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A rocket's required mass ratio as a function of effective exhaust velocity ratio. The classical rocket equation, or ideal rocket equation is a mathematical equation that describes the motion of vehicles that follow the basic principle of a rocket: a device that can apply acceleration to itself using thrust by expelling part of its mass with high velocity and can thereby move due to the ...
Precise trajectory calculations require taking into account small forces like atmospheric drag, radiation pressure, and solar wind. A rocket under continuous or intermittent thrust (or an object climbing a space elevator) can attain escape at any non-zero speed, but the minimum amount of energy required to do so is always the same.
Every object in a 2-body ballistic trajectory has a constant specific orbital energy equal to the sum of its specific kinetic and specific potential energy: = = =, where = is the standard gravitational parameter of the massive body with mass , and is the radial distance from its center. As an object in an escape trajectory moves outward, its ...
For instance, on a trajectory from the Earth to Mars, one would begin by considering only the Earth's gravity until the trajectory reaches a distance where the Earth's gravity no longer dominates that of the Sun. The spacecraft would be given escape velocity to send it on its way to interplanetary space. Next, one would consider only the Sun's ...
Calculating a "finite" burn requires a detailed model of the spacecraft and its thrusters. The most important of details include: mass , center of mass , moment of inertia , thruster positions, thrust vectors, thrust curves, specific impulse , thrust centroid offsets, and fuel consumption.
The Tsiolkovsky rocket equation shows that the delta-v of a rocket (stage) is proportional to the logarithm of the fuelled-to-empty mass ratio of the vehicle, and to the specific impulse of the rocket engine. A key goal in designing space-mission trajectories is to minimize the required delta-v to reduce the size and expense of the rocket that ...
In spaceflight an orbit insertion is an orbital maneuver which adjusts a spacecraft’s trajectory, allowing entry into an orbit around a planet, moon, or other celestial body. [1] An orbit insertion maneuver involves either deceleration from a speed in excess of the respective body's escape velocity, or acceleration to it from a lower speed.
These maneuvers require changes in the craft's velocity, and the classical rocket equation is used to calculate the propellant requirements for a given delta-v. A delta- v budget will add up all the propellant requirements, or determine the total delta-v available from a given amount of propellant, for the mission.