Kustaanheimo–Stiefel Variables for Planetary Protection Compliance Analysis

Planetary protection in trajectory design aims to assess the impact probability of space-mission-disposed objects based on their initial uncertain conditions, avoid contaminating other planetary environments. High-precision dynamic models and propagation methods are required reach high confidence levels small estimated probabilities. These requirements have so far confined analyses robust Monte Carlo–based approaches, using Cartesian formulation full force problem dynamics. This work presents improvements brought by adopting Kustaanheimo–Stiefel (KS) The KS is combined with reference frame switch procedures adaptive nondimensionalization upon detection close encounters. fibration property space, namely, parameterizable locus point arising when mapping a higher-dimensional exploited minimize computational time, because minimized numerical stiffness system. Impact estimation tasks become more efficient than single-simulation case, since regularization dynamics removes singularity gravitational potentials for distances approaching zero. Despite an almost halved burden Carlo analysis, precision single simulations increased nearly one order magnitude, setting new performance benchmark tasks.