A Multi-Objective, Multi-Agent Transcription for the Global Optimization of Interplanetary Trajectories

Distributed Spacecraft Missions present challenges for current trajectory optimization capabilities. When tasked with the global optimization of interplanetary Multi-Vehicle Mission (MVM) trajectories specifically, state-of-the-art techniques are hindered by their need to treat the MVM as multiple decoupled trajectory optimization subproblems. This shortfall blunts their ability to utilize inter-spacecraft coordination constraints and may lead to suboptimal solutions to the coupled MVM problem. Only a handful of platforms capable of fully-automated multi-objective interplanetary global trajectory optimization exist for single -vehicle missions (SVMs), but none can perform this task for interplanetary MVMs. We present a fully-automated technique that frames interplanetary MVMs as Multi-Objective, Multi-Agent, Hybrid Optimal Control Problems (MOMA HOCP). This framework is introduced with three novel coordination constraints to explore different coupled decision spaces. The technique is applied to explore the preliminary design of a dual-manifest mission to the Ice Giants: Uranus, and Neptune, which has been shown to be infeasible using only a single spacecraft anytime between 2020 and 2070.