LAMO, aka Low Altitude Mapping Orbit Options

[dilo]

I think is time to start this new topic, now that Dawn is more than half-way in the transition from HAMO to LAMO (as showed in the plot below).

Attached thumbnail(s)

 

[Phil Stooke]

I'm looking forward to seeing some whole-frame images during the departure, a different view than we had during the approach.

Phil

[dilo]

Based on simulated viewer and yesterday's Marc report, engines were ON for more than 24 hours and, as showed in the following plots, Dawn orbit is rapidly changing:

Last apoapsis was 776.5 km above Vesta surface, about 63 km above HAMO2 in last days... Total energy is clearly increasing too, however departure phase will last more than a month.
Meanwhile, starting from Phil idea, I made these compositions of last 3 posted images in the "revealing shadows" series:

(first one is in Oppia quadrangle and latter two inside Marcia quadrangle). Consider that, for shadowed region, besides the different hue I used negative image in order to have an illumination roughly coherent with illuminated part.