Hovering Flight over Elongated Asteroids by Using Solar Sails

The feasibility of hovering flight over elongated asteroids by using solar sails is investigated in this study. Elongated asteroids represent a family of natural elongated bodies. A simple approximate model is first constructed for these elongated asteroids. Dynamic equations of hovering flight are obtained for solar sails with the ability of active sail area control. Numerical simulations are made to illustrate the feasible area of hovering flight in the gravitational field of elongated asteroids.