Four-Body Transit-Orbit Classification Combining Lagrangian Coherent Structures with Data Mining

Low-energy transfers are advantageous for lunar exploration missions due to their low fuel consumption and extended launch periods. This study combines natural dynamics with data mining to analyze and construct multibody trajectories. We focus on the classification of interior transit orbits and their application to low-energy transfers in the sun–Earth/moon planar bicircular restricted four-body problem (PBCR4BP). First, the Lagrangian coherent structures (LCSs) are used to generate the interior transit orbits. The number of periapses around the moon is selected as the classification parameter and is mapped into the LCSs. Clear classification boundaries are achieved using a data-mining approach. Then, the dependence of the classification on energy levels and solar gravity perturbation is discussed and summarized. Based on these classifications and their dependencies, strategies for constructing two low-energy transfer scenarios are proposed. The effectiveness of these strategies is confirmed through numerical simulations of the transfer trajectories. The dynamic behaviors and transfer characteristics of transit orbits and their families are revealed, and a direct link between transit-orbit families and low-energy transfers is established.