Advances in Astronomy and Space Physics, Volume 13, Issue 1-2, PP. 3-15 (2025)
doi: 10.17221/2227-1481.13.3-15
The search for NEOs as potential candidates for use in space missions to Venus and Mars
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Glushkova ave. 4, 03127 Kyiv, Ukraine
Abstract
In this work, we analyzed the orbits of over 35000 (as of 2024) near-Earth objects (NEOs) focusing on the potential for successive approaches to all pairs of planets: Earth, Venus, and Mars during the period from 2020 to 2120. We selected 120 candidates for fast transfers (within 180 days) between the following planet pairs: Earth-Mars, Earth-Venus, Mars-Earth, Mars-Venus, Venus-Earth, and Venus-Mars. We found only two candidates for double transfers (consecutive approaches involving three planets), and 10 candidates for multiple transfers, where an asteroid exhibits several consecutive paired approaches to planets within a century.
Keywords:
asteroids: general; planets and satellites: general; methods: data analysis, catalogues