Hohmann transfer impulse fractions

ID: hohmann-transfer-impulse-fractions

For a Hohmann transfer orbit from radius to , with and initial circular speed , conservation of orbital energy and angular momentum gives transfer endpoint speeds and . The required prograde impulses are
If the spacecraft mass is constant and fuel use is proportional to impulse magnitude, these also give the fuel fractions relative to a budget with total speed change . Their sum is a sum of magnitudes, even though the burns occur at different positions and directions.

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