Evolution of the out-of-plane amplitude for quasi-periodic trajectories in the Earth–Moon system

The out-of-plane amplitude along quasi-periodic trajectories in the Earth–Moon system is highly sensitive to perturbations in position and/or velocity as underscored recently by the ARTEMIS spacecraft. Controlling the evolution of the out-of-plane amplitude is non-trivial, but can be critical to satisfying mission requirements. The sensitivity of the out-of-plane amplitude evolution to perturbations due to lunar eccentricity, solar gravity, and solar radiation pressure is explored and a strategy for designing low-cost deterministic maneuvers to control the amplitude history is also examined. The method is sufficiently general and is applied to the L1 quasi-periodic orbit that serves as a baseline for the ARTEMIS P2 trajectory.

► Analysis to examine the sensitivity of out-of-plane amplitude to dynamical perturbation. ► Strategy is proposed to compute dV maneuvers to correct z-amplitude anomalies. ► Corrections strategy is successfully applied to the ARTEMIS P2 orbit as a test case. ► The strategy is general and highlights the utility of continuous reference solutions.