FLEXIBLE LANDING SYSTEM FOR EXPLORATION OF ROCKY CELESTIAL BODIES

摘要

Through proper design and analysis, the requirements and effectiveness of flexible landing systems for spacecraft have been explored. Impact loads developed at the time of landing were analyzed for two different types of system configurations to determine their applicability and extent of variability. Computational analysis based on multibody dynamics was performed for fixed and flexible configurations. Spring-dampers were used in the flexible configuration to counter force transmission and toppling. The effect of impact loads on the payload of the lander was analyzed and the extent of damping in the flexible configuration was examined through various plots. The dynamic behavior of each configuration was visualized through simulation of the landing operation. Results indicated that the use of flexible landing system is highly feasible for landing on rough terrains. The flexible landing system has the potential to play a major role in the exploration of mysterious locations on celestial bodies, which hitherto remain unmapped due to the restricted choices of landing sites for fixed landing systems.