  This paper examines the effectiveness of an asteroid exploration architecture
comprised of multiple nanosatellite sized spacecraft deployed from a single
mother ship into a heliocentric orbit in the main asteroid belt where the
mothership is ideally located in region of high density. Basic mission
requirements associated with a Mother-Daughter architecture are established
utilizing a relatively large number (10-20) daughter spacecraft distributed
from a mothership within the asteroid belt for the purpose of executing sample
and return missions. A number of trade analyses are performed to establish
system performance to changes in initial orbit, delta-V capability and maximum
small spacecraft flight time. The balance between the initial delta-V burn and
asteroid velocity matching are also examined, with a goal of minimizing the
amount of fuel needed in the small spacecraft. Preliminary requirements for the
system are established using these results, and a conceptual design is
presented for comparison to other asteroid exploration techniques. Preliminary
results indicate that the aforementioned concept of a mothership with small
spacecraft is viable and should be considered as an alternative approach to
first order surveying of the asteroid belt.
