Related papers: Space Debris Removal using Nano-Satellites control…
Small satellites have proven to be viable Earth observation platforms. These satellites operate in regimes of increased trajectory uncertainty where traditional planning approaches can lead to sub-optimal task plans, limiting science…
In the near future, autonomous space systems will compose many of the deployed spacecraft. Their tasks will involve autonomous rendezvous and proximity operations with large structures, such as inspections, assembly, and maintenance of…
Capturing disused satellites in orbit and their controlled reentry is the aim of the DEOS space mission. Satellites that ran out of fuel or got damaged pose a threat to working projects in orbit. Additionally, the reentry of such objects…
We propose two algorithms to provide a full preliminary orbit of an Earth-orbiting object with a number of observations lower than the classical methods, such as those by Laplace and Gauss. The first one is the Virtual debris algorithm,…
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…
The increase in space debris is a threat to space assets, space based-operations and led to a common effort to develop programs for dealing with this increase. As part of the Portuguese Space Surveillance and Tracking (SST) project, led by…
One of the most challenging tasks for a flying robot is to autonomously navigate between target locations quickly and reliably while avoiding obstacles in its path, and with little to no a-priori knowledge of the operating environment. This…
Exploration of terrestrial planets such as Mars are conducted using orbiters, landers and rovers. Cameras and instruments onboard orbiters have enabled global mapping of Mars at low spatial resolution. Landers and rovers such as the Mars…
The question of how "smart" active agents, like insects, microorganisms, or future colloidal robots need to steer to optimally reach or discover a target, such as an odor source, food, or a cancer cell in a complex environment has recently…
Plastic has imbibed itself as an indispensable part of our day to day activities, becoming a source of problems due to its non-biodegradable nature and cheaper production prices. With these problems, comes the challenge of mitigating and…
Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), referenced as drones, have advanced to consumer adoption for hobby and business use. Drone applications, such as infrastructure technology, security mechanisms, and resource delivery, are just the starting…
Recent years have witnessed increasingly more uses of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) swarms for rapidly providing wireless coverage to ground users. Each UAV is constrained in its energy storage and wireless coverage, and it consumes most…
Maneuverable tether-net systems launched from an unmanned spacecraft offer a promising solution for the active removal of large space debris. Guaranteeing the successful capture of such space debris is dependent on the ability to reliably…
Uncontrolled spacecraft will disintegrate and generate a large amount of debris in the reentry process, and ablative debris may cause potential risks to the safety of human life and property on the ground. Therefore, predicting the landing…
Today, the near-Earth space is facing a paradigm change as the number of new spacecraft is literally sky-rocketing. Increasing numbers of small satellites threaten the sustainable use of space, as without removal, space debris will…
Traditional control methods effectively manage robot operations using models like motion equations but face challenges with issues of contact and friction, leading to unstable and imprecise controllers that often require manual tweaking.…
This paper presents a new detection method of faults at Nanosatellites' electrical power without an Attitude Determination Control Subsystem (ADCS) at the LEO orbit. Each part of this system is at risk of fault due to pressure tolerance,…
The number of small satellites has grown dramatically in the past decade from tens of satellites per year in the mid-2010s to a projection of tens of thousands in orbit by the mid-2020s. This presents both problems and opportunities for…
Earth is constantly being bombarded with material from space. Most of the natural material end up being dust grains that litter the surface of Earth, but larger bodies are known to impact every few decades. The most recent large impact was…
Autonomous navigation for nano-scale unmanned aerial vehicles (nano-UAVs) is governed by extreme Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) constraints (with the weight < 50 g and sub-100 mW onboard processor), distinguishing it fundamentally from…