Conceptualizing an economically,legally, and politically viable active debris removal option

It has become increasingly clear in recent years that the issue of space debris, particularly in low-Earth orbit, can no longer be ignored or simply mitigated. Orbital debris currently threatens safe space flight for both satellites and humans aboard the International Space Station. Additionally, orbital debris might impact Earth upon re-entry, endangering human lives and damaging the environment with toxic materials. In summary, orbital debris seriously jeopardizes the future not only of human presence in space, but also of human safety on Earth. While international efforts to mitigate the current situation and limit the creation of new debris are useful, recent studies predicting debris evolution have indicated that these will not be enough to ensure humanity?s access to and use of the near-Earth environment in the long-term. Rather, active debris removal (ADR) must be pursued if we are to continue benefiting from and conducting space activities. While the concept of ADR is not new, it has not yet been implemented. This is not just because of the technical feasibility of such a scheme, but also because of the host of economic, legal/regulatory, and political issues associated with debris remediation. The costs of ADR are not insignificant and, in today?s restrictive fiscal climate, are unlikely/to be covered by any single actor. Similarly, ADR concepts bring up many unresolved questions about liability, the protection of proprietary information, safety, and standards. In addition, because of the dual use nature of ADR technologies, any venture will necessarily require political considerations. Despite the many unanswered questions surrounding ADR, it is an endeavor worth pursuing if we are to continue relying on space activities for a variety of critical daily needs and services. Moreover, we cannot ignore the environmental implications that an unsustainable use of space will imply for life on Earth in the long run. This paper aims to explore some of these challenges and propose an economically, politically, and legally viable ADR option. Much like waste management on Earth, cleaning up space junk will likely lie somewhere between a public good and a private sector service. An international, cooperative, public-private partnership concept can address many of these issues and be economically sustainable, while also driving the creation of a proper set of regulations, standards and best practices.     

Evaluation of a satellite constellation for active debris removal

This paper analyzes an example of a three-dimensional constellation of debris removal satellites and proposes an effective constellation using a delta-V analysis that discusses the advisability of rendezvousing satellites with space debris. Lambert?s Equation was used to establish a means of analysis to construct a constellation of debris removal satellites, which has a limit of delta-V injection by evaluating the amount of space debris that can be rendezvoused by a certain number of removal satellite. Consequently, we determine a constellation of up to 38 removal satellites for debris removal, where the number of space debris rendezvoused by a single removal satellite is not more than 25, removing up to 584 pieces of debris total. Even if we prepare 38 removal satellites in their respective orbits, it is impossible to remove all of the space debris. Although many removal satellites, over 100 for example, can remove most of the space debris, this method is economically disproportionate. However, we can also see the removal satellites are distributed nearly evenly. Accordingly, we propose a practical two-stage strategy. The first stage is to implement emergent debris removal with the 38 removal satellites. When we find a very high probability of collision between a working satellite and space debris, one of the removal satellites in the constellation previously constructed in orbit initiates a maneuver of emergent debris removal. The second stage is a long-term space debris removal strategy to suppress the increase of space debris derived from collisions among the pieces of space debris. The constellation analyzed in this paper, which consists of the first 38 removal satellites, can remove half of the over 1000 dangerous space debris among others, and then the constellation increases the number of the following removal satellites in steps. At any rate, an adequate orbital configuration and constellation form is very important for both space debris removal and economic efficiency. Though the size of constellation of debris removal satellites would be small originally, such a constellation of satellites should be one of the initial constellations of removal satellites to ensure the safety of the future orbital environment.     

