Flying Through the Air or in Space

Driving naturally leads to flying. Planning algorithms can help to navigate autonomous helicopters through obstacles. They can also compute thrusts for a spacecraft so that collisions are avoided around a complicated structure, such as a space station. In Section 14.1.3, the problem of designing entry trajectories for a reusable spacecraft is described. Mission planning for interplanetary spacecraft, including solar sails, can even be performed using planning algorithms [436].