Optimum sizing of bare-tape tethers for de-orbiting satellites at end of mission
Data(s) |
01/10/2015
31/12/1969
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Resumo |
De-orbiting satellites at end of mission would prevent generation of new space debris. A proposed de-orbit technology involves a bare conductive tape-tether, which uses neither propellant nor power supply while generating power for on-board use during de-orbiting. The present work shows how to select tape dimensions for a generic mission so as to satisfy requirements of very small tether-to-satellite mass ratio mt/MS and probability Nf of tether cut by small debris, while keeping de-orbit time tf short and product tf ×× tether length low to reduce maneuvers in avoiding collisions with large debris. Design is here discussed for particular missions (initial orbit of 720 km altitude and 63° and 92° inclinations, and 3 disparate MS values, 37.5, 375, and 3750 kg), proving it scalable. At mid-inclination and a mass-ratio of a few percent, de-orbit time takes about 2 weeks and Nf is a small fraction of 1%, with tape dimensions ranging from 1 to 6 cm, 10 to 54 μμm, and 2.8 to 8.6 km. Performance drop from middle to high inclination proved moderate: if allowing for twice as large mt/MS, increases are reduced to a factor of 4 in tf and a slight one in Nf, except for multi-ton satellites, somewhat more requiring because efficient orbital-motion-limited electron collection restricts tape-width values, resulting in tape length (slightly) increasing too. |
Formato |
application/pdf |
Identificador | |
Idioma(s) |
eng |
Publicador |
E.T.S. de Ingeniería Aeronáutica y del Espacio (UPM) |
Relação |
http://oa.upm.es/39246/1/AAAAAADSSMM_A.pdf http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0273117715004676 info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/FP7/262972 2009-013319 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1016/j.asr.2015.06.030 |
Direitos |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/es/ info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
Fonte |
Advances in Space Research, ISSN 0273-1177, 2015-10-01, Vol. 56, No. 7 |
Palavras-Chave | #Física |
Tipo |
info:eu-repo/semantics/article Artículo PeerReviewed |