TY - JOUR
T1 - Simulating arbitrary interactions between small-scale space debris and a space-based pulsed laser system
AU - Pieters, Liam
AU - Noomen, Ron
PY - 2022
Y1 - 2022
N2 - This research investigates the performance of a space-based laser system to remove debris objects with size smaller than 10 cm. The laser system is placed in a 800 km Sun Synchronous Orbit and consists of a 20 kW laser that shoots 300 J energy pulses with a repetition frequency of 66.66 Hz. The system is able to detect and track debris objects in situ using a 2.0 m mirror from 800 km distance. From a distance of about 500 km, the laser fluence on the targets is sufficiently high to trigger ablation, which decelerates the debris objects and reduces their lifetime. The feasibility of the concept is tested in scenarios where the laser system targets the debris objects from a different orbiting altitude and from varying azimuth angles. For many geometries, the laser is capable of significantly reducing the lifetime of the debris object. Extrapolating to longer periods of operation, the laser can be expected to provide a significant reduction of the population of small debris objects in LEO.
AB - This research investigates the performance of a space-based laser system to remove debris objects with size smaller than 10 cm. The laser system is placed in a 800 km Sun Synchronous Orbit and consists of a 20 kW laser that shoots 300 J energy pulses with a repetition frequency of 66.66 Hz. The system is able to detect and track debris objects in situ using a 2.0 m mirror from 800 km distance. From a distance of about 500 km, the laser fluence on the targets is sufficiently high to trigger ablation, which decelerates the debris objects and reduces their lifetime. The feasibility of the concept is tested in scenarios where the laser system targets the debris objects from a different orbiting altitude and from varying azimuth angles. For many geometries, the laser is capable of significantly reducing the lifetime of the debris object. Extrapolating to longer periods of operation, the laser can be expected to provide a significant reduction of the population of small debris objects in LEO.
KW - ablation
KW - Active Debris Removal
KW - laser debris removal
KW - Low Earth Orbit
KW - space debris
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85130336004&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.asr.2022.04.049
DO - 10.1016/j.asr.2022.04.049
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85130336004
SN - 0273-1177
VL - 72
SP - 2778
EP - 2785
JO - Advances in Space Research
JF - Advances in Space Research
IS - 7
ER -