Modeling and simulation of asteroid retrieval using a flexible capture mechanism

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is currently considering an Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM), the goal of which is to bring a near-Earth asteroid into lunar orbit for inspection by a team of human astronauts. In this paper we present the results of a simulation study that focuses on the challenge of capturing a target asteroid using a robotic spacecraft. This simulation study was conducted in parallel with an ongoing mechanical design process, with the goal of providing feedback on specific design concepts, deriving high-level design targets via optimization, and exploring the trade space of the capture problem independently. We present and discuss several simulation models, the results of which have influenced the evolution of the ARM project to date.