Shape-Based Design of Low-Thrust Trajectories to Cislunar Lagrangian Point

The shape function is defined on the basis of a few parameters that can be modified by means of an optimization algorithm to improve transfer performance in some sense and guarantee its feasibility. The final solution does not need to be the optimal one, but it should provide a reasonable first guess for more sophisticated optimization procedures. Most of the applications of the shape-based approach are proposed in the framework of the two-body problem, where the spacecraft moves under the action of low thrust and a single primary body. This approach is reasonable for most mission scenarios, during preliminary steps of mission design, when approximate solutions are sufficient and a single primary mass is considered during each mission segment. However sometimes it is necessary to account for gravity pull from more than a single primary mass.