Station-keeping of libration point orbits with sequential action control technique

A new method for L1 libration-point orbit stationkeeping is proposed in this paper. Three-dimensional orbits in the vicinity of the interior libration point (L1) of the Sun-Earth/Moon barycenter system are currently being considered since 1990s. Because such libration point trajectories are, in general, unstable, spacecraft moving on these paths must use some form of trajectory control to remain close to their nominal orbit. The primary goal of this effort is the development of a stationkeeping strategy applicable to such trajectories. In this study, L1 libration-point orbit stationkeeping is studied using Sequential Action Control(SAC), SAC has shown promise in simulation as a closed-loop receding horizon style controller that can compute optimal actions in real-time for nonlinear systems. The controller is designed such that the actual trajectory tracks a predetermined reference orbit with good accuracy. Numerical results employing this method demonstrate the potential of this method.