditions at release, adopting a relatively long propagation time and employing a gravitational model that includes the most relevant terms, as well as third body effects due to Earth and Sun.