Best orbit for a Jupiter Space Station?

Siliconaut

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I'd like to get an opinion on where you would put a space station around Jupiter that allows for certain functions:

Function #1: Allow a spacecraft to easily coast into Jovian SOI and dock.

Function #2: Allow a spacecraft to easily return to Earth or fly on to outer planets using minimal delta-v, possibly even gravity assists from Jove himself.

Function #3: Allow regular access to all four Galilean moons with reasonable delta v when moving from moon back to space station as well.

I assume that such an orbit would probably be pretty far from Jupiter, far beyond Callisto's orbit at least. But I'm not an orbital engineer so i wouldn't know anything about how to even begin to find this out.

Thank Goodness real engineers can be found here.
 

boogabooga

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Sounds like you want to be in the ecliptic plane, more or less.
 

dgatsoulis

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I'd find a nice Europa-Ganymede or Ganymede-Europa cycler orbit and place the station there. This would allow for a free arrival on the two moons and a relatively low-dv in the other two.

KGh9Be.jpg


For returning to Earth, I'd place a couple of transfer ships on a Jupiter-Earth cycler.

Planetary moon cycler orbits
 
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