A Phase-Transit Cargo Ferry: Energy and Crossing Time for a Five-Tonne Payload
This paper presents a complete design study of a phase-transit cargo ferry rated for a payload of five tonnes, computed throughout from stated assumptions. A crossing specified at eight full turns of the phase coordinate costs 4800.0 MJ of electrical energy, drawn at a mean power of 1333.3 kW over a one-hour crossing. A single turn costs 600.0 MJ and a sixteen-turn route costs 9600.0 MJ. The conventional tug performing the same transfer would expend 713.2 kg of propellant carrying 3209.2 MJ of chemical energy, so the ferry replaces a propellant bill with a larger but reusable electrical bill. Every figure is a computed result of the stated model and nothing was built or tested: the study is SIMULATED, NOT MEASURED, and its limits are stated as plainly as its performance.
Authors
- William Alexander Aldred (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-1215-577X)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
- Published
- 2026-11-11
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.24125604
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Spacecraft Dynamics and Control
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.98