Capturing orbital debris : a modular mission architecture and optimization

Authors
Woeppel, Eric
ORCID
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Other Contributors
Anderson, Kurt S.
Hicken, Jason
Oehlschlaeger, Matthew A.
Issue Date
2015-05
Keywords
Aerospace engineering
Degree
MS
Terms of Use
This electronic version is a licensed copy owned by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY. Copyright of original work retained by author.
Full Citation
Abstract
In the near-Earth space environment, orbital debris is becoming a larger concern as the space in commercial, defense, and scientific orbits become more crowded. These objects often provide security concerns for newly launched satellites and those currently in operation. The interest of this paper is to analyze the state of the debris clouds, propose an optimized set of requirements for a modular based design, and to present the incentive for removal of dead objects. The analysis for this research was done in MATLAB using two line element datasets for orbital propagation, engineering optimization algorithms, and historical design attempts. The end goal being to show the advantages of modular, reusable infrastructure that is capable of rendezvousing with and disposing of multiple objects of interest.
Description
May 2015
School of Engineering
Department
Dept. of Mechanical, Aerospace, and Nuclear Engineering
Publisher
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY
Relationships
Rensselaer Theses and Dissertations Online Collection
Access
Restricted to current Rensselaer faculty, staff and students. Access inquiries may be directed to the Rensselaer Libraries.