1st ACT global trajectory optimisation competition: Problem description and summary of the results

From September 2005 to February 2006 the international scientific community was challenged by the Advanced Concepts Team of the European Space Agency to take part into a global trajectory optimisation competition. The competition was on finding the best solution to a particular interplanetary optimisation problem decided by the Advanced Concepts Team. In this short communication we describe the problem and the rationale that brought to its selection. We also give a brief overview on the whole competition and its final results.