Numerical study on modeling the soil footpad interaction of lunar soft landers at touchdown

Abstract

Soft landers are a common systems for planetary exploration and have been successfully landed on Moon, Mars and the comet Churyumov–Gerasimenko. In this study numerical simulations of the touchdown process of soft landers on the moon surface are presented. The focus is on the soil footpad interaction and the resulting loading on the primary strut of the landing gear. Main influence parameters like slope inclination, touchdown velocities and soil properties are varied to show each individual influence on the structural loading of the landing gear. The numerical simulations are done using the CEL-Method allowing for significant soil deformation at touchdown.