Wholesale debris removal from LEO

A method has been developed for the combined de-orbiting of large-size objects of space debris from low-Earth orbits using an electro-rocket propulsion system as an active de-orbiting means. A principal de-orbiting technique has been devised, which takes into consideration the patterns of using an electric rocket propulsion system in comparison with the sustainer rocket propulsion system. A procedure for determining the parameters of the de-orbiting scheme has been worked out, such as the minimum total speed and the time of the start of the de-orbiting process, which ensures its achievement. The proposed procedure takes into consideration the impact exerted on the process of the de-orbiting by the ballistic factor of the object, the height of the initial orbit, and the phase of solar activity at the time of the de-orbiting onset. The actual time constraints on battery discharge have been accounted for, as well as on battery charge duration, and active operation of the control system. The process of de-orbiting a large-size object of space debris has been simulated by using the combined method involving an electro-rocket propulsion system. The impact of the initial orbital altitude, ballistic coefficient, and the phase of solar activity on the energy costs of the de-orbiting process have been investigated. The dependences have been determined of the optimal values of a solar activity phase, in terms of energy costs, at the moment of the de-orbiting onset, and the total velocity, required to ensure the de-orbiting, on the altitude of the initial orbit and ballistic factor. These dependences are of practical interest in the tasks of designing the means of the combined de-orbiting involving an electric rocket propulsion system. The dependences of particular derivatives from the increment of a velocity pulse to the gain in the ballistic factor on the altitude of the initial orbit have been established. The use of these derivatives is also of practical interest to assess the effect of unfolding an aerodynamic sailing unit

show abstract

“…At present, the following de-orbiting methods are used and developed to reduce the clogged near-Earth space [6][7][8][9][10][11]:…”

Section: Literature Review and Problem Statementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of the combined method to de-orbit space objects using an electric rocket propulsion system

Golubek

Dron

Dubovik

et al. 2020

EEJET

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Solar concentrators have been proposed to deflect asteroids by inducing thrust from ablated material, a technique that may be adapted to active debris disposal [57] but requires dynamic stability. Electrodynamic propulsion offers a potentially propellantless option for debris transport [58]. A 1-5 km long conducting electrodynamic tether which mounts solar panels rotating at 6-8 times every orbit generates current which interacts with the Earth's magnetic field.…”

Section: Space Debris Mitigationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tutorial Review on Space Manipulators for Space Debris Mitigation

Ellery

2019

Robotics

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Space-based manipulators have traditionally been tasked with robotic on-orbit servicing or assembly functions, but active debris removal has become a more urgent application. We present a much-needed tutorial review of many of the robotics aspects of active debris removal informed by activities in on-orbit servicing. We begin with a cursory review of on-orbit servicing manipulators followed by a short review on the space debris problem. Following brief consideration of the time delay problems in teleoperation, the meat of the paper explores the field of space robotics regarding the kinematics, dynamics and control of manipulators mounted onto spacecraft. The core of the issue concerns the spacecraft mounting which reacts in response to the motion of the manipulator. We favour the implementation of spacecraft attitude stabilisation to ease some of the computational issues that will become critical as increasing level of autonomy are implemented. We review issues concerned with physical manipulation and the problem of multiple arm operations. We conclude that space robotics is well-developed and sufficiently mature to tackling tasks such as active debris removal.

show abstract

“…During the operation, we expect collisions of the device with any trackable debris or operational assets to be avoided by relying on active monitoring through the Space Surveillance Network and centralized flight plans coordina-tion through the Center for Space Standards and Innovation, analogously to what is proposed in the work of Levin et al (2012). Probability of these is very low (see Table 2) and the required avoidance maneuvering can be integrated with orbital maintenance necessary for the one-year mission (see Section 5).…”

Section: Rigid Links Bottom Beltsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A deployable mechanism concept for the collection of small-to-medium-size space debris

St-Onge

Sharf

Sagnières

et al. 2018

Advances in Space Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Current efforts in active debris removal strategies and mission planning focus on removing the largest, most massive debris. It can be argued, however, that small untrackable debris, specifically those smaller than 5 cm in size, also pose a serious threat. In this work, we propose and analyze a mission to sweep the most crowded Low Earth Orbit with a large cupola device to remove small-tomedium-size debris. The cupola consists of a deployable mechanism expanding more than 25 times its storage size to extend a membrane covering its surface. The membrane is sufficiently stiff to capture most small debris and to slow down the medium-size objects, thus accelerating their fall. An overview of the design of a belt-driven rigid-link mechanism proposed to support the collecting cupola surface is presented, based on our previous work. Because of its large size, the cupola will be subject to significant aerodynamic drag; thus, orbit maintenance analysis is carried out using the DTM-2013 atmospheric density model and it predicts feasible requirements. While in operation, the device will also be subject to numerous hyper-velocity impacts which may significantly perturb its orientation from the desired attitude for debris collection. Thus, another important feature of the proposed debris removal device is a distributed array of flywheels mounted on the cupola for reorienting and stabilizing its attitude during the mission. Analysis using a stochastic modeling framework for hyper-velocity impacts demonstrates that three-axes attitude stabilization is achievable with the flywheels array. MASTER-2009 software is employed to provide relevant data for all debris related estimates, including the debris fluxes for the baseline mission design and for assessment of its expected performance. Space debris removal is a high priority for ensuring sustainability of space and continual launch and operation of man-made space assets. This manuscript presents the first analysis of a small-to-medium size debris removal mission, albeit finding it to not be economically viable at the present time.

show abstract

Wholesale debris removal from LEO

Cited by 36 publications

References 7 publications

Development of the combined method to de-orbit space objects using an electric rocket propulsion system

Development of the combined method to de-orbit space objects using an electric rocket propulsion system

Tutorial Review on Space Manipulators for Space Debris Mitigation

A deployable mechanism concept for the collection of small-to-medium-size space debris

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About