Related papers: Simulating the Evolution of Lethal Non-Trackable P…
This paper introduces a novel Monte Carlo (MC) method to simulate the evolution of the low-earth orbit environment, enhancing the MIT Orbital Capacity Analysis Tool (MOCAT). In recent decades, numerous space environment models have been…
The presence of debris in Earth's orbit poses a significant risk to human activity in outer space. This debris population continues to grow due to ground launches, loss of external parts from space ships, and uncontrollable collisions…
The number of resident space objects is rising at an alarming rate. Mega-constellations and breakup events are proliferating in most orbital regimes, and safe navigation is becoming increasingly problematic. It is important to be able to…
This paper presents an analytical model for collision probability assessments between de-orbiting or injecting space objects and satellite constellations. Considering the first to be subjected to a continuous tangential acceleration, its…
Traffic systems are becoming increasingly automated. How will automated objects interact with non-automated objects? How will partially-automated systems handle large disruptions? Low-Earth orbit (LEO) -- filled with thousands of automated…
Orbital debris is a nonlinear control problem in a stratified orbital environment, not a static inventory. This paper develops a reduced-order shell-and-size framework that connects collision-rate scaling, fragment-production gain, natural…
Numerical simulations are at the center of predicting the space debris environment of the upcoming decades. In light of debris generating events, such as continued anti-satellite weapon tests and planned mega-constellations, accurate…
All-vs-all orbital evolutionary simulations for the low Earth orbit (LEO) simulate the long term evolution of the LEO environment. Although these simulations typically offer the highest fidelity, they are also highly computationally…
We focus on preventing collisions between debris and debris, for which there is no current, effective mitigation strategy. We investigate the feasibility of using a medium-powered (5 kW) ground-based laser combined with a ground-based…
The space environment around the Earth is populated by more than 130 million objects of 1 mm in size and larger, and future predictions shows that this amount is destined to increase, even if mitigation measures are implemented at a far…
Terrestrial planet formation theory is at a bottleneck, with the growing realization that pairwise collisions are treated far too simply. Here, and in our companion paper (Cambioni et al. 2019) that introduces the training methodology, we…
Low Earth orbits (LEO) are known as a region of high space activity and, consequently, space debris highest density. Launcher upper stages and defunct satellites are the largest space debris objects, whose collisions can result in still…
Numerical simulations of the stochastic end stage of planet formation typically begin with a population of embryos and planetesimals that grow into planets by merging. We analyzed the impact parameters of collisions leading to the growth of…
Launch behaviors are a key determinant of the orbital environment. Physical and economic forces such as fragmentations and changing launch costs, or policies like post-mission disposal (PMD) compliance requirements, will alter the relative…
Future launches are projected to significantly increase both the number of active satellites and aggregate collision risk in Low Earth Orbit (LEO). In this paper, a dynamical systems theory approach is used to analyze the effect of launch…
The rapid advancement and miniaturization of spacecraft electronics, sensors, actuators, and power systems have resulted in growing proliferation of small-spacecraft. Coupled with this is the growing number of rocket launches, with…
Planet-planet collisions are a common outcome of instability in systems of transiting planets close to the star, as well as occurring during in-situ formation of such planets from embryos. Previous N-body studies of instability amongst…
We present the results of a large scale simulation, reproducing the behavior of a data center for the build-up and maintenance of a complete catalog of space debris in the upper part of the low Earth orbits region (LEO). The purpose is to…
Due to their strong resonances with their host planet, Trojan asteroids can remain in stable orbits for billions of years. As a result, they are powerful probes for constraining the dynamical and chemical history of the solar system.…
The nearby space surrounding the Earth is densely populated by artificial satellites and instruments, whose orbits are distributed within the Low-Earth-Orbit region (LEO), ranging between 90 and 2 000 $km$ of altitude. As a consequence of…