**Abstract**

The autonomous navigation technology uses the multiple sensors to percept and estimate the spatial locations of the aerospace prober or the Mars rover and to guide their motions in the orbit or the Mars surface. In this chapter, the autonomous navigation methods for the Mars exploration are reviewed. First, the current development status of the autonomous navigation technology is summarized. The popular autonomous navigation methods, such as the inertial navigation, the celestial navigation, the visual navigation, and the integrated navigation, are introduced. Second, the application of the autonomous navigation technology for the Mars exploration is presented. The corresponding issues in the Entry Descent and Landing (EDL) phase and the Mars surface roving phase are mainly discussed. Third, some challenges and development trends of the autonomous navigation technology are also addressed.

**Keywords:** autonomous navigation, deep space exploration, inertial navigation, celestial navigation, visual navigation, integrated navigation

#### **1. Introduction**

The Mars is an attractive planet in the space, which looks red, faraway, and mysterious. It is believed that the Mars is the second planet, which is suitable for people to live [1]. After many years of probing, it has been found that the Mars has plenty of minerals, its average surface temperature is about −60°C, it has thin atmosphere, and it even has water [2]. The scientific fiction is if we deploy some solar reflectors in Mars' orbit and build many greenhouse gas factories in its surface, the temperature there will increase gradually, and then the thick atmosphere [3] will be created, the ice in its polar and underground will melt, and finally, the primitive life may appear. Nowadays, to land that red planet and build new base, there is the competitive focus of aerospace technology for many countries. However, it is known that the distance between the Earth and the Mars is between 5.5 × 107 and 4 × 108 km, and it will cost us almost 7 months to reach that place. To reach that red planet in the vast and boundless universe safely, all the solutions point to the navigation technology [4].

In general, the flight mission of Mars exploration [5] can be divided into four phases. The first one is the launch phase. The rocket will send the Mars prober into the space and escape from the gravitational constraint of the Earth. The second one is the cruise flight phase. The prober will fly to the Mars by several times of orbit transfer [6]. The third one is the Entry, Descent, and Landing (EDL) phase [7]. This is the most dangerous flight stage in this mission because of the influences of the thin Mars atmosphere, the Mars gravitation, and its complex terrain. The last one is the roving phase. After a safe landing, the rover will walk on the surface of

**12**

*Mars Exploration - A Step Forward*

[1] https://mars.nasa.gov/#mars\_

[3] https://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/

[4] http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/history/60s/

[5] https://edition.cnn.com/2013/10/21/ world/mars-exploration-fast-facts/

[6] http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/image/

[7] http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/image/ spacecraft/mars3\_lander\_vsm.jpg

[9] http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/

[10] http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/

[11] http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/

[12] https://www.nasa.gov/specials/

[13] https://www.esa.int/Science\_ Exploration/Human\_and\_ Robotic\_Exploration/Mars500/ Mars500\_study\_overview

[14] https://earthobservatory. nasa.gov/images/92630/

living-the-mars-life-on-mauna-loa

[8] https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/

exploration\_program/3

**References**

[2] https://mars.nasa.gov/ all-about-mars/facts/

History/SP-4212/p164.html

Mariner4\_1965.htm

spacecraft/mars3\_iki.jpg

planetary/viking.html

index.html

index.html

artemis/

catalog/PIA04413

catalog/PIA19920

Mars and look around here and there. Clearly, different navigation technologies should be employed in different flight phases. The satellite navigation [8], the inertial navigation [9], the celestial navigation [10], the visual navigation [11], and the integrated navigation [12] are the most popular navigation techniques in the aerospace engineering research field. **Figure 1** presents the sketch map and an example of Mars exploration. In **Figure 1**, (a) is the sketch map of Mars exploration flight mission, and (b) gives out a kind of landing method in the EDL phase.

Many research works have been done in the aerospace navigation research field. In [13], the authors proposed a new method, which could use the impulses in the solar light and the time difference of arrival method to improve the navigation accuracy. In [14], an inertial measurement unit and the orbits/aerostats beacons-based integrated navigation scheme were developed. The range and the Doppler information were integrated in the extended Kalman filter. In [15], a navigation method, which could use the inter-satellite link and the starlight angle, was simulated. The prober could determine its position by communicating with other space crafts and observing the stars. In [16], a norm-constrained unscented Kalman filter-based navigation scheme

#### **Figure 1.**

*The sketch map and an example of Mars exploration: (a) is the sketch map of the flight mission; (b) is a landing example in the EDL phase.*

**15**

**Figure 2.**

*The popular autonomous navigation methods.*

*Autonomous Navigation for Mars Exploration DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92093*

navigation methods.

**2.1 The inertial navigation**

was proposed. This method could be used for the spacecraft attitude quaternion estimation during the Mars powered descent. After a comparable study of the popular navigation methods, it can be found that the navigation technique has the development trend of high accuracy, multi-function, mini-size, low power consumption, and long service life. In addition, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) technique [17] also

Different from the traditional navigation techniques, the autonomous navigation [18] can realize the perception, the computation, and the decision making of the flight trajectory all by the aerospace prober itself. No exterior information is needed. Sometimes the autonomous navigation system can also emit some state information to the ground for the safety monitoring purpose. Many methods can be used to assist the autonomous navigation flight. The popular methods include the inertial navigation [19], the celestial navigation [20], the visual navigation, and the integrated navigation. **Figure 2** shows the sketch map of the popular autonomous

The inertial navigation can measure the acceleration of prober and use the integral computations to estimate its transient flight speed and spatial position. During that process, no energy will be radiated from the inertial navigation device, and no exterior auxiliary information is needed. The inertial navigation adopts the devices of the accelerometer [21] and the gyroscope [22] to realize the state estimation. The accelerometer [23] is a device, which can measure the acceleration of the carrier. In general, it can be classified into the linear accelerometer and the angular accelerometer. In the practical application, the linear accelerometer is commonly used because of its high precision and excellent stability. Many accelerometers have been designed, such as the piezoelectric accelerometer, the piezoresistive accelerometer, or the capacitive accelerometer. **Table 1** shows a kind of classification of the linear accelerometer. The gyroscope is a device, which can measure the rotation rate. **Table 2** illustrates some gyroscope products. They are the mechanical rotor gyroscope, the electrostatic suspended gyroscope, the vibratory gyroscope [24], the

The inertial navigation is the most mature and popular method in the navigation

research field. Comparing with other navigation techniques, the inertial navigation at least has three advantages. First, it is independent to the environment.

has the potential application value in the navigation research field.

**2. The key autonomous navigation techniques**

laser gyroscope, and the fiber optic gyroscope [25].

*Autonomous Navigation for Mars Exploration DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.92093*

*Mars Exploration - A Step Forward*

Mars and look around here and there. Clearly, different navigation technologies should be employed in different flight phases. The satellite navigation [8], the inertial navigation [9], the celestial navigation [10], the visual navigation [11], and the integrated navigation [12] are the most popular navigation techniques in the aerospace engineering research field. **Figure 1** presents the sketch map and an example of Mars exploration. In **Figure 1**, (a) is the sketch map of Mars exploration

flight mission, and (b) gives out a kind of landing method in the EDL phase.

*The sketch map and an example of Mars exploration: (a) is the sketch map of the flight mission; (b) is a* 

Many research works have been done in the aerospace navigation research field. In [13], the authors proposed a new method, which could use the impulses in the solar light and the time difference of arrival method to improve the navigation accuracy. In [14], an inertial measurement unit and the orbits/aerostats beacons-based integrated navigation scheme were developed. The range and the Doppler information were integrated in the extended Kalman filter. In [15], a navigation method, which could use the inter-satellite link and the starlight angle, was simulated. The prober could determine its position by communicating with other space crafts and observing the stars. In [16], a norm-constrained unscented Kalman filter-based navigation scheme

**14**

**Figure 1.**

*landing example in the EDL phase.*

was proposed. This method could be used for the spacecraft attitude quaternion estimation during the Mars powered descent. After a comparable study of the popular navigation methods, it can be found that the navigation technique has the development trend of high accuracy, multi-function, mini-size, low power consumption, and long service life. In addition, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) technique [17] also has the potential application value in the navigation research field.
