High road to geosynchronous orbit: Lunar gravity assist to minimize delta-V

This paper develops the concept of lunar gravity assist (LGA) to benefit geosynchronous spacecraft requiring large inclination changes during orbit-raising. Unlike previous work such as the orbit-raising for HGS-1 that required the moon to be very near the equatorial plane during LGA to remove all inclination, the technique developed here permits the moon to be well away from the equator when encountered. Therefore, launch opportunities are permitted on most or all days of the year instead of only a few days each month.