Moon Assisted Out of Plane Maneuvers of Earth Spacecraft

This paper compares the usual Hohmann and bielliptic geostationary transfer orbits with lunar assisted transfers. It turns out that lunar assisted transfers are more economical for any inclination greater than the Moon orbit inclination. The lunar assisted transfers based on traditional flyby are analyzed: these are characterized by high values of the Keplerian apogee distance x a . Reducing such distance, the spacecraft approaches the Moon with lower energy and the lunar gravitational help can be more effective. In fact it is shown that transfers with smaller x a , called far lunar assisted geostationary transfers, are the most economical.