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We propose AstroSLAM, a standalone vision-based solution for autonomous online navigation around an unknown target small celestial body. AstroSLAM is predicated on the formulation of the SLAM problem as an incrementally growing factor…
We study the drag force on dust grains moving at relativistic velocities through interstellar gas and explore its application. First, we derive a new analytical formula of the drag force at high energies and find that it is significantly…
Nanostructures have become an attractive subject due to many applications, particularly the photonic bandgap effect observed in photonic crystals. Nevertheless, the fabrication of such structures remains a challenge because of accurate…
Gravitational, magnetic and superfluid forces can stress the crust of an evolving neutron star. Fracture of the crust under these stresses could affect the star's spin evolution and generate high-energy emission. We study the growth of…
This paper focuses on the attitude motion of spacecraft systems featuring asymmetric spacecraft platforms and unbalanced rotors. Through perturbation expansion, the spacecraft dynamic equation is simplified as a linear periodically…
The miniaturization and integration of beam steering devices have consistently been the focus of the field. Conventional methods alter the eigenmode of the optical cavity by regulating the refractive index. Due to the weak nonlinear effect…
The scientific mission of ESTCube-1, launched in May 2013, is to measure the Electric solar wind sail (E-sail) force in orbit. The experiment is planned to push forward the development of E-sail, a propulsion method recently invented at the…
We present a compact and robust transportable ultra-stable laser system with minimum fractional frequency instability of $1\times10^{-15}$ at integration times between 1 to 10 s. The system was conceived as a prototype of a subsystem of a…
CoPt nanoparticle catalysts are integral to commercial fuel cells. Such systems are prohibitive to fully characterize with electronic structure calculations. Machine-learned potentials offer a scalable solution; however, such potentials are…
Exploration of asteroids and comets can give insight into the origins of the solar system and can be instrumental in planetary defence and in-situ resource utilization (ISRU). Asteroids, due to their low gravity are a challenging target for…
A propulsion concept in which a spacecraft interacts with high-velocity pellets and the interstellar medium is proposed. The pellets are slower than the spacecraft and are accelerated backwards as they are overtaken, imparting a forward…
The creation of nanoscale lasers that operate above a coherent threshold is a challenging problem. We propose a way to circumvent this issue using systems in which a strong coupling regime is achieved between the light and the active…
Emitting light towards on-demand directions is important for various optoelectronic applications, such as optical communication, displaying, and ranging. However, almost all existing directional emitters are assemblies of passive optical…
The use of nanophotonics for optical manipulation has continuously attracted interest in both fundamental research and practical applications, due to its significantly enhanced capabilities at the nanoscale. In this work, we showed that…
Performing orbital insertion around Mars using aerocapture instead of a propulsive orbit insertion manoeuvre allows to save resources and/or increase the payload mass fraction. Aerocapture has never been employed to date because of the high…
Artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomous edge computing in space are emerging areas of interest to augment capabilities of nanosatellites, where modern sensors generate orders of magnitude more data than can typically be transmitted to…
The interaction between light and matter can be enhanced by spatially concentrating the light field to boost the photon energy density and increasing the photon dwell time to prolong energy transfer between light and matter. Traditionally,…
Ion acceleration in the MeV range can be routinely achieved with table-top laser technology. One of the current challenges is to improve the energy coupling from the laser to the proton beam without increasing the laser peak power.…
At a fraction the total cost of an equivalent orbital mission, scientific balloon-borne platforms, operating above 99.7% of the Earth's atmosphere, offer attractive, competitive, and effective observational capabilities -- namely space-like…
TianQin is a proposed space-based gravitational-wave observatory mission to be deployed in high circular Earth orbits. The equilateral-triangle constellation, with a nearly fixed orientation, can be distorted primarily under the lunisolar…