Contingency Trajectory Design for a Lunar Orbit Insertion Maneuver Failure by the LADEE Spacecraft

A contingency trajectory analysis was performed for NASA Ames Research Centers (ARCs) Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft in case of a missed lunar orbit insertion (LOI) maneuver. Recovery trajectory options are shown to exist for all LADEE launch opportunities throughout a one year period. Recovery V costs primarily depended on the spacecrafts apogee location on or near the Sun-Earth weak stability boundary (WSB) and the time needed by the spacecraft to recover (e.g. to wake up from safe mode) to perform an escape prevention maneuver after the missed LOI