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When launching or landing a spacecraft on the regolith of a terrestrial surface, special attention needs to be paid to the rocket exhaust cratering effects. If the effects are not controlled, the rocket cratering could damage the spacecraft…
Large scale manned space flight within the solar system is still confronted with the solution of two problems: 1. A propulsion system to transport large payloads with short transit times between different planetary orbits. 2. A cost…
As orbital debris continues to become a higher priority for the space industry, there is a need to explore how partnerships between the public and private space sector may aid in addressing this issue. This research develops a space…
Today\'s world of space\'s primary concern is the uncontrolled growth of space debris and its probability of collision with spacecraft, particularly in the low earth orbit (LEO) regions. This paper is aimed to design an optimized…
The origin of fuel cell technology has a notable connection to the history of spaceflight, having been used in remarkable programs such as Gemini, Apollo and the Space Shuttle. With the constant growth of the electric propulsion technology…
We present a design concept for a space engine that can continuously remove the orbit debris by using the debris as a propellant. Space robotic cleaner is adopted to capture the targeting debris and to transfer them into the engine. Debris…
With interstellar mission concepts now being under study by various space agencies and institutions, a feasible and worthy interstellar precursor mission concept will be key to the success of the long shot. Here we investigate…
Legged rovers provide enhanced mobility compared to wheeled platforms, enabling navigation on steep and irregular planetary terrains. However, traditional legged locomotion might be energetically inefficient and potentially dangerous to the…
Utilisation of the material and energy resources of the Solar System will be essential for the development of a sustainable space economy and associated infrastructure. Science will be a major beneficiary of a space economy, even if its…
Deploying large, complex space structures is of great interest to the modern scientific world as it can provide new capabilities in obtaining scientific, communicative, and observational information. However, many theoretical mission…
Differential drag is a promising option to control the relative motion of distributed satellites in the Very Low Earth Orbit regime which are not equipped with dedicated thrusting devices. A major downside of the methodology, however, is…
We present a dynamic physico-economic model of Earth orbit use with endogenous satellite collision risk to study conditions under which debris-producing collisions between orbiting bodies result in debris growth that may render Earth's…
Current space exploration programs call for the establishment of a permanent Human presence on the Moon. This paper considers periodic orbits of a shuttle between the Earth and the Moon. Such a shuttle will be needed to bring supplies to…
Electromagnetic propulsion technology has been thought to provide a potential form of future spacecraft propulsion for some time. In contrast to ion thrusters, which utilize the Coulomb force to accelerate positively charged species,…
The first reports on the "Space Magnetic Sail" concept appeared more 30 years ago. During the period since some hundreds of research and scientific works have been published, including hundreds of research report by professors at major…
The exponential rise in small-satellites and CubeSats in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) poses important challenges for future space traffic management. At altitudes of 600 km and lower, aerodynamic drag accelerates de-orbiting of satellites.…
A highly reflective sail provides a way to propel a spacecraft out of the solar system using solar radiation pressure. The closer the spacecraft is to the Sun when it starts its outward journey, the larger the radiation pressure and so the…
Anthropogenic greenhouse gases have been changing significantly the climate and causing dire effects on the dynamics of the Earth System. We examine the conditions under which the well of a geostationary orbital lift can be used to dump…
A model is presented of a ballistic, collisionless, steady state population of ejecta launched at randomly distributed times and velocities and moving under constant gravity above the surface of an airless planetary body. Within a…
Interstellar comets arrive with key ingredients for deep-space platforms already in place: volatile inventories convertible to propellant, natural rotation providing continuous attitude variation, and hyperbolic trajectories that carry them…