State-of-the-art study of Python libraries for orbit propagation, comparison of poliastro & Tudatpy with CelestLab & GMAT

As part of an effort to streamline the space mission design workflow of the CREME satellite mission into a single-language process, this study provides a list of open-source Python libraries capable of orbit propagation and a comparison of their feature set. Two libraries selected as prime candidates are compared across three different force models with trusted reference tools based on their numerical results, computation time and ease of use. Both are found to be suitable options for different use cases, with faster and more modular computations being their strongest advantages, whereas the reference tools remain particularly compelling for their accessibility when used independently.