biology

Vesta (spacecraft)

Vesta (spacecraft) is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Vesta (spacecraft) rather than just read about it. In short: Vesta was a planned multiple-asteroid-flyby mission that the Soviet Union assessed in the 1980s. The Vesta mission would have consisted of two identical probes (just like earlier Soviet Venus missions), to be launched in 1991.

Key takeaways

Vesta (spacecraft) belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Vesta (spacecraft) to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Vesta (spacecraft) from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Vesta was a planned multiple-asteroid-flyby mission that the Soviet Union assessed in the 1980s. The Vesta mission would have consisted of two identical probes (just like earlier Soviet Venus missions), to be launched in 1991. Similar to the Vega program, each spacecraft would deploy one or more landers or balloons into the Venusian atmosphere, and then proceed to its next target. At Venus, a French satellite dedicated to asteroid flybys would be released. It would return for an Earth gravity assist, and then reach about 3–3.3 au from the Sun. There they would fly by some smaller asteroids, and Vesta, if possible, with a small probe landing there. The exact targets would depend on the launch date. In the initial 1985 study, 2700 possible trajectories were analyzed for a launch date in 1991/1992. Considering all constraints, about 12 candidate trajectories were selected. The two identical spacecraft could have different trajectories and targets. These included 5 Astraea, 53 Kalypso, 187 Lamberta, 453 Tea, 1335 Demoulina and 1858 Lobachevskij, and comet Encke.

Spacecraft design Around 1985 Vesta was changed to be a Mars mission, with the asteroid mission unchanged. Detailed plans called for each probe to visit four small bodies, including asteroids belonging to different classes - providing a representative sample of the diversity of asteroids - and probably one or two comets as well. Visiting at least one Apollo-Amor (Earth-nearing) asteroid was also given a preference. Preliminary studies called for at least the following scientific instruments to be included:

a wide angle camera (~6.5° field of view, 512×512 pixel CCD) a narrow angle camera (~0.5° field of view, 512×512 pixel CCD - 3.9 arcsec/pixel) a near-infrared spectrometer (measuring between 0.5–5 μm with λ/Δλ = 50, 5 arcminutes per pixel) Possible further instrumentation:

UV spectrometer (for imaging during a comet flyby) radar altimeter/radiometer a dust detector ion or neutral gas detector Onboard memory would be about 240 Mb. Images at closest approach (~500 km) could have a resolution of 10 m/pixel. Worst case downlink rate is 600 bit/second (if not using NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN)). The scientific payload is about 100 kg. The spacecraft had 750 kg dry mass, and carried 750 kg propellants, and possibly a 500 kg penetrator. 20 square meters of solar panels provided 350 W of power. If DSN support could have been obtained, Doppler tracking of the Vesta spacecraft's movement could accurately determine the mass of the encountered bodies. Should it not, another possibility was considered: releasing a test mass, and observing its movement near the target asteroid. The spacecraft's structure was derived from telecommunication satellites (INMARSAT), having the required mass, volume, and delta-v capabilities (3-axis stabilized, with a pointing platform with 2 axes of freedom for scientific instruments).

Trajectory The Mars gravity assist constrains the possible trajectories. The asteroid penetrator also imposes limits on the speed of the approach of the target asteroid (less than 4 km/s). Nevertheless, 3 possible trajectories were designed, with two Mars gravity assists. A single Mars swing-by is also possible, but the double gravity assist increases the mass budget of the spacecraft by 30%, at the cost of an additional 1.8 year in travel time to the asteroid belt. The following trajectories are for the 1994 launch window. The size and type of each asteroid is also shown here: Trajectory 1:

launch from Earth Mars gravity assist flyby of 2335 James (a 10 km X-type asteroid) (an Amor-asteroid) Mars gravity assist 109 Felicitas (C-type, 76 km) 739 Mandeville (EMP(?) type, 110 km) 4 Vesta (V-type, or Vestoid. Has a diameter of 570 km) flyby with 3.5 km/s. A penetrator is released. Total delta-v: 450 m/s Trajectory 2:

launch from Earth Mars gravity assist flyby of the 157P/Tritton short period comet Mars gravity assist 2087 Kochera(30 km?) 1 Ceres (flyby & releasing a penetrator) Total delta-v: 1150 m/s Trajectory 3:

launch from Earth Mars gravity assist 1204 Renzia (10 km?) (an Amor-asteroid) Mars gravity assist 435 Ella (U type, 30 km) 46 Hestia (F type, 165 km) 135 Hertha (M type, 80 km) Total delta-v: 350 m/s In other studies 11 Parthenope, 19 Fortuna and 20 Massalia were also considered.

Cancellation A combination of factors, probably including changing Franco-Soviet relations, the partial failure of the Phobos mission, financial troubles and the disbanding of the Soviet Union, prevented the project from advancing beyond the planning phase.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Vesta (spacecraft)

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Vesta (spacecraft) claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Vesta (spacecraft) before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Vesta (spacecraft) ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Vesta (spacecraft)

In research: Vesta (spacecraft) appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Vesta (spacecraft) in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Vesta (spacecraft) is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Cancelled Soviet space probes, Cancelled missions to Mars, Cancelled missions to Venus, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Vesta (spacecraft) outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Vesta (spacecraft) in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Vesta (spacecraft) means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Vesta (spacecraft) out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Vesta (spacecraft) in simple terms?

Why does Vesta (spacecraft) matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Vesta (spacecraft)?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Vesta (spacecraft).