Related papers: Optimized Bucket Wheel Design for Asteroid Excavat…
This paper presents a novel methodology to control spacecraft swarms about singleasteroids with arbitrary gravitational potential coefficients. This approach enablesthe use of small, autonomous swarm spacecraft in conjunction with a…
In this work, we investigate the thermophysical properties, including thermal inertia, roughness fraction and surface grain size of OSIRIS-REx target asteroid (101955) Bennu by using a thermophysical model with the recently updated 3D…
This paper addresses the problem of planning successive Space Debris Collecting missions so that they can be achieved at minimal cost by a generic vehicle. The problem mixes combinatorial optimization to select and order the debris among a…
Studies have concluded that active debris removal (ADR) of the existing in-orbit mass is necessary. However, the quest for an optimal solution does not have a unique answer and the available data often lacks coherence. To improve this…
Missions to rendezvous with or capture an asteroid present significant interest both from a geophysical and safety point of view. They are key to the understanding of our solar system are as well stepping stones for interplanetary human…
The thermal inertia of an asteroid's surface can provide insight into regolith properties, such as the presence of a layer of fine dust, the density and thermal conductivity of a rocky surface, and, together with other observational data,…
We explore the hypothesis that, due to small van der Waals forces between constituent grains, small rubble pile asteroids have a small but non-zero cohesive strength. The nature of this model predicts that the cohesive strength should be…
In many ways, the HR 8799 planetary system strongly resembles our own. It features four giant planets and two debris belts, analogues to the Asteroid and Edgeworth-Kuiper belts. Here, we present the results of dynamical simulations of HR…
We demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of using a satellite-based sensor with visual and infrared focal plane arrays to search for NEAs with orbits largely interior to the Earth's orbit. Such a space-based system could detect…
Although wheeled robots have been predominant for planetary exploration, their geometry limits their capabilities when traveling over steep slopes, through rocky terrains, and in microgravity. Legged robots equipped with grippers are a…
As humanity advances toward long-term lunar presence under NASA's Artemis program, the development of lunar-based manufacturing and construction (LBMC) capabilities has become increasingly critical. The high cost of transporting materials…
The requirements-driven OSIRIS-REx Camera Suite (OCAMS) acquires images essential to collecting a sample from the surface of Bennu. During proximity operations, these images document the presence of satellites and plumes, record spin state,…
In recent years, understanding asteroids has shifted from light worlds to geological worlds by exploring modern spacecraft and advanced radar and telescopic surveys. However, flyby in 2029 will be an opportunity to conduct an internal…
The Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous-Shoemaker ("NEAR") spacecraft orbited and ultimately landed on the near-Earth asteroid 433 Eros. One of the primary science objectives of NEAR was the MAG experiment, which measured the magnetic field in…
The discovery of refractory grains amongst the particles collected from Comet 81P/Wild 2 by the Stardust spacecraft (Brownlee et al. 2006) provides the ground truth for large-scale transport of materials formed in high temperature regions…
In this article, theory-based analytical methodologies of astrophysics employed in the modern era are suitably operated alongside a test research-grade telescope to image and determine the orbit of a near-earth asteroid from original…
Hayabusa2 is the Japanese Asteroid Return Mission and targeted the carbonaceous asteroid Ryugu, conducted by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The goal of this mission was to conduct proximity operations including remote…
Asteroid restructuring uses robotics, self replication, and mechanical automatons to autonomously restructure an asteroid into a large rotating space station. The restructuring process makes structures from asteroid oxide materials; uses…
Granular materials of different sizes are present on the surface of several atmosphere-less Solar System bodies. The phenomena related to granular materials have been studied in the framework of the discipline called Granular Physics; that…
Containing only a few percent the mass of the moon, the current asteroid belt is around three to four orders of magnitude smaller that its primordial mass inferred from disk models. Yet dynamical studies have shown that the asteroid belt…