DE-STARLITE - A Directed Energy Planetary Defense Mission

Kosmo, Kelly; Pryor, Mark; Lubin, P. M.; Hughes, Gary B.; O’Neill, Hugh; Meinhold, P. R.; Suen, Jonathan Y.; Riley, Jordan; Griswold, Janelle; Cook, Brianna; Johansson, Isabella; Zhang, Qicheng; Walsh, K. J.; Melis, Carl; Kangas, Miikka; Bible, Johanna; Motta, Caio; Brashears, Travis; Mathew, Shana; Bollag, Justin

doi:10.1117/12.2059959

Cited by 17 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…(4) Direct motive force, such as by mounting a thruster directly to the object: Thrusters could include chemical propellants, solar or nuclear powered electric drives, or ion engines [12]. Such methods, including ion beam deflection (IBD), require much greater mission mass than does the laser ablation method, as proposed for the DE-STARLITE mission [13]. (5) Indirect orbit alteration, such as gravity tractors: A spacecraft with sufficient mass would be positioned near the object, and maintain a fixed station with respect to the object using onboard propulsion.…”

Section: Mitigation Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A 2 m diameter laser phased array is shown with 19 elements, each of which is 1-3 kW optical output. From Kosmo et al [13].…”

Section: De-starlite Missionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…A secondary approach with a lower risk potential fallback is a close-packed focal plane array of fiber lasers. DE-STARLITE is made possible with high-power solar electric propulsion (SEP) [13]. PV panels will be stowed for launch and will deploy upon reaching low-Earth orbit (LEO) to provide a required 100 kW electrical power from two 15 m diameter ATK MegaFlex panels.…”

Section: De-starlite Missionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The launch systems in consideration are Atlas V 551, Space Launch System (SLS) Block 1, Falcon Heavy, or Delta IV Heavy. These are likewise the launch systems in consideration for ARM, which calls for a payload of comparable parameters [13]. The DE-STARLITE spacecraft will fit within the payload fairing of any of the proposed launch systems (Fig.…”

Section: Launch Systemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Directed energy planetary defense

Kosmo¹,

Lubin²,

Hughes³

et al. 2015

2015 IEEE Aerospace Conference

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Directed Energy (DE) systems offer the potential for true planetary defense from small to km class threats. Directed energy has evolved dramatically recently and is on an extremely rapid ascent technologically. It is now feasible to consider DE systems for threats from asteroids and comets. DE-STAR (Directed Energy System for Targeting of Asteroids and exploRation) is a phased-array laser directed energy system intended for illumination, deflection and compositional analysis of asteroids [1]. It can be configured either as a standon or a distant stand-off system. A system of appropriate size would be capable of projecting a laser spot onto the surface of a distant asteroid with sufficient flux to heat a spot on the surface to approximately 3,000 K, adequate to vaporize solid rock. Mass ejection due to vaporization creates considerable reactionary thrust to divert the asteroid from its orbit. DE-STARLITE is a smaller stand-on system that utilizes the same technology as the larger standoff system, but with a much smaller laser for a dedicated mission to a specific asteroid. DE-STARLITE offers a very power and mass efficient approach to planetary defense. As an example, a DE-STARLITE system that fits within the mass and size constraints of the Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM) system in a small portion of the SLS block 1 launch capability is capable of deflecting an Apophis class (325 m diameter) asteroid with sufficient warning. A DE-STARLITE using the full SLS block 1 launch mass can deflect any known threat.

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Section: Mitigation Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A 2 m diameter laser phased array is shown with 19 elements, each of which is 1-3 kW optical output. From Kosmo et al [13].…”

Section: De-starlite Missionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: De-starlite Missionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Launch Systemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Directed energy planetary defense

Kosmo¹,

Lubin²,

Hughes³

et al. 2015

2015 IEEE Aerospace Conference

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“…9 While DE-STAR remains a long term vision a much smaller system (DE-STARLITE) capable of being launched on a single SLS Block 1B or smaller launcher serves much the same function but requires long lead times and a dedicated mission for each target. 10 This is covered in detail in Kosmo et al (2014). The same critical issue of rotation is relevant to both.…”

Section: De-star and De-starlitementioning

confidence: 99%

Simulations of directed energy thrust on rotating asteroids

et al. 2015

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Asteroids that threaten Earth could be deflected from their orbits using directed energy to vaporize the surface, as the ejected plume creates a reaction thrust that alters the asteroid's trajectory. In this situation, a critical issue is the rotation of the asteroid relative to the directed energy beam, as this will reduce the average thrust magnitude and modify the thrust direction. Flux levels required to evaporate surface material depend on the surface material composition, rotation rate, albedo, and thermal and bulk mechanical properties of the asteroid. The observed distribution of asteroid rotation rates is used, along with an estimated range of material and mechanical properties, as input to a 4D thermalphysical model to calculate the resultant thrust vector. The model uses a directed energy beam, striking the surface of a rotating sphere with specified material properties, beam profile, and rotation rate. The model calculates thermal changes in the sphere, including vaporization and mass ejection of the target material. The amount of vaporization integrated over the target is used to determine the thrust magnitude and the phase shift relative to the non-rotating case. As the object rotates beneath the beam, the energy spreads out, decreasing temperature and vaporization causing both a phase shift and magnitude decrease in the average thrust vector. This produces a 4D analytical model of the expected thrust profile for rotating objects.

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Efficient Martian Settlement with the Mars Terraformer Transfer (MATT) and the Omaha Trail

Stewart¹

2021

Terraforming Mars

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DE-STARLITE - A Directed Energy Planetary Defense Mission

Cited by 17 publications

References 6 publications

Directed energy planetary defense

Directed energy planetary defense

Simulations of directed energy thrust on rotating asteroids

Efficient Martian Settlement with the Mars Terraformer Transfer (MATT) and the Omaha Trail

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