Selenocentric Frame

Author: Tianjiang Shuo

Website: https://cislunarspace.cn

Definition

A reference frame centered at the Moon's center of mass that follows the Moon's motion in space. The lunar Z-axis is perpendicular to the lunar orbital plane, the X-axis is along the intersection of the lunar orbit with the equatorial plane, and the Y-axis is defined by the right-hand rule. In the third phase of Earth-Moon transfer (selenocentric coast phase), spacecraft dynamics switch from geocentric to selenocentric frame for analysis.

Application Value

This term has significant application value in cislunar space missions。In the orbital design phase, engineers use relevant theories for trajectory optimization；In navigation and orbit determination, it is used to improve measurement accuracy；In attitude control and orbit maintenance tasks, it ensures stable spacecraft operation。In practical applications, parameter optimization and algorithm adaptation can be combined with mission requirements to improve mission success rate and resource utilization efficiency。

References

  • Betts and Erb, 2003, Optimal low thrust trajectories to the moon
Improve this page
Last Updated:
Contributors: ouyangjiahong, Ou Yang Jiahong