美俄卫星太空碰撞事件及对航天活动的影响

文章介绍了最近发生的美俄卫星太空碰撞重大事件;深入剖析了导致碰撞的可能原因;详细评述了卫星碰撞事件对空间碎片环境的严重恶化和对人类航天活动的影响;分析了碰撞事件对空间碎片研究带来的新困难和新挑战。文章指出,从航天器安全角度来讲,减缓、控制乃至清除空间碎片是全人类共同的责任和唯一选择。     

Continuum Model for Space Debris Evolution with Account of Collisions and Orbital Breakups

The paper discusses the mathematical modeling of long-term orbital debris evolution taking into account mutual collisions of space debris particles of different sizes. Investigations and long-term forecasts of orbital debris environment evolution in low Earth orbits are essential for future space mission hazard evaluation and for adopting rational space policies and mitigation measures. The paper introduces a new approach to space debris evolution mathematical modeling based on continuum mechanics incorporating partial differential equations. This is an alternative to the traditional approaches of celestial mechanics incorporating ordinary differential equations to model fragments evolution. The continuum approach to orbital debris evolution modeling has essential advantages for describing the evolution of a large number of particles, because it replaces the traditional tracking of space objects by modeling the evolution of their density of distribution.     

ICAN: A novel laser architecture for space debris removal

The development of a fiber based laser architecture will enable novel applications in environments which have hitherto been impossible due to size, efficiency and power of traditional systems. Such a new architecture has been developed by the International Coherent Amplification Network (ICAN) project. Here we present an analysis of utilizing an ICAN laser for the purpose of tracking and de-orbiting hyper-velocity space debris. With an increasing number of new debris from collisions of active, derelict and new payloads in orbit, there is a growing danger of runaway debris impacts. Due to its compactness and efficiency, it is shown that space-based operation would be possible. For different design parameters such as fiber array size, it is shown that the kHz repetition rate and kW average power of ICAN would be sufficient to de-orbit small 1–10 cm debris within a single instance via laser ablation.     

地球静止轨道空间碎片的处置

介绍了国际机构间碎片协调委员会提出的关于地球静止轨道（GEO）空间碎片问题的研究结果和碎片处置的建议，主要内容包括：GEO与GEO环的概念、EGO上物体现状，EGO空间碎片处置的基本原则和8条具体处置措施建议。该建议已于2000年2月提交联合国和平利用外层空间委员会科技小组委员会第37届会议。     

一种应用于空间碎片演化模型的碰撞概率算法

针对碰撞概率算法Cube模型参数影响空间碎片演化模型的仿真结果问题进行了深入分析与研究，并将原Cube算法进行改进，由此提出I-Cube模型。经过多次蒙特卡洛仿真结果验证，I-Cube模型对演化过程中空间碎片碰撞概率的计算更为准确合理，空间碎片长期演化模型的结果不再依赖于自身碰撞概率算法的相关参数，提高了空间碎片长期演化模型的稳定性与可信度。     

利用等离子体加速器发射超高速 微小空间碎片的研究

文章介绍了国内外微小空间碎片超高速撞击地面模拟实验研究的现状,描述了国内等离子体微小空间碎片加速器的研制进展和初步实验结果,分析了该加速器在空间碎片防护研究工作中的应用。在初步调试阶段,在系统设计满负荷储能6%和35%的条件下,分别将100 ?m和200 ?m的玻璃微粒加速至5.5 km/s和9.3 km/s。利用该加速器可以模拟研究10～1 000 ?m的微小空间碎片对卫星功能材料的撞击损伤特性,可以加速模拟研究卫星关键部件或分系统在大量微小空间碎片撞击下的失效机理和失效模式,为卫星防护微小空间碎片的设计提供技术支持。该加速器还能为国内发展星载空间微小碎片探测仪器的设计和标定提供模拟实验条件。     

单次任务中主动清除多块碎片的仿真分析

针对国内外空间活动产生的碎片,文章采用多脉冲推力作用下的轨道机动仿真方法,在主要考虑总速度增量为2 km/s的约束条件下,计算碎片清除所需要的速度增量、任务时间以及清除个数。仿真结果表明,单次任务可以清除12块分布比较集中的碎片。研究结果可为我国今后空间碎片清扫任务的设计提供参考依据。     

对美国宇航公司使用的轨道碎片模型的评价

文章介绍了碰撞程序和碎片程序,并进行了评价。前一个程序说明了碎片撞击的破裂特性;后一个程序给出了当一个空间物体进入碎片云时的撞击概率。     

Space Debris at the United Nations

Rules for activities in outer space are agreed upon in the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space of the United Nations. Several international treaties have been adopted in the 1970s, that is, at a time before space debris became a concern for the international community. In the years 1979–1988 numerous documents were prepared by the UN Secretariat on space debris, but no official discussions of the problem were initiated by states members of the COPUOS. First proposals for introducing the matter to the UN appeared around 1988, after important studies on the subject were published by states and leading intergovernmental organizations. Also the International Telecommunication Union became concerned about the proliferation of space debris in the geostationary orbit and adopted in 1993 a recommendation to restrict the generation of debris and to re-orbit satellites approaching the end of their active lives into disposal orbits beyond the belt populated by active satellites. In 1994, the UN started discussing scientific and technical aspects of space debris. In the following years, with the assistance of experts from prominent space agencies, it elaborated a Technical Report on space debris. Legal aspects of the problem have not yet begun being discussed because the necessary consensus among states members of the COPUOS has not yet been achieved. Very recently, the UN received first information on a wider subject, space traffic management.     

天基轻气炮发射清除低轨碎片方案及关键技术分析

文章分析了现有的空间碎片清除方式,并以800~1200 km低地球轨道高度上1~10 cm量级的空间碎片为清除目标,提出了天基轻气炮清除碎片的新方法。首先分析了轻气炮有效载荷在典型参数下的弹丸加速能力;之后根据将碎片降轨使其坠入大气层烧毁的设想,提出天基轻气炮共面清除碎片的方式,并选择轨道高度800 km的圆轨道作为碎片运行轨道进行可行性分析。计算表明,对半径10 cm、厚度1 cm的铝合金圆板碎片(质量211.95 g),使用初速1 km/s、重10 g的黏性弹丸可按任务方案达到清除效果。此外,计算出该参数弹丸对轨道高度800~1200 km的圆轨道上可清除的最大碎片质量为500~825 g,证明轻气炮弹丸对1~10 cm的碎片具有较强的清除能力。最后,分析了以轻气炮为有效载荷的航天器在完成清除碎片任务时的关键技术。     

Space debris and the need for space traffic control

This report summarises the presentations which took place at the ‘Space Traffic Control – Is the Space Debris Problem Solvable?’ conference hosted by the Royal Aeronautical Society on the 2nd July 2013. The conference sought to promote discussion over methods to deal with the issue of space debris in particular and speakers included representatives from the European Space Agency, the United Kingdom Space Agency, practitioners and academia. Themes which emerged during the conference included the urgency of the problem of space debris, the need for short-term and long-term solutions, the necessity for the development and implementation of space debris remediation technologies to complement existing mitigation efforts and, last but not least, the wider applications of space traffic control. Regarding the sub-title of the conference, ‘is the space debris problem solvable?’, it would appear from the presentations that while there is the potential for future management of the issue through debris remediation and harmonised mitigation efforts, no comprehensive solutions exist at the time of writing.     

空间碎片环境现状与主动移除技术

概述了空间碎片环境现状和对航天活动的影响,讨论了空间碎片主动移除对保持空间碎片环境稳定的必要性。空间碎片研究重心先从防护转向减缓,再转到主动移除,最终是清洁空间。评述了空间碎片主动移除技术现状,指出天基激光主动移除空间碎片技术具有很好的工程应用潜力。     

天基照相跟踪空间碎片批处理轨道确定研究

随着国内外天基观测空间碎片研究的展开,文章提出了利用跟踪卫星的CCD(Charge
Coupled Device)相机对空间碎片进行轨道探测的方法,首先建立了CCD照相观测模型和基于 照相观测 的空间碎片批处理轨道确定模型。通过对CCD相机底片归算方法的分析可知,利用
CCD相机所获得的观测数据与跟踪卫星的姿态无关,且其精度只与测量和坐标转换计算的精 度有关,在测量和计算中可获得较高的精度。分别对分布密度较高的低轨道和地球同步 轨道区域的空间碎片进行了定轨分析。仿真结果表明,定轨时采用两个跟踪弧段的照相数据 定轨精度大大高于一个弧段照相数据的定轨精度;跟踪卫星距离空间碎片越近,定轨精度越 高;低轨道空间碎片的定轨精度高于地球同步轨道上的空间碎片定轨精度。
     

激光驱动典型几何形状碎片运动建模研究

在以往的激光烧蚀驱动移除空间碎片研究中,均假设激光光束覆盖整个所关注的空间碎片。文章提出了焦斑式激光辐照下球体、圆柱体和立方体碎片反喷冲量和运动姿态的计算模型,研究了激光辐照在3种形状碎片不同位置处所产生的反喷冲量和姿态变化规律。结果表明:碎片运动规律与碎片几何形状和激光作用位置有关,当反喷冲量过质心时,碎片获得平动冲量;不过质心时,则会改变碎片的角速度或姿态。研究结果可为激光移除空间碎片研究提供理论参考。     

Debris area distribution of spacecraft under hypervelocity impact

Cross-sectional area is an important parameter for spacecraft breakup debris as it is the directly measured data in space observation. It is significant for observing and analysing the spacecraft breakup event to accurately modelling the area distribution of the breakup debris. In this paper, experimental study has been performed on debris area distribution characteristics of spacecraft under hypervelocity impact. The tests are carried out at the ballistic ranges of CARDC. Aluminium projectiles are launched to normally impact the simulated spacecrafts at about 3.0 km/s. The simulated spacecrafts are made up of aluminium plates, filled with some simulated electronics boxes, each of which was installed with a circuit board. “Soft-catch” devices are used to recover the breakup fragments. The test results show that: 1) the relationship between the cross-sectional area and the characteristic length of debris, which can be obtained in the logarithmic coordinates by linear fitting, represents the debris shape characteristic in a certain extent; 2) the area-to-mass ratios of fragments show normal distributions in the logarithmic coordinates; 3) debris made of different materials can be distinguished by different peaks on the distribution curves; 4) the area-to-mass ratio distributions can be expressed by a linear superimposition of several normal functions which represent the main materials of the spacecraft.     

空间碎片国际机制发展趋势分析

文章通过对空间碎片国际机制(多边谈判机制)的分析,指出其发展趋势,从而为中国参加相关谈判工作提供参考。空间碎片国际机制的发展已呈现出明显的政策化、法律化和制度化的趋势。无论是从外空利益争夺、外空战略实现,还是从中国航天事业可持续发展、中国航天立法体系完善的角度来讲,积极参加空间碎片技术合作与规则制定的国际谈判都具有重要意义。从国内建设上来看,中国应尽快制定“技术—政策(战略)—法律”三位一体的解决思路和具体方案;从国际层面看,可以借鉴美国一直坚持和贯彻的“技术—政策—国内规则—国际软法—国际法”外空策略,来开展空间碎片减缓和清除等方面的技术与规则制定的合作。     

空间碎片现状与清理

分析了空间碎片的严峻现状和空间碎片的10个来源,指出轨道碰撞是产生碎片最多的因素;介绍了空间碎片的观测方法、原理和观测系统的概况,包括正在兴建的观测系统——“空间篱笆”。最后,根据不同轨道高度和空间碎片的数量与大小,提出空间碎片清理原则、要求和9种清理方法。     

中国空间碎片研究的进展

首先对"十五"期间中国在空间碎片研究领域取得的主要进展进行了综述,涉及空间碎片监测预警、航天器防护和空间碎片减缓三个方面;然后对"十一五"期间中国空间碎片研究的主要内容进行了介绍